Trend: Zionist Orthodox Schools Adopting Haredi Educaltion Methods

More and more Zionist Orthodox grade schools have no summer vacation, and more and more move to teach by rote, rather than by analyzing texts.

 

Ha’aretz reports that there is a growing trend among Zionist Orthodox schools to follow the lead of haredi schools and stay in session all year, eliminating most of summer vacation.

It notes that a student at a Zionist Orthodox yeshiva elementary school in Beit El got only one scheduled day off this summer – the fast day of Tisha B'Av. School was even in session on Israel’s Independence Day, albeit with shortened hours.

Unlike its haredi counterparts though, the Beit El school teaches secular subjects like math and science along with Torah.

The Zionist Orthodox schools tend to consider summer session optional, and while most students attend, many take a few vacation days to go on trips with their parents and siblings.

Most haredi schools normally have a three week scheduled vacation between Tisha B’Av and Rosh Hodesh Elul.

However, some hasidic schools – especially those in Mea She'arim that officially get no government money – don't have summer vacation. Instead, they limit vacation time to Sukkot, Passover, and few days before Passover needed for preparation for the holiday.

Though the Beit El school, Sha’arei Shamayim, has existed for almost 20 years, it reportedly became more strict only recently when it adopted a haredi-like curriculum, the Zilberman Method, that stresses memorizing the Torah and Mishnayot rather than analyzing the text.

The Zilberman Method began to be adopted by Zionist Orthodox schools because of the hardal (haredi dati leumi) faction of Zionist Orthodoxy, whose members are Zionist and often – but not always – serve in the army. But in almost every other way, including theologically, hardal followers are close to haredim.

Comments

[Nathan]

More and more Zionist Orthodox grade schools have no summer vacation

The kids must love that! Does that mean that the teachers will get paid more? Remember this was a vacation for the teachers too!

[dlz]

One correction (couldn't expect Haaretz to get this right): The Zilberman method stresses memorizing the text in addition to, not rather than analyzing the text.

[Nathan]

In the Zilberman-styled school, a new text of Chumash is introduced in the following manner (obviously adjustments are made for each gradetlevel). On Monday and Tuesday, the rebbe chants the text with the ta’amei ha’mikra (tropp) and the students immediately imitate him. This is repeated several times until the students are able to read the text independently. Then the rebbe introduces the translation/explanation of the text and invites students to participate in the process.

http://www.ou.org/index.php/jewish_action/article/67002/

[Garnel Ironheart]

1) The idea of all-year schooling is not an exclusive problem to Israel's religious sector. Here in Canada there are calls every so often for the public system to go to a full year system since many kids tend to spend September just trying to get their brains in gear for school after taking 2 months off and this hurts their progress.
2) Memorizing skills are underappreciated and denigrated in today's society but there is tremendous value in memorizing texts. I would venture that folks raised a couple of generations ago in the public system where memorizing long poems and entire scenes from Shakespeare's plays have better recall and retention skills than people who analyze a text and then forget its contents the next day.
3) To summarize: they're teaching kids to memorize, they still teach secular subjects and they still send their kids to the army but they're bad because they took away summer break.

[Jeff]

Unlike its haredi counterparts though, the Beit El school teaches secular subjects like math and science along with Torah.

Yeah, how long will that last?

Another step forward in the Haredi takeover of Orthodoxy. Like sheep to the slaughter. They aren't even making it difficult for them.

[Rabbi David Wolpe Shlita]

How can you be Zionist and Orthodox?

[Jeff]

How can you be Zionist and Orthodox?

You're brain dead, yet you manage to use a computer.

[jancsibacsi]

Jeff-Hahaha thats a good one brain dead and manage to use a computer:))

[jancsibacsi]

Rabbi David Wolpe Shlita-Just by being alive you can do both no problem for me.

[Rabbi David Wolpe Shlita]

Jancsibacsi - Yasher koach! A blessing on your head.

[Rocky]

Read about Chaim Levin's experiences at the Chabad school Oholei Torah in Brooklyn here:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/chaim-levin/national-education-day-and-the-education-chabad-never-game-me_b_1401504.html

It is unfortunate that a growing number of Jewish youngsters are being set up for academic and economic failure via the Haredi education system.

[Yochanan Lavie]

Garnel is correct that memorization is an undervalued skill. I had to memorize the beginning of the General Prologue of the Canterbury Tales in Middle English, and I can still recite it. I wish knew more material by heart. That said, memorization alone is not sufficient and should be only a supplement to a curriculum that encourages analysis.

[Bas Melech]

The Zilberman Method is modern chareidi. It is supposed to be very good. In past generations, US public schools required a lot of memorization--poems, Declaration of Independence, Constitution. There is nothing wrong with this form of instruction.

What the religious zionist schools should not adopt is deterrence of questioning and deeper exploration into subjects taught.

Long school terms are common in some school systems, especially outside the US.

[Feminsta]

"Haredi Educaltion" - Shmarya, no offense, but you need to get a proofreader educated in a secular school! (I admit that proofreading your own stuff is really hard though.)

[Dave]

Speaking of memorization- an uncle (by marriage) of mine's mother, a very frum woman, brought up in the British colonial system of education would recite by heart entire sections of Tennyson's poem "Horatius at the bridge".

[MM]

"I had to memorize the beginning of the General Prologue of the Canterbury Tales in Middle English, and I can still recite it. I wish knew more material by heart. That said, memorization alone is not sufficient and should be only a supplement to a curriculum that encourages analysis."

Those of us who teach (or in my case taught) Chaucer encounter people from all walks of life who will greet us with a recitation of the opening lines of the General Prologue of the Canterbury Tales, and we are pleased and gratified every time it happens. People who live(d) in pre-literate cultures were capable of feats of memory and oral composition that we today, dependent on the written word, can only marvel at. It does not hurt to give young children exercises in memorization. The problem results when education is confined to memorization and regurgitation, with no analysis or critical thinking.

As for year-round schooling per se, I see no problem with that either. I also do not see it as any sort of educational panacea. For example, the Las Vegas public schools have (had?) year round school. and their standards are abysmal.

What matters are the nature of the curriculum and whether or not critical thinking and a spirit of inquiry are encouraged.

[God is not amused]

No vactation = No down time= burn out = easier to mind control and manipulate. Are they looking to create burnt out sheeple? or healthy relaxed minds that can learn deductive reasoning?

ANS: they want burnt out mindless sheeple: Exactly like the Chassid communities.

A healthy body, healthy mind, needs downtime as in "Vacation."

[sadisticstevestrong]

Are they looking to create burnt out sheeple? YES.

or healthy relaxed minds that can learn deductive reasoning? NO.

That is the mentality of religious fanatics.