Rav Yaakov Ariel Meets With Orot Guidance Students

by Ravid Tirosh and Arieh Cohen 
Graduate Students, Guidance Department 

As the 5774 school year came to an end, Rav Yaakov Ariel, Chief Rabbi of Ramat Gan and a veteran Orot Israel College lecturer, met with all the graduate students from Orot’s guidance department. Rav Professor Neria Guttel, President of Orot Israel College, greeted the attendees and extolled Orot’s guidance department. He noted that everything is contained in the Torah - "הפוך בה והפוך בה דכולא בה" (“delve into it and delve into it, for everything is in it” – Avot 5:26) – but we must also use universal tools in order to uncover and acquire all this wisdom and knowledge. Thus, Rav Guttel explained, Rav Ariel’s invitation to Orot represents the integration of the Torah approach with the professional, scientific approach. In other words, the idea of "חכמה בגוים תאמין" (“you may believe that there is wisdom among the nations of the world”) is combined with Torat Yisrael.
Rav Ariel began his talk with a focus on values. He said that science and research tools are designed to help us understand this world, but by definition and by their very nature, they are not concerned with “values.” Science does not set values. Rather, it investigates and presents facts. In contrast, the Torah establishes the values that we use in science. Hence, there is no fundamental contradiction between Torah and science.
Next, Rav Ariel addressed various halachic questions, which the students had submitted in advance. Before answering the questions, he stated that scientific literature can often help us understand reality. For instance, he referred to the case of an OCD patient who repeatedly washes his hands for netilat yadayim. Although such a person may seem like a “tzadik” who is only trying to perform the mitzvah in an ideal manner, a scientific approach reveals that in truth, such a person suffers from a psychological condition and requires treatment. Rav Ariel cited the Chatam Sofer’s unequivocal ruling that such a person be instructed not to repeat the mitzvah - even if he is concerned that he did not fulfill it properly. Other issues addressed by Rav Ariel included teaching homosexual students; encouraging (forcing?) students to attend davening; situations where there are conflicts between the school and the home (e.g., a mother who does not cover her hair while the school teaches that married women must do so); Internet use; smartphones in yeshiva high schools and ulpanot; modesty; and more. Rav Ariel spoke out forcibly against those who “bury their heads in the sand” about a lack of modesty in the religious community and claim that “we don’t have that problem.” According to the Rav, the phenomenon exists everywhere, in every sector, and even in our own educational institutions.
The entire discussion was open and frank, and Rav Ariel stressed that even if we do not always have immediate answers, we must continue to ask the questions. He recommended creating a forum where these issues can be discussed and cited the words of Mishlei: "ותשועה ברב יועץ" (“and salvation comes with much council” – Mishlei 11:14).

Orot Receives Prize For Innovative “Moviemaking: History in the Making” Project

by Pnina Frankel 
Head, Communication and Cinema Department

Recently, the Massuah Institute for Holocaust Studies presented Orot Israel College with an award for its
“Moviemaking: History in the Making” project. The innovative pilot program combines history lessons with moviemaking and allows the student to act as researcher, director, producer, and editor and enjoy a unique multisensory learning experience.
The interdisciplinary project was launched by Orot’s communication and cinema department in conjunction with the history department. A series of short films (each three minutes long), which focus on dilemmas faced by the Jews in the pre-Holocaust era, was produced. After the history students researched the topics, wrote the scripts, and formulated the dilemmas while providing information about dress, settings, etc., the cinema students produced and shot the films. The result was five thoughtful, sensitive, and historically-accurate movies, which shed light on a difficult period and can be used as teaching aids during lessons about the pre-Holocaust era.
The citation accompanying the Massuah Institute award read, “We recognize the creative thinking and the unique pedagogic philosophy behind this project… The student who is exposed to these films will benefit from an educational experience that will contribute greatly to Holocaust study programs in our schools.”

Moreshet Yaakov Awarded Presidential Medal for Volunteerism

By Ofir Abicsis, Garin Ha'Torani, Oshiyot,Rechovot

Orot Israel College’s Moreshet Yaakov Garin Torani (educational core group) was selected from among hundreds of candidates to receive the prestigious Presidential Medal for Volunteerism. The annual prize is awarded by the President of the State of Israel for contributions to the State and Israeli society and is intended to foster values such as social activism, philanthropy, mutual responsibility, and love of the Land of Israel.
The award ceremony was held in the presence of Rav Professor Neria Guttel, President of Orot Israel College; Rav Chaim Saban, Orot’s vice president; and representatives of the garin. President Shimon Peres presented the medal to Rav Chaim Fogel, head of the garin.
Established in 5762 (2002), the garin is located in Rechovot’s Oshiyot neighborhood, which is part of the urban renewal project and largely populated by new immigrants from Ethiopia, Yemen, and other countries. The garin is comprised of Orot Israel College and Kollel Orot Yaakov graduates, who work as teachers during the day and organize various educational programs in the afternoons and evenings. In particular, garin members focus on disseminating Jewish values and culture, strengthening the local preschools, organizing children’s programming, running a learning center, reaching out to at-risk teenagers, organizing numerous chessed activities, supporting single mothers, and much more. For example, thanks to the garin’s highly-acclaimed “Sikun V’Sikui” project, which assists at-risk youth, neighborhood crime and high school truancy rates have decreased dramatically, and there has been a significant increase in motivation for military service.
Orot Israel College’s administration extends a hearty “yishar ko’ach” to the garin and its members on their wonderful achievements!

Bat Zion-MTA Reunion - May 2014

Over 120 alumnae and staff attended Orot's second Bat Zion- MTA reunion in Elkana. This special event was organized and planned by Nomi Spanglet, the former assistant director of the Bat Zion program. The event was a tribute to the many Bogrot of these 2 programs who have come on Aliyah, and who live the ideals that Orot so strongly believes in: Am Yisrael, Torat Yisrael and Eretz Yisrael. It was Orot's way of saying "we are proud of you and we are still here for you!". The evening started off with a buffet dinner, leaving time for the Bogrot to catch up with many old friends. Following dinner, words of welcome given by Nomi as well as short divrei torah given by Rav Yehuda Felix, the founder of Orot and Rabbis Moshe Rachimi and Rav Avram Weiss, both former directors of the BZ program.


The highlight of the evening was an educational panel with Rav Yona Goodman ( senior staff member at Orot) and Rav Gideon Weitzman (formerly a BZ staff member & presently a lecturer at several Midrashot, as well as serving as a Rav in Modiin). The panel was lead by Rav Reuven Spolter (head of recruitment for the College). The topic of the panel was "how to rekindle the flame". The panel was very inspiring and without any doubt gave food for thought to all those that attended.
I believe that the words of some of our Bogort best sum up this special event:

Thanks for organizing such an amazing reunion last night. It was so nice to see fellow bogrot, rabbanim, staff and madrichot. It just shows what an amazing program Bat Zion was and what an impact it had on all of our lives. It was so nice to be back on the Orot campus, and to see how the michlala is growing, it brought back so many wonderful memories. It is really touching to see that although the Bat Zion program no longer exists the michlala and you personally continues to maintain contact with the bogrot and are interested in what we are doing and where we are at in our lives.

hi nomi. i wanted to thank u so much for organising the amazing reunion. it was so good to see everyone again, you and all the teachers, (and the girls of course although we BH meet up often :) ) and it was so nice to be on the campus again. It really made me realise how much i miss it, and how Orot is such an amazing and special place and I'm so lucky to have been a part of that! Looking forward to the next reunion :)

Enclosed you will also find a slide show presentation of pictures taken at the reunion as well as a slide show of BZ that was prepared by Michal Katz Reinitz and shown at the reunion.



Enjoy the pictures and the memories!!

B.Ed. Degree Ceremony

Some one hundred and thirty Orot Israel College graduates were recently awarded B.Ed. degrees and teaching certificates during a gala commencement ceremony at our Elkana campus. The graduates came from four different departments: Early Childhood Education, Special Education (two tracks), Dance, and Secondary Education.

98% of Orot's graduates work as teachers and educators in Israel and abroad, and a significant number have started graduate studies programs at various academic institutions.
The degree ceremony was held in the presence of Rav Professor Neria Guttel, President of Orot Israel College; Rav Chaim Saban, Orot’s vice president; Rav Chaim Fogel, chairman of the board of trustees; Professor Yisrael Rich, chairman of the academic council; Rav Dr. Moshe Rachimi, academic dean and head of the graduate school; Rav Eliezer Melamed, Rav of Har Bracha and Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshivat Har Bracha; and the graduates’ families and friends.
A representative of the graduates addressed the attendees, and singer Yisrael Parnes, whose daughter was one of the degree recipients, entertained the crowd. To view pictures from the ceremony, click here.

He Who Teaches Torah to His Nation Israel

"והייתה המדינה מרגשת והיו שואלין להן להיכן תלכו, ואומרים לבית ה' שבשילה שמשם תצא תורה ומצוות."

Several weeks ago some forty religious preschool supervisors from across the country gathered in ancient Shilo, for a conference led by national supervisor Mrs. Esther Hatav. The list of speakers at the conference, which focused on teaching stories from the Torah to preschool children, included Rabbanit Dr. Lea Vizel, Orot Israel College’s dean of extramural studies; Mrs. Vered Yanai, lecturer and pedagogical coordinator of Orot’s early childhood education department; Mrs. Luzit Odesser, head of Orot’s early childhood education department; and Mrs. Becky Pinsky, (retired) supervisor of the Yerushalayim district.
The ganenet (preschool teacher) has the great privilege of planting the initial seed – the girsa d’yankuta (literally, the knowledge acquired during one’s childhood) – which will eventually blossom and grow into the child’s spiritual world. When the ganenet teaches Torah stories, she must construct an experiential world that is rich in knowledge and activities and that will serve as a strong foundation for developing faith, observing the mitzvot with love, and acquiring a national-religious worldview. This is a great privilege that comes with great responsibility.
The ganenet is faced with challenging questions. For instance, should she teach Chumash Breishit and some of Chumash Shmot according to the parshat hashavua (the weekly Torah portion) or chronologically? What is more important: enabling the child to take part in his family’s Shabbat table discussion about the parsha or learning slowly but in greater depth? Which prakim (chapters) should she teach, and which prakim should she skip? What is most appropriate for a child’s soul and developmental level? Should the lesson be based on the pshat (the simple meaning of the text)? How should the Midrash be taught? How does one encourage the child to identify with the Avot and Imahot and follow in their footsteps? How should ethical questions arising from the psukim be handled? These and other questions were addressed during the course of the conference.
First, Dr. Lea Vizel discussed the great responsibility inherent in teaching young children. She showed how Yoav ben Tzruyah’s teacher was sentenced to death, because he caused Yoav to misunderstand the commandment to wipe out Amalek’s memory. (See BT Bava Batra 21a.) Next, Mrs. Vered Yanai described Orot Israel College’s unique approach to teaching Tanach to young children, and Mrs. Luzit Odesser spoke about slow, in-depth learning versus learning according to the parshat hashavua. Finally, Mrs. Becky Pinsky recommended that the chavruta (study partner) model be adapted for preschool children.

All the participants agreed that the conference was a huge success, and that they look forward to future Education Ministry events for preschool teachers.

From Vision to Action

Orot Israel College’s English Department Head Speaks at Hemed Conference

Recently, the Education Ministry’s Religious Education Administration (Hemed) and Rav Uriel Ovadia, the supervisor for secondary education, organized a day-long seminar on improving English instruction. As part of the seminar, which was geared for principals and English teachers from the southern, central, and Tel Aviv districts, Dr. Vitela Arzi, head of Orot Israel College’s English department, gave a lecture entitled, “English Instruction as an Interdisciplinary Experience in Israel’s Religious Public Schools.”
Dr. Arzi called upon the Religious Education Administration and the school principals to formulate a vision which will make English-language instruction a high priority and to rely on this vision when defining goals, guiding, and leading, in cooperation with parents and teachers and with their creative input.
According to Dr. Arzi, low English scores in Israeli religious public schools can be attributed to two factors: First, in general, Israel suffers from a significant shortage of qualified English teachers in every sector. Second, religious students in particular may be exposed to negative attitudes about studying English, which is often perceived as a manifestation of an ideological world antithetical to religious educational values. The result is a “vicious cycle,” whereby religious public school graduates are reluctant to train as English teachers even when they possess the necessary skills. Thus, the religious educational system’s primary objective must be to break this “vicious cycle.”
Dr. Arzi noted that a foreign language can be acquired in one of two different ways: structured, direct learning in a formal classroom setting and unstructured, “random” learning in an informal or recreational setting. As she demonstrated, recent empirical studies have proven that long-term exposure to television and movies – as well as to popular music and computer games – improves English language skills and vocabulary. Recognizing the significance of informal, “random” learning can shed light on the achievement gaps between students in the religious public school system and students in the general public school system, because religious students are not exposed to the same degree of informal learning as their peers in the general school system. Therefore, religious public schools must find suitable alternatives and increase their efforts to narrow the gaps – while working to recruit qualified teachers.
In addition, Dr. Arzi explained that due to the Internet revolution, educators must treat English as a second language rather than as a foreign language and adopt the learning tools used to teach a second language. Thus, educators must ensure that English is “present” and accessible throughout the school and during many different activities and that the entire faculty be involved in the effort. For instance, teachers can develop Jewish-themed learning centers which incorporate English-language activities, put out printed or online English school newspapers, organize English-language recess-time activities, initiate English writing competitions, and produce English-language school plays. Furthermore, school principals should provide their students with English texts and invest in English libraries.
During the course of her talk, Dr. Arzi presented examples of various successful Orot Israel College initiatives which implement these ideas. She added that one need not be concerned that this approach will hurt Hebrew-language skills or vocabulary, because research has shown that language skills are not only transferred from the mother tongue to the second language but also vice versa. Improving literacy – by reading and writing in English – has a positive effect on Hebrew literacy as well.
In conclusion, Dr. Arzi called upon the Religious Education Administration and the school principals to formulate a vision which will make English-language instruction a high priority and to rely on this vision when defining goals, guiding, and leading, in cooperation with parents and teachers and with their creative input.