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Many, if not most, schools are aware of these challenges. Dedicated boards, leadership teams and teachers work tirelessly to grapple with these challenges to improve their schools, bit by bit. They follow a model of incremental changes, both because it demonstrates some success and because they lack the resources to take a paradigm-shifting approach. But the problem with making change incrementally is the risk that any changes may still be subject to the existing infrastructure — which might itself be the core problem.

But the informal Jewish education sector — that is, the various educational organizations outside of the school system — has taken the opposite approach. Birthright Israel, long-term Israel programs and the Jewish camping world are just a few examples of organizations that have brought in some genuinely ground-breaking initiatives and significant educational resources over the last 20 years. Their backers and innovators realized that the “incremental change” model was no longer working.

Although these organizations did not invent new ideas, they did work out how to scale them up, improve their innovative culture and attract significant funding in the hundreds of millions of dollars. They marketed their brand so it would be easily recognizable. They also set very high safety and logistics standards and required their guides to undergo formal training, thereby turning pre-existing good programs into excellent ones.

It is time for Jewish schools to learn from the informal sector’s example and consider how to usher in dramatic changes to Hebrew and Jewish studies. And changes are sorely needed. When it comes to secular curricula, governments and other public bodies (in most countries) set standards, provide resources and train teachers — oversight that results in an outstanding quality of resources. But Jewish and Hebrew studies do not have the same guidance from a centralized government, organization or school system, often causing their curricula to suffer in comparison.

Let us be clear: it is not Jewish and Hebrew studies teachers who are the problem. They are, in most cases, desperate to succeed, feeling the burden of expectation placed upon them by Jewish history as well as leadership, parents and the wider community. But schools struggle to raise sufficient funds for training and new resources, and even when they do, there is very little evaluation or benchmarking available to help them know what works.

One solution seems simple: why not create a similar infrastructure for Jewish studies? But unlike secular studies, there is no “one size fits all” model for Hebrew and Jewish studies, as they are offered within day schools that vary in denomination, philosophy and observance. This quandary has made it increasingly clear that large, drastic changes — like those the informal education sector can provide — are necessary to “reboot” the formal Jewish educational sector to help it reclaim its status and standing.

LARGE, DRASTIC CHANGES — LIKE THOSE THE INFORMAL EDUCATION SECTOR CAN PROVIDE — ARE NECESSARY TO “REBOOT” THE FORMAL JEWISH EDUCATIONAL SECTOR.

In the work of the World Center for Jewish Education (where I am the director), we are in regular contact with hundreds of Jewish teachers across the globe. Our experience and expertise have taught us that we need a central hub — an educational start-up. Organizations like Birthright have shown us that it is possible to dramatically change education with a small, smart and creative team. Our approach is inclusivist and specialized, designed to help each school fulfill its unique vision. Because of our experience and ability to maintain continuous communication with schools, we are able to focus on identifying each school’s immediate needs and supply the necessary solutions. We help ensure that Jewish schools, wherever they are on the religious spectrum, can demonstrate that Jewish and Hebrew studies are treated with the same degree of respect and care as secular studies.

Our hub provides:

• • Educational resources — Selected curricula from the best providers around the world with outstanding training and mentoring for teachers to implement them effectively
  • Strategic planning for leadership teams to ensure that their school has the vision and strategy to suit the needs of their students and families in their community
  • Fundraising consultancy and cost-saving initiatives to assist with both resource development and access to multi-school purchasing
  • Measurement and evaluation of teaching, curricula and learning outcomes to prove impact and improve standards
  • Marketing and branding to craft a strong narrative to represent each school effectively to multiple stakeholders and assist with student recruitment

Our Hub will operate as a small, focused center that examines the suitability of various programs and makes recommendations based on individual schools’ needs. We will provide funding to other organizations to develop or improve educational resources. We will also work with schools on specially-tailored programs, ensuring that Jewish studies and Hebrew teachers are equipped with the resources and support they need so every student can emerge as proud and active members of the Jewish community. This approach will require the synchronised strategic planning of educators, philanthropists, community leaders and the Israeli government.

We brought our “Hub” idea to school heads and Jewish/Hebrew Studies programs across the world and asked for their feedback. We have carefully considered the positive and constructive criticism, and our challenge will be to meet the expectations of our supporters and to demonstrate to the thoughtful critics that we are able to meet the challenges. We will continue the dialogue with both groups.

Resolving the dilemma of evolution or revolution in our approach to Jewish education in schools is a critical challenge that we believe can be navigated by a hub. The stakes could not be higher: hundreds of thousands of children study in Jewish schools around the world, and we need to show how vital this education is for the ongoing flourishing of the Jewish people. The best chance we have of creating future generations of active, literate and caring Jews is when our schools are able to generate a culture of innovation and excellence supported by stable infrastructure and sound finances. Luckily, we at WCJE have the educational vision and know-how to make it a reality, and we invite you to be our partner in this essential and exciting endeavor.

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Announced Thursday by the World Center for Jewish Education (WCJE), an organization that specializes in training educators and designing curriculum plans in Hebrew language and Jewish studies, it was first launched in June 2020, but the geopolitical reality at the time prevented it from really going public.

The UAE-Israel normalization, however, changes things. Not only is it now possible to make it public, but with the Economy Ministry estimating Emirati investment in the Jewish state to reach up to $350 million, interest is growing in learning Hebrew among the Gulf’s business, tourism and academic sectors. And, in addition, there is much speculation in Israel and abroad regarding which Gulf states could soon follow suit.

The WCJE Gulf Ulpan will offer the “Medabrim Ve’od” Hebrew language instruction program, which emphasizes practical Hebrew for daily usage and has been adapted for multiple learning formats. Furthermore, the program was also specially adapted for Arabic speakers, and will focus specifically on businesses, entrepreneurs, tourism operators, educators, students and the public. Likewise, many Israelis see the entrepreneurial potential of warmer ties with the UAE, and are eager to foster stronger ties in both the business and tourism sectors.

The program’s teaching methods will also be built on the WCJE’s years of experience, which has seen them work with over 150 different educational institutions in 15 different countries.

“Language is a powerful tool for building bridges between people. We are very excited to see the growing interest in learning Hebrew throughout the Gulf, as ties with Israel warm,” WCJE CEO Mickey Katzburg said in a statement.

“The WCJE Gulf Ulpan will make available, for the first time, the most effective program for learning spoken Hebrew.”

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Having worked for the last 20 years with hundreds of Jewish schools in more than 15 countries, I believe that there is one sure way to increase these schools’ impact on both their students and the broader community: investing in the Jewish teacher.

While such a policy prescription might seem obvious, this is far from being the case. In countless conversations with teachers, I hear over and over again their desire to supplement their passion for teaching with professional pedagogical training and development. While they are appreciative of innovative educational materials and technologies introduced by their schools, they feel the need for in-depth instruction in how to make best use of these new tools, and for ongoing support throughout the year.

Sadly, I have seen numerous times how idealistic teachers, put in front of a classroom without the proper preparation and support, fail to engage the pupils and become frustrated and dispirited. This is one of the main reasons for the high rate of turnover which plagues many Jewish schools.

Conversely, a teacher who truly knows how to make the subject of study relevant and meaningful to the lives of his or her students can turn an ordinary classroom into a transformative experience. An empowered and confident educator can inspire Jewish students to become active citizens of the Jewish world. Such teachers are much more likely to remain in their schools over the long term, thereby bringing both stability and savings to their institutions.

The COVID-19 pandemic has thrown the centrality of the teacher into sharp relief. As schools have closed and learning has gone virtual, the dry course material has become less important. What has become much more important is the versatility of the teacher, his or her ability to adapt on the fly to changing circumstances, and to maintain the bonds with students through the screen.

Over the last few months, as director of the World Center for Jewish Education (WCJE), I have met, virtually, with over 150 Judaic and Hebrew studies teachers from around the world, from Argentina to the United States, from the Netherlands to Russia, and from Australia to the Arab world (two Hebrew-language instructors at a prominent Arab university.) The number one concern I hear in these conversations is how to structure the educational experience when it has gone virtual, or has become a blend of frontal and online learning.

It is crucial that we rapidly equip Jewish educators with the tools and skills needed to thrive in this new reality. If not, we risk losing a generation of Jewish students.

The second most frequent concern that I hear is the challenge of declining school income, as economies take a downturn due to the pandemic. I believe that there are several effective but underutilized ways in which schools can reduce costs.

For example, in the past, many schools purchased teaching programs that came with their own proprietary technological platforms. Such programs often required paying for annual updates and licenses. Today, with the proper training, tools such as Google Classroom and Microsoft Teams can replace these technological platforms and provide many additional functionalities.

Together with using widely available technologies, schools can reduce costs by training educators to become proficient in creating their own curriculums and teaching materials. While there will likely always remain a need for educational institutions to purchase certain materials and coursework, schools can save money by training their teachers to create their own lesson plans and assignments.

Using the right strategies and methods, committed educators can often create tailor-made materials which address the unique needs of their students, thereby ensuring maximum educational impact.

Some schools have already developed expertise at this task. The next step then is to connect such schools with others that are looking to develop this skill. For example, the WCJE is now facilitating a partnership between a school in the American South with extensive experience in training educators to create their own curriculum, and a group of schools in the Ukraine that is facing the dual challenges of budget constraints and of engaging students with little Jewish background.

This is one partnership being developed through the worldwide network of schools that we are building. Our network of diverse Jewish educational institutions enables teachers with similar challenges or complementary skills to share best practices and strengthen one another.

An additional acute challenge facing many Jewish schools, particularly in light of COVID-19, is the need to convince Jewish parents of the very importance of investing in Jewish education. As many families, faced with economic uncertainty, ask themselves why they should pay for a dual curriculum, school leaders will need to become skilled marketers in promoting the importance of educated citizenship in the Jewish world.

Such “marketing” must be done in a way that speaks to the deepest values and aspirations of their target audiences, rather than to their pocketbooks or calculations of utility. This too is a skill that does not come naturally to many educators, but that can be taught.

As the Israeli government and Diaspora Affairs Minister Omer Yankelevich develop their strategic plan for turning the July 5 government resolution into a reality, it is critical that in the field of formal education, they put the teacher in the center. The budgetary pressures wrought by COVID-19 will require that the Israeli government’s investment in schools abroad be cost-effective and targeted. To borrow a metaphor from the start-up nation, channeling resources to these schools will need to be done through smart drip-irrigation, rather than through rain.

The Israeli government has set a high, but extremely important, bar for itself by adopting the goal of achieving “a real and substantive impact on young members of the Jewish People.” By placing the Jewish teacher at the center, it can achieve this goal in the most efficient, effective and impactful way.

Mickey Katzburg is the director of the World Center for Jewish Education, and an educational innovator with more than 20 years of experience in Israel and abroad.

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The organizer of the meeting was the Center for Jewish Education of Ukraine and the World Center for Jewish Education (Israel).

The aim of the meeting was getting acquainted with the working experience of the educational institutions of various types with the Jewish ethnic and cultural component, studying organizational and methodological issues in teaching Hebrew, history, tradition, literature and cultural heritage of the Jewish people, the challenges of advanced training of educators, developing fruitful cooperation.

Among the participants of the international meeting were the heads and representatives of the educational institutions of Ukraine and Israel, directors and teachers of the educational establishments of Ukraine with Jewish ethnic and cultural component. In particular, the participants of the meeting were:

Mickey Katzburg, the executive director at World Center for Jewish Education (Israel,   Jerusalem);

Sheli Ehrlich, the director of Hebrew Education Department, Consultant & Mentor for Teacher Training​ of World Center for Jewish education (Israel, Jerusalem);

Linda Cohen, a representative of Hedi Hirsch Foundation (the USA);

Natalia Bakulina, the head of the Center for Jewish Education of Ukraine (Ukraine,   Kyiv);

Natella Andryuschenko, the principal of Private educational establishment «Teaching and educational complex «Comprehensive school of І-ІІІ stages – kindergarten «Mitzva-613»» (Ukraine, Bila Tserkva);

Leya Althuz, the teacher of Hebrew and Jewish tradition of the Municipal educational establishment «Teaching and educational complex №144 «Specialized school with advanced learning of Hebrew, history Jewish people, Jewish traditions – pre-school educational institution (kindergarten)» Dnipro city council (Ukraine, Dnipro);

Anna Stepanska, the principal of Private educational establishment «Jewish gymnasium «Or-avner» with advanced learning of English and Hebrew» (Ukraine, Zhytomyr);

Svitlana Lisogor, the deputy-principal of Private educational establishment «Jewish gymnasium «Or-avner» with advanced learning of English and Hebrew» (Ukraine, Zhytomyr);

Hani Rubin, the teacher of Jewish tradition of Private educational establishment «Jewish gymnasium «Or-avner» with advanced learning of English and Hebrew» (Ukraine, Zhytomyr);

Irina Fridman, the teacher of history and tradition of Jewish people of the Municipal educational establishment «Teaching and educational complex № 141 «ORT» («Education resources and technological training of Kyiv») (Ukraine, Kyiv);

Mihalle Zelikson, the teacher of Hebrew of the Municipal educational establishment «Kriviy Rih specialized school of І-ІІІ stages with advanced learning of foreign languages – pre-school educational institution» Kryviy Rih city council (Ukraine, Kryviy Rih);

Raisa Scherbatiuk, the teacher of Hebrew of the Municipal educational establishment «Odessa Volodymyr (Zeev) Zhabotynsky specialized school of І-ІІІ stages «Teaching resources and technological training» №94 with advanced learning of Hebrew and IT of Odessa city council (Ukraine, Odessa);

Natalia Berezhna, the teacher of Hebrew of the Municipal educational establishment «Odessa Volodymyr (Zeev) Zhabotynsky specialized school of І-ІІІ stages «Teaching resources та technological training» №94 with advanced learning of Hebrew and IT of Odessa city council (Ukraine, Odessa);

Haya Wolf, the teacher of Hebrew and Jewish tradition of the Private educational establishment «Teaching and education association «Pre-school establishment – a specialized school of І-ІІІ stages UVO “Khabad” with advanced learning of English and Hebrew» (Ukraine,   Kherson);

Olha Scherbak, the teacher of Hebrew of the Municipal educational establishment «Chervnivtsi specialized school ORT of І-ІІІ stages №41 with teaching Jewish ethnic and cultural component» (Ukraine, Chernivtsi);

Alina Shafra, the teacher of Hebrew of the Municipal educational establishment  «Chervnivtsi specialized school ORT of І-ІІІ stages №41 with teaching Jewish ethnic and cultural component» (Ukraine, Chernivtsi);

Odelia Rogovaya, the teacher of Jewish tradition of the Private educational establishment «Teaching and educational complex «Pre-school establishment – a specialized school of І-ІІІ stages «Or Avner» Khabad Lubavitch (Ukraine, Chernihiv).

The educators presented their institutions and told what curricula and manuals they use in their work, shared the experience of implementing long-distance learning, discussed available and necessary education resources, emphasized topical needs and challenges of organization and implementation of pedagogical activity.

As a result of this discussion the following topical needs of nowadays have been identified:

1. advanced training both in Jewish Studies disciplines and long-distance learning with obtaining the corresponding certificate;
2. creating a unified online education platform in the  subjects of the Jewish studies cycle;
3. creating curricula, textbooks and manuals, didactic and methodological sets for teaching Hebrew, history, tradition and literature of Jewish people according to various types of educational institutions (communal, municipal and private, secular and religious) as well as the number of hours allotted for this or that subject;
4. human resource provision of the teachers of Hebrew, history, tradition and literature of Jewish people;
5. financial and curricula-methodological provision of the institutions of pre-school and comprehensive secondary education;
6. organizing the consulting and methodological accompaniment for the teachers.

As a result of the meeting a number of ideas have been suggested for short-term and long-term implementation. Thus, there has been a preliminary agreement about organization of the series of webinars in long-distance learning, the methodology of teaching Hebrew and advanced training of educators aimed at enhancing their expertise as well as networking, establishing partnership and mutual assistance, engaging both Ukrainian and international experts to fruitful cooperation.

The photo-report of the meeting is attached.

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OpenDor is a hub for 400 educational institutions across the globe and has more than 25,000 subscribers. In response to the coronavirus outbreak, Unpacked has created videos, quizzes, feature-length films, classes and webinars for students in sixth grade through high school.

“We’re facing an unprecedented challenge. It’s not only the schools that are trying to figure things out, it’s the parents,” said Noam Weissman, OpenDor Media’s senior vice president of education, who is based in Los Angeles. “They’re now dealing with teenagers being home and managing them, while hoping they learn in a meaningful way.”

Already, YULA Boys High School, YULA Girls High School and Milken Community Schools are some of the local partners using OpenDor Media’s resources. On March 23, OpenDor launched a new livestreaming 30-minute class. Classes also will have well-known guest speakers. Upcoming guests include author Yossi Klein Halevi, journalist Bari Weiss and speechwriter Sarah Hurwitz.

Another online resource providing access to its content is Aleph Beta, which is normally $7.50 to $15 per month but now is free for one month. It also is giving teachers access so they can build virtual classrooms.

Aleph Beta’s website is geared toward Jewish children and features cartoon videos on biblical subjects. Aleph Beta Director of Torah Research and Development Beth Lesch told the Journal if this were any other year, the site would be putting out a lot of Passover content at this time. Now, however, in addition to Passover videos, it is doing what it can to support the Jewish community.

“We’ve set up a resource page where people can find high-quality, curated recommendations for how to pull together Pesach under stressful circumstances; how to support your kids and how to care for your own mental health,” she said.

“WE’RE FACING AN UNPRECEDENTED CHALLENGE. IT’S NOT ONLY THE SCHOOLS THAT ARE TRYING TO FIGURE THINGS OUT, IT’S THE PARENTS.” — NOAM WEISSMAN

To encourage kids to keep reading books at home, the National Library of Israel (navigate to English page) is offering free audio books as part of Pocket Library, an initiative from its Israel National Center for Humanities Education, in partnership with the Ministry of Education. Some of the audiobooks on the ICast app include “The Moroccan Boy’s Love” by Dorit Orgad, “Uncle Arie’s Adventures in the Tibetan Ocean,” by Yannets Levi and Orit Bergman’s “Diary of a Shark Catcher.”

A group of U.S.- and Israel-based Jewish children’s book authors called The Book Meshuggenahs are offering free online activities inspired by their books. They include coloring pages, cut paper illustration lessons for Passover and instructions on how to write haiku with Jewish themes.

“It is important for kids to stay occupied and interact with children’s books to keep their minds and imaginations alert, growing and ready to dive back into school,” said Amy Losak, who is a member of The Book Meshuggenahs. “Also, these activities are a reminder that learning and reading are fun.”

To help parents navigate their homeschooling tasks, the World Center for Jewish Education (WCJE)  is offering a 24-hour hotline for educators by educators, free advice on distance learning, substantial subsidies for shipping educational materials and guidance on technical troubleshooting.

WCJE CEO Mickey Katzburg said the organization can help parents and children maintain some semblance of stability. “Ongoing learning keeps them engaged and positive, which is important for mental well-being,” Katzburg said. “Maintaining their bond with their teacher and classmates provides them with a sense of stability and connectedness during this period of increasing isolation. The time that the students are engaged in distance learning also provides an important break for their parents.”

CORRECTION: A previous version of this article incorrectly stated that Amy Losak runs The Book Meshugganehs.

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