36
Friday, January 25, 1985
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
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EDUCATION
Dialing For Scholars
Continued from Page 25
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29594 Orchard Lk. Rd.
Farmington Hills
Michigan 48018
626-3042
• 24 Hour
Answering
Service
• Office Hours:
Tues., Thurs.,
Fri., Sat.
GARY W. DOCKS, D.P.M.
Diplomate, American Board of Podiatric Surgery
Associate, American College of Foot Surgeons
Director of Podiatric Education, North Detroit
General Hospital
is proud to announce to all
my patients currently under
medicare, that
FREE CAB SERVICE
(pick up & delivery)
will be provided to all patients
living within a 2 mile radius of
our office located at:
15300 W.
6
Mile Rd.
Oak Park, Ml 48237
(2 blks. E. of Greenfield)
for appt. information & transportation, please call:
968-5550
New York-area communities
— New York City, Long Is-
land, Monsey, N.Y. and
Lakewood, N.J.
The growth of the service is -
good news for travelers. Paid
subscribers from other cities
are welcome to use Dial-A-Daf
when they are in Detroit and
Detroiters can use the pro-
gram in other cities as well,
Rabbi Drucker said. Dial-A-
Daf phone numbers for each
locale are listed at the end of
each day's commentary.
Because different com-
munities have different needs
the program is more expensive
to set up in some cities than it
is in others. The $4,000 capital
outlay for equipment in De-
troit was raised by members of
the Orthodox community. In
New York, where there are
600 access lines and more than
3,000 subscribers, start-up
costs were approximately
$75,000.
"There is really a very broad
base of support in the Or-
thodox community for this
type of program," Rabbi
Drucker said. Although
Dial-A-Daf in Detroit has only
23 current, full-time users, the
rabbi cited the fact that more
than 70 people made contribu-
tions toward the purchase of
the equipment.
The tapes for Dial-A-Daf are
made in New York and are
forwarded to Rabbi Drucker in
batches of five or six. "Most of
the people providing the nar-
ration are recognized as top-
notch teachers of the Talmud,
both here and in Israel," Rabbi
Drucker said. Many are heads
of yeshivahs. However, being
well versed in the Talmud isn't
the sole requirement for lec-
turers.
"It not only takes someone
with great scholarship, but,
more importantly, someone
who has an excellent com-
mand of the English lan-
guage," Rabbi Drucker ex-
plains.
Rabbi Shmuel Kaufman, an
Oak Park subscriber, agrees
that the commentaries are
both scholarly and fluent.
They are "better than what
you can get anyplace else," he
said. Rabbi Kaufman's sole
complaint about the service is
that on rare occasions, a tech-
nical problem will make it dif-
ficult to hear the tape.
Rabbi Drucker has found
that Detroit-area users break
down into several categories.
"There's one group of people
who have studied the Talmud
previously, usually in
yeshivahs. But for whatever
reason, when they left the
yeshivah they were no longer
able to keep up with it.
"They are using Dial-A-Daf
as a way of getting back into
Talmud study."
A second group of people use
the service as a preface to a
deeper studs of the Talmud.
"They are trying to get them-
selves up on a level where they
can eventually enter a Daf
Yomi class."
Finally, there are those like
Although Dial-A-Daf
in Detroit currently
has only 23 users .. .
more than 70 people
contributed to
purchasing the
equipment.
Hirsch, who use Dial-A-Daf as
a supplement to classes in
which they are currently
enrolled. The telephone serv-
ice is a good way to make up for
a missed classroom session, or,
for weaker students, it pro-
vides the opportunity to get in
some advanced preparation.
Some feel that the service,
whatever its benefits, is using
a largely passive method to
teach what has always been
considered an active, mind-
engaging pursuit. After all,
Dial-A-Daf subscribers can
question the knowledge im-
parted over the phone, but a
pre-recorded tape has no way
of providing an answer.
"This method of study does
have its drawbacks," the rabbi
admitted. "It may not be ideal
for the person who is capable of
doing much more and taking it
in on a deeper level."
When Detroit-area users
have questions regarding the
day's lecture, they usually call
Rabbi Drucker. In the New
York area, there is a person
assigned on a full-time basis to
handle questions.
"The Torah commands us to
be as knowledgeable of all its
facets as we possibly can be,"
the rabbi said. "Each Jew is
obligated to study and for
some people this is the ideal
way to do it."
NEWS
Prof. Dror Sadeh, who heads the Israel Space Agency, spends a pensive
moment at-the agency's Tel Avii) headquarters.
Police officials discuss security arrangements at the Dome of the Rock in
Jerusalem. with Police Minister Haim Bar-Lev, center.