These are difficult times that can present many opportunities to those who work in Jewish education. Convinced that sharing experiences as teachers enriches the work we do and strengthens our networks, at the Melton Center, and within the framework of our Auditorium conferences series, we once again summon educational references to a panel on the impact of the war on Jewish schools.
What effects have war on people and institutions of the Jewish community of the United States? What strategies do they use to support Israel and respond to the demands for information and containment of parents, students and teachers in the face of the wave of anti -Semitism and misinformation? How do their belonging to the Jewish community and their connection with Israel perceive? With the moderation of Dr. Alex Pomson, the panel also had the participation of the directors Noemi Gozlan, Barbara Schpilberg and Daniella Pressner.
Alex Pomson is director of the consultant Rosov Consulting, writer and author of several articles and books in relation to community organizations. He was a senior researcher at the Melton Center and one of our first teachers in the MA. Recently, he worked in an investigation by the Ministry of Diaspora de Israel to understand the impact of the war against Hamas on people from 21 to 40 years, from different organizations of the Jewish community, and its relationship with Israel. As he commented on the panel, many of them expressed to feel more connected to Israel than never before from October 7. However, they were uncomfortable activating in favor of Israel for not feeling “qualified to do this work” he explained. The research team found a change in relation to its anxiety against anti -semitism, in addition. The young people said they were not willing to display outward signs of jewishness as they did before, in public, because many people were in positions divergent to theirs in their spaces of belonging. "That gave them the feeling of being counter cultural, swimming against the tide, which unsettled them," he added. In that sense, community institutions, and especially educational, today have an essential role.
How to communicate the crisis
Noemi Gozlan, director of the Beth Emet school in Florida, US and graduated from Melton's Master's Degree, emphasized the effects of the tragedy of October 7 at different levels, especially emotional. "We perceived in our community fear and anxiety" related to “the strongest and secure Israel where nothing can happen " which broke. “So we understood that we had to open the doors and welcome the students to bring the normalcy around" For institutional authorities, communication was fundamental. They dedicated themselves to talking to the parents daily, sending mails every day and answering all the questions, one by one. In addition, they added more content to the curriculum because they needed to give them tools to talk to others and answer the questions that others could ask them.
Daniella Pressner, director of the Akiva School in Nashville, Tennessee and student of the Melton Master, referred to the institutional role in attending to these situations to prevent traumas and "to make them become a moment of secure growth." In their case, many people at school lost family and friends in the tragedy, so they had to provide them with especially containment and create structures to contain them in the long term. For Daniella, security implies being physical and emotionally safe. In that sense, from school they were responsible for providing information on professionals in mental health. "From
the Covid-19 we learned the impact of fear on learning processes, its psychological impact, and so we tried to minimize fear and give them the knowledge they needed at each age."
These conversations with students, Noemi explained, were designed by the institutional team, which considered that the subject should not be brought to the classroom by teachers but based on each student's questions. In that sense, the school provided the families, together with the institution's psychologist, tools to speak at home if they wanted to. "We always talk about the agency and the importance of the opportunities we give children, but also as educators one of the most powerful things we can do is just listen," she said.
The view on opportunities
The three directors agreed on the objective that the crisis put in front of their institutions: to rethink and reinforce the connection with Israel and with Judaism, in addition to the connection with other Jews who, with diverse lifestyles and even opposite beliefs, belong to the same people. Barbara Schpilberg, educator, student of the Melton Master and director of the Innovative School of the Beit Shalom temple in Florida, once the first stage of anguish, began with her students to think how to help Israel in the crisis. In the institution they recorded the drawings that the boys made, which expressed their concerns, and that spoke with the parents in meeting spaces. In addition, through money collections to send donations, book sales and creation of soldiers, from the institution they could "feel connected to what was happening," she said. Barbara also noticed that students in some cases began to incorporate new practices into their daily lives. "We have two students who use Tzitzit, and five using Kipá, who did not, other boys began to carry symbols such as the star of David usually," she added. For her, it is a sample of the connection created between them.
Pomson commented on a similar case registered in the investigation: in Hillel, where some interviewees attend, there was a remarkable increase in the number of attendees to activities and programs. "Those people were" returning home ", so to speak, wanting to be with other Jews in the community," he explained. In order for security to be guaranteed in all these cases, professionals also focused on new measures before the anti -Semitism wave: in Florida they increased security in buildings and campus, and received state support to do so. “We had a meeting with the governor because he was interested in listening to our voices. Then they were paying for the security of all Jewish institutions, ”said Noemi.
The war in Israel forces us to promote construction debates and avoid isolation and misinformation, which today affect many diaspora communities. For that, teachers build knowledge and reinforce our networks. Thus, we guarantee that education is a shelter for all Jews in the world.
We remind you that in the face of the hard events that Israel is going through we have organized a special auditorium conference in which Dr. Marcelo Dorfsman will speak about teaching and emergency learning with artificial intelligence. In this conference-workshop, we will work on conceptual and practical tools that will help us to confront these problems. The conference is in Spanish without translation.
December 17, 8 pm (Israel Time)
To register click https://huji.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZcsd-2rqTIsG9FBQOBDMJ_W0pd6DuEqULGE#/registration