PURELY COMMENTARY

8 | FEBRUARY 25 • 2021 

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guest column
It’s Time to Reexamine Jewish Education
U

pon retiring from 48 
years in Jewish educa-
tion, I still find myself 
writing and learning about 
the field. I am working toward 
a doctorate in 
Jewish Studies 
from Chicago-
based Spertus 
Institute of 
Jewish Learning 
& Leadership, 
and my disser-
tation topic is 
“21st Century Non-Day School 
Jewish Education.”
At my disposal I have his-
tories of Jewish education, 
numerous books and scores 
of scholarly (and not so schol-
arly) articles on the internet. 
What I don’t have is input from 
21st-century Jewish parents, 
and this is what I am attempt-
ing to gather now.
Jewish education has changed 
dramatically since the first day 
I walked into a religious school 
classroom as a teacher. Then, 
the youngest students started 
with Sunday school. Second-, 
third- or fourth-grade students 
began attending classes two or 
three days a week. There were 
lots of textbooks. Every student 
had a machberet (notebook) for 
Hebrew writing. 
Most teachers stood in front 
of the class and talked — a lot. 
There were music teachers and 
Hebrew songs, sometimes art 
or drama. Tefilah (prayer) was 
taught in the classroom and 
sometimes students had the 
opportunity to practice those 
prayers in a student service. 
Students in Conservative 
or Orthodox programs were 
expected to attend Junior 
Congregation Shabbat ser-
vices somewhat regularly. 

Some schools had a Shabbat 
attendance requirement. The 
schools provided textbooks and 
assumed that teachers knew 
what to do with them. Many 
did. Teachers taught a variety 
of subjects each year and some-
times decided what to teach on 
their own. Students might learn 
the same things over and over. 
(At least, that’s what they told 

their parents.) 

Most schools did not have 
well-crafted curricula. There 
were few programs to help 
children who had learning dif-
ficulties. High school students 
and parent volunteers helped 
out with Hebrew reading and 
holiday parties. Students who 
quickly understood the material 
spent a lot of time waiting for 
the rest of the class to catch up. 
Over the last decades we have 
learned a lot. We have learned 

to teach each child the way he/
she needs to be taught, relating 
what we teach to the students’ 
lives. We know that what we 
teach should demonstrate how 
being Jewish improves our lives. 
What we teach should help the 
students to lead meaningful 
lives and to understand that 
knowledge of our holy texts will 
help them thrive.

JEWISH EDUCATION TODAY
These days, Hebrew reading is 
being taught in small groups or 
one-on–one. We are not teach-
ing conversational Hebrew, 
but we are using a variety of 
methods to ensure our students 
have the sound and rhythm of 
Hebrew in their ears before they 
start learning to read. Teachers 
use computers in the classroom 
and are able to access websites 
that enrich their teaching. 
Whiteboards allow students 

to interact with the material. 
Textbooks are much improved 
and teachers have learned to 
create rich lessons with or 
without them. Using their 
knowledge of child develop-
ment, positive psychology, etc., 
teachers create an appropriate 
atmosphere for learning and 
for building friendships. Our 
schools use the arts, literature, 
project-based learning, drama, 
independent learning, outdoor 
education, family education, 
etc.
Technology is our newest 
tool. Religious-school teachers 
and administrators have learned 
much from online instruction 
over these last months. Teachers 
have been impressed both with 
how the use of technology 
allows some reticent students 
to succeed and with how much 
technology helps the teaching 
of Hebrew reading. Homework 
is not a hardship when students 
sign in from home and play 
review games.
We teach Israel while 
showing live pictures of Tel 
Aviv and teach about Jews in 
Ethiopia while talking to Jewish 
Ethiopians online. My dream 
is that schools will add instruc-
tion time with online lessons 
on days that students are not 
in school. There is, after all, no 
travel time involved. 
For educational planning, as 
for teaching, it is important to 
know one’s audience. Judaism is 
more than a school subject. It is 
a way of life. Thus, it is import-
ant to know our students’ fami-
lies and to understand how they 
interpret what it means to be 
Jewish. 
What new can we learn?
In 1958, Jewish educators, 
concerned about their efficacy, 

Elissa Berg

“JEWISH EDUCATION HAS 
CHANGED DRAMATICALLY SINCE 
THE FIRST DAY I WALKED INTO 
A RELIGIOUS SCHOOL 
CLASSROOM AS A TEACHER.”

“Hello, First Grade”