PERSONAL REFLECTIONS ON THE ROLE OF ART IN JEWISH EDUCATION

There are two components to this presentation — one deals with sociological analysis, whether based on research data or on armchair speculation; the other is outright prognostication. Only a very thin line divides prognostication from prophecy, and I am keenly aware of the dangers to which I am exposing myself since, as our sages taught us after the destruction of the Temple, only children and fools possess prophetic faculties. This danger is compounded by the very nature of our professional work. We cannot merely speculate about the future; our métier requires that we propose policy or, if you prefer, assist and guide our lay leadership in making policy.     

JEWISH EDUCATION IN IRAN

Introduction

Historically, two periods are discernible in the development of the system of extra-curricular activities in the Israeli schools — the first period, from the founding of the first Israeli high school around the beginning of the twentieth century to the establishment of the State of Israel (1948), and the second period, from 1948 to the present. The main difference between the two stages lies in the degree of local autonomy in the administration of the activity program.     

NEEDED INVESTIGATIONS IN JEWISH EDUCATION

This article takes up categories from literature on political and civic engagement to help make sense of data collected from interviews with 40 American Jewish day high school students about what they think and feel about Israel. Viewed through a set of lenses that distinguish between the manifestations and motivations of political and civic engagement, the article helps clarify why young Jews, even when actively and positively engaged with Israel, are uncomfortable labeling themselves as Zionists. The analysis points to an important distinction between the concepts of Israel as “home” and “homeland.” The article also raises important questions about what is presumed to be an increasing distance or alienation from Israel among young American Jews.     

JEWISH EDUCATION IN EXTREMIS: A PROLEGOMENON TO POSTMODERN JEWISH EDUCATIONAL THOUGHT

Abstract In this article the author argues that for 150 years Jewish education has negotiated the tensions between modernity and Judaism by means of liberal religion, ultra Orthodoxy, and secular Zionism. All three are in crisis today due to the rise of postmodernism. Jewish educational thought therefore needs to create new syntheses between Jewish and postmodern life. To this end the concepts of Aliyah, modernity, and exile should be reevaluated and Jewish education should embrace the goal of working with God toward redemption. For more than 150 years Jewish education has focused on the tensions between rabbinic Judaism and modernity. Each of the models for negotiating these tensions-religious liberalism, ultra orthodoxy, and secular Zionism-succeeded beyond the imaginations of those who conceived them. Yet, each is in a state of crisis today, resulting from a deconstruction of both the rabbinic and modern assumptions upon which they are based. Addressing these crises requires reevaluation of key assumptions about the educational significance of Israel, modernity, and exile in order to lay the groundwork for more productive interactions between the Jewish people and its heritage on the one hand and the postmodern condition into which we are emerging on the other.     

GIFTED EDUCATION IN JEWISH DAY SCHOOLS

Although there are many Jewish day schools within the United States, relatively few offer gifted programs. The schools that do offer programs differ from each other, offering various forms of enrichment. We discuss the exemplary standards for gifted programs established by the National Association for Gifted Children and illustrate how the standards could be applied to Jewish day schools. The information provided can be useful for decision making, implementing and improving gifted programs in Jewish day schools.