Section archive - Formal Education

This study aimed to expose the perception of kindergarten teachers' role from a multicultural aspect, following the 'New Horizon' reform, i.e. a systemic change which transpired during the last decade in Israeli kindergartens and schools. The study was conducted in a qualitative-interpretive approach and the research population comprised eight female kindergarten teachers, four Bedouin and four Jewish. The data were collected by a semi-structured interview.

Peace education is considered a necessary element in establishing the social conditions required for promoting peace-making between rival parties. As such, it constitutes one of Israel’s state education goals, and would therefore be expected to have a significant place in Israel’s educational policy in general and in response to peace moves that have occurred during the Arab–Israeli conflict since the 1970s in particular. This article reviews the educational policy actually applied by Israel’s state education over the years as reflected in formal educational programs and school textbooks, and suggests that although some significant changes have taken place over time, there has been and still is a significant gap between the stated goal and the practice of peace education in Israel. Reasons for this disparity and its implications are discussed and possible directions are proposed for coping with this educational challenge.

Imagine the perfect classroom for kids with attention and learning disorders: bouncy chairs made from yoga balls, distraction-free décor, walled-off study/tutoring cubicles, desks on wheels and a touch of the outdoors. Only there’s no need to imagine it. The unique “Yes I Can!” classroom at Darca High School in Kiryat Malachi opened this school year. And if it proves to be a good working model, the Darca network will implement this totally Israeli innovation in its other 24 high schools serving the socio-economic periphery of Israel.

The establishment of formal Torah education for women across the Orthodox spectrum certainly qualifies as one of the most significant changes in Jewish education in recent memory. Today, the notion that Orthodox girls and young women receive a school-based Torah education is completely commonplace. Less than one hundred years ago, it was virtually nonexistent. Much of this is related to the creation and growth of the Beit Ya’akov school system in Poland in the years between the two World Wars. Beit Ya’akov’s influence is most obvious in today’s Haredi sector, which identifies itself as heirs to that legacy, but the movement’s impact on the Modern Orthodox sector is no less profound. Despite the importance of Beit Ya’akov in the history of Orthodoxy and Jewish education, there is much that we do not know about its founding, growth, and development.