Becoming Better Teachers at the Sands of Nitzan

Orot has always considered field trips an integral part of teacher training, founded upon the basis of "ארץ ישראל על פי תורת ישראל" - “Eretz Yisrael in accordance with Torat Yisrael”. Orot realizes that for graduates to effectively communicate a love of the Land to their own students, they must invest their time and energy acquiring knowledge of the Land and appreciation for it.
We believe that a student that experiences preparation and guidance of a field trip will regard the issue of field trips as a school teacher in a different way from a teacher who didn't have the same experience. For this reason, as part of their educational program, all Orot students participate in a number of yearly tiyulim, giving them a deeper and broader appreciation for the Land of Israel.
These college-wide field trips represent a unique phenomenon in the world of teacher training in Israel and are led by first-year students (with the help of 2nd and 3rd year students) in the Department of Eretz Yisrael Studies, who invest great effort preparing to guide their fellow students during the tiyul. Watching students integrate with each-other and their instructors while travelling the land and learning from fellow students brings Orot’s administration great pride.

Trip to the Sands of Nitzanim
A month ago, about 350 students of Orot visited the sands of Nitzanim, located along Israel’s coastal plain along the Mediterranean between Ashkelon and Ashdod. Nitzanim is close to Nitzan, a town where some of the former Gush-Katif families reside following their uprooting four years ago.
The tour began with a history of Nitzanim during the War of Independence, when it served as a critical strategic Israeli stronghold. Although ultimately abandoned, Israeli forces at Nitzan succeeded in stopping the Egyptian troops advance to the North, preventing them from conquering the coastal plain and the Tel-Aviv area. The students then visited the residents of the nearby Yishuv Nitzan, hearing the sad and moving story of the uprooting of Gush Katif.
After the stop at Nitzan, the students proceeded to the sands of Nitzanim, beginning with its fascinating and historical cemetery. They continued to the west to the sand dunes, one of the last and largest remnants of Israel's coastal sand dunes with its attendant animal and plant life. They then enjoyed a two-hour hike through the sands to the sea-shore.
This trip to a site close to the center of Israel, combined history related to the founding of the State of Israel, the story of the Gush Katif expulsion and physical exercise through the sand dunes, to produce a wonderful, educational experience that not only enhanced our students’ year, but will make them better teachers as well.