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Questions to Ask When Choosing a School for Your Children

October 21, 2012 by 12 Comments
Schoolgirls

This post originally appeared in January, 2009. Here is an update, including the original comments. When parents are choosing a school for their oldest child, they might imagine that they will find the perfect school. Compromise is more likely. But once you decide your priorities, you can go ahead and make the best choice for your child and family. How to Find Information: Ask parents with children in the school. Keep in mind that their information will be biased. Once children are settled in a school, parents sometimes need to justify their decision and may minimize issues. They may also have an interest in encouraging parents to send to their school (or discouraging undesirable … [Read more...]

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Sex Separation in State Religious Schools a National Issue

August 22, 2011 by 11 Comments
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The story brewing over the last few months regards the character of the state religious schools, known in Hebrew by the acronym MM"D or mamad (not to be confused with safe rooms that use the same acronym and pronunciation). And like so many previous educational struggles involving mamad, this one takes place right here in Petach Tikva. Amishav started off as a transit camp for North African immigrants on the outskirts of the city. Like so many other maabarot, it remained depressed. Around 20 years ago the city began to develop the neighborhood, now known as Hadar Ganim. The influx of national-religious parents decided to send their children to the local mamad, called Morasha, and thus … [Read more...]

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Who "Owns" Your Kid’s Homework?

June 10, 2011 by 17 Comments
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Some teachers think that parents are responsible for their kids' homework. Most parents think they are too. I disagree. I'm not saying that homework is unimportant, or that kids should get a pass.  But once children have been in school for a while, the responsibility for homework needs to shift over to them. But what if my child fails because she doesn't do homework? The child should be taught that doing assignments will help help her get better grades. If the child realizes that the homework is irrelevant to her test scores, or that she doesn't care about the grades, that's okay. Don't children have to learn to follow instructions and do things we don't like? Sure, in most jobs or … [Read more...]

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How to Deal with Bullying

March 2, 2011 by 43 Comments
bully-free-zone-sign

My friend shared the following story: Her 10-year-old son came home from school with a red slap mark on his face. He'd been hit hard enough that the mark was still visible by the time he got home. The parents called the school and the child was switched to the other class. But that afternoon at mincha in the neighborhood synagogue, the boy told my friend's son "We're out of school now, so I can do whatever I want." The next day, the 10-year-old was walking home with his little sister. Unrelated to the previous day's events, two boys threw shoes with dog droppings at my friend's children. When the father called to complain, the principal's reaction was, "Your son's in trouble again?" … [Read more...]

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Making Aliyah Mid-Year with Kids

November 28, 2010 by 19 Comments
El Al plane

I received this question from TYm: My family is planning to make aliyah next year in the late fall. We have two children 4 an 1 with a baby on the way. We are moving to Rehovot where I will be doing a post-doc in the sciences. We’re still not certain what my husband will have lined up. Any general suggestions for transitioning kids in the middle of the school year and for mom’s that will be working full time immediately? With kids who will be 2 and 5, the middle of the year shouldn't be such a problem. You will have most of the year to get the older one ready for first grade, if that is your plan. If possible, reserve their spots in gan before you get here. If your husband can … [Read more...]

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Principal Threatens Student with Social Isolation

April 16, 2010 by 12 Comments
lonely tree

(This is a similar, but different case than the more highly publicized Emanuel case. That one made it to court.) When Israeli parents in the religious system talk about school choice, they say they want education according to their religious standards. But in every conflict, you find that the main concern is not what the children will learn, but with whom they will learn. Parents firmly assert their right to reject students from the "wrong kind" of family. At the beginning of the school year, a Beit Yaakov (haredi girl's school) in Beit Shemesh refused to accept a group of neighborhood girls to first grade. (The girls all happened to be Sephardi. The school is mainly Ashkenazi.) Most of … [Read more...]

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Gifted Education in Israel

June 9, 2009 by 13 Comments

A reader whose child was being tested for giftedness asked me to write about the Education Ministry's programs. Testing Israeli children are tested for giftedness in second or third grade, depending on the municipality. To be accepted into the education ministry's programming for the following year, a child must pass two tests. The first test, known as Shlav Aleph, takes place within the school. Parents are notified in advance so they can opt out.  Usually schools send the five top-scoring children from each class to the second test.  If your child isn't chosen, it's relatively easy to get accepted for the second test. The second test, Shlav Bet, is administered in a local … [Read more...]

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Petach Tikva: Election Issues

November 8, 2008 by 7 Comments

In light of my previous post, Lion of Zion asked about the issues in the upcoming municipal elections.We will cast two ballots this Tuesday, one for the local council (27 seats) and another for mayor. This year 159,000 residents have voting rights, beginning at age 17. The incumbent mayor, Itzik Ohayon, has overseen tremendous development in the city, but the other four candidates claim his candidacy has been a bastion of corruption and cronyism. When a mayor is involved in so many decisions about building, transportation, and development, there are going to be a lot of complaints, and worse.According to Wikipedia, Petach Tikva's population grows at an annual rate of 2.4%.One supporter … [Read more...]

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“Your Daughter is Smart, but You Don’t Have to Worry”

May 6, 2008 by 25 Comments

Our friends recently met their 15-year-old daughter's teacher at the semi-annual parent-teacher conference. The daughter attends a religious Zionist girls' high school, whose matriculation scores regularly rank it among the top three schools in the country. The teacher told them, "Your daughter is smart, but you don't have to worry. She's not so smart that she'll have a problem getting a shidduch." This is wrong on so many levels. The teacher is employed by a school, yet she places a low value on women's intelligence, and by extension, education for girls. She assumes that most men feel the same way. And my friends are not looking for a son-in-law for their ninth-grader. The … [Read more...]

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Mothering and the Teaching Profession

November 15, 2007 by 17 Comments

I recently met a lawyer who quit her job after the birth of her third baby. If she had to do it again she told me she would become a teacher, despite the low salary and status. She wants a profession that allows her to spend time with her children. There is a lot of talk of making teachers more "professional" by having them work longer hours and giving them more responsibility. Yet many women choose teaching because they see it as a way to combine career and family. It's still a big commitment; they answer phone calls from parents and must take enrichment courses. They prepare for class and attend meetings. But teaching is still much more family-friendly than law or high-tech. You get to … [Read more...]

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