Revelation of abuses as a watershed in German New Education : Abandon or continue the tradition?

In March 2010, the revelation of a series of sexual abuses turned a critical spotlight on Odenwaldschule, a prestigious reformist school in Germany. Since its founding in April 1910, Odenwaldschule has epitomized the spirit of the German Landerzienhungheim movement, and has been regarded as a leader in German New Education whose educational concepts remain relevant to the present day. As a consequence, the current surge of criticism is directed not only at Odenwaldschule itself but also at the Landerziehungsheim movement and German New Education at large. While many professionals, both theorists and practicioners, continue to support these concepts and advocate their continued use in practice, the leading educational theorist Jürgen Oelkers claims that this stance glorifies New Education and prevents its realistic assessment. He takes the radical line of condemning both the Landerziehungsheim movement and German New Education at large as a source of harmful concepts and recommends a clean break with New Education, especially with its educational concepts in a way of expressing itself. Oelkers, however, does not condemn every practice of New Education. Thus, the two parties to this dispute share the common ground of believing in the necessity of educational ideals and of respect for educational practice