Schools
Glenaeon Rudolf Steiner School
Closed until Friday
8:00 am - 4:00 pm
Glenaeon Rudolf Steiner School
Cherishing childhood. Educating for excellence.A rich and rigorous education of discovery that respects childhood, builds resilient individuals and celebrates the human spirit.
Glenaeon Rudolf Steiner School is an independent, co-educational school catering for children from Preschool through to Year 12. We are situated on three campuses in Sydney's lower north shore. Our main campus at Middle Cove is located in beautiful bush land grounds reaching down into Middle Harbour.
Contact details
Brands
- Preschool to Year 12 Steiner education.
I am very impressed with Glenaeon for many reasons and across numerous levels. For one, the physical environment is beautiful, peaceful and natural. The buildings are not just functional... they are non-imposing, some are quite beautiful, and they are sensitive to the natural surrounds. The lay-out is very containing and creates a contemplative atmosphere. The bottom oval is gorgeous. The non-competitive culture of the school suits my child who is very academic and intelligent but found the previous school, which gave out a lot of certificates and rewards for good work, suffocating in its attention to achievement. I love the fact that Glenaeon does not have a speech day where only a select few a rewarded for academic success. I love the way the school acknowledges psychological development and integrates this into the curriculum. They have also attended closely to any concerning psychological/social developments amongst the children and have dealt with them ...read more
Thanks for your lovely review Alison, so happy to hear you're experience has been such a happy one for your child.
In the 2014 HSC, 7out of 27 students were on the 'Distinguished Achievers' list for NSW. But more importantly they were a kind, thoughtful, well rounded group of individuals; ready to take their place in the world beyond high school. One of the benefits of having years 3 - 12 all on one campus, are the unselfconscious friendships formed up and down the school. My daughter joined in year 4 and received friendship and support from kids older and younger. The kids come from all across Sydney to learn in this welcoming, Bushland setting and not just the North Shore. My daughter has friends from as far afield as Maroubra, Marrickville and Manly. When her year group almost doubled with students joining in year 7, friendships were immediately forged at a wilderness camp in term 1, friendships that will last well beyond high school. The benefit of a Steiner education is that there are no stereotypes, everyone is just a kid, albeit a kid that can draw, sing, play a couple of ...read more
Thanks for your lovely review Emmy and very glad to hear about your daughter's happy experience at Glenaeon.
This is an incredibley cliquey school. The whole place encompasses an air of superiority as if they believe they are somehow "above" the rest of the world. This results in the school being very disconnected from reality as students acquire a sense of security in this little secluded environment which is so different to the real world. Parents of the students were very cliquey and judgmental, as if you did not have a certain kind of personality, a certain amount of wealth and important connections to people who were already in the school - you were most certainly not welcome to the group and were excluded. The students heavily reflected these attitudes as well - girls were cliquey and boys were aggressive and were reluctant to accept new students into their group. Some of the subjects taught at this school seemed to be awfully pointless as well - eurythmy seemed to serve no purpose other than allowing students to prance around the classroom appearing as if they were ...read more
Hi, thanks. We have also been exploring Steiner education and know some parents who are happy with this school although Steiner is a bit quirky. I was wondering how old your child is? The points you raised also worry me, but many private schools are also snobby and I wonder if there something to be said for not being part of the treadmill that forces kids to achieve at an early age. I think the key for me would be to know how kids actually turn out, socially and educationally from this school. Do you have any statistics about matriculation results? I agree that a school like this may be a bit risky and not for everyone, but am thinking for some kids it may suit them to learn in a less pressured way in a nice environment. I see so many kids struggle until year 12 and by that time they have lost all their self confidence. I would appreciate your feedback. Also, why do the kids become cliquey at this school? Do you think it's the fault of the school? Or the influence of their parents?
Hi Captain Cook. My child was in high school while attending this school since you were wondering. From what I observed from the school, many of the children turned out to be very confident, which is of coarse a positive thing, but they were also quite snobbish and had this attitude of superiority to the rest of the world which bothered me quite a lot. In regards to education, I saw a lot of the children being quite lazy since some of the work was quite easy and did not challenge students like public schools do. I agree that some children may suit this environment but they would honestly need a certain type of personality to fit into the whole Steiner culture. I saw some children thrive on the environment and become very confident, while others became timid and beaten down by the louder and more boisterous students who could be quite agressive at times. And I think kids become cliquey because of the environment and small numbers.
I would also like to mention that this school is a lot better for primary school education since it encourages creativity at a young age. I didn't see much of the cliquiness occuring in the primary school sector, I think its more the high school you should be weary of.
Thanks for your reply. From what I have read about Steiner it is a bit hit and miss depending on the child, the school and the teachers. Would be interested to know how it does academically. Anyway, Thanks for posting. Would be interested to hear other views from parents at the school present and past. Can't say I am too keen about all the Steiner based pseudo religion but seems most parents just ignore it as a trade off for what they see as the educational benefits. I agree with you generally Steiner seems more suitable for primary school than high school
We're genuinely sorry to hear that this was your experience at Glenaeon. As a small school of just over 450 students, we keep numbers relatively low to ensure each student is known and cared for on an individual basis. And as a mid-range fee paying independent school on Sydney's lower north shore, our families come from a range of socio-economic backgrounds and ethnicities and we pride ourselves on our strong parent community. Please feel free to contact us at [email protected] to discuss your concerns.
