This paper reviews the taxonomies and characteristics of Israel education articulated by Benji Davis and Dr. Hanan Alexander while suggesting that their specific educational philosophy, Mature Zionism, ought not be siloed only to educating about Israel but rather extended to Jewish education writ large. Developing a framework of Israel literacy…

This paper provides a response to B. Davis' and H. Alexander's article "Israel Education: A Philosophical Analysis," (EJ1384540) published in this same issue of the Journal of Jewish Education. The authors provide a valuable conceptual map of six distinctive, sometimes intersecting and sometimes conflicting ideologies and purposes that…

Over the past two decades, the internet has become a central platform affording lay-learners access to a multiplicity of experts. While these outlets empower lay-learners, they create competition amongst clerical and knowledge authorities. This article addresses the question: "how is religious authority understood and negotiated by learners,…

Malka Haas (1920-2021) was a key pioneer in the founding of Israeli kibbutz kindergartens, and she profoundly influenced both the curriculum and practice of early childhood education (ECE) for the entire country. The article reviews Haas's biography, her professional development, and the main principles in her educational approach: "the…

The current study delves into the professional identity of elementary school rabbis within the national-religious education system in Israel, focusing on the perspectives of the rabbis themselves and examining how their professional identity impacts their work. In-depth interviews were conducted with 15 rabbis who were selected using a convenience…

The kindergarten teachers of the Religious Kibbutz movement (RK) as a unique group are connected both to the educational approaches of the kindergartens in the general Kibbutz Movement and the state religious kindergartens. A qualitative study included semi-structured interviews with 15 RK kindergarten teachers in order to explore their…

Everyone seems to agree that Israel education is complex. But all too often, the concept of "complexity" becomes a euphemism for the existence of unpleasant truths about Israel that challenge students' preconceived notions. I propose that instead of focusing on cultivating attachment to Israel, Israel educators should offer students an…

History education has been instrumental in transmitting collective memories across generations while sustaining national traditions. Many nations use history education to instill national memories in their future citizens. In the current Jewish context, history is arguably a dominant cultural discourse. History education is deemed central to…

The study's aim was to identify the entrepreneurial process ten Jewish immigrant religious educators utilized when establishing innovative educational institutions, thereby affecting the Israeli religious education system. We utilized a social innovation approach to education entrepreneurship applying a qualitative analysis of life story…

The Israeli state-religious-education system (SRES) held an unfavorable view of Mizrahi religiosity in the 1980s. Text analyses of religious-education heads' writings indicate that they saw Mizrahi religiosity as a primitive relic of the past and as a "low-level religiosity" and regarded Mizrahi students as uncommitted and compromising.…

Bible studies are one of the foundations of Israeli education. Nevertheless, this content area has been neglected for many years and it is now bordering on crisis. Passive learning style and classroom discussions that lead to predetermined conclusions are prevalent in Bible classes in both elementary and high schools. In this article, we present…

For Jewish Ethiopian refugees at the Tikvah summer camp in Gondar, Ethiopia, Jewish informal education keeps their dreams of Jerusalem alive while simultaneously reinforcing Israeli gatekeeping practices. The ethnic and religious ideologies underlying Israeli nation-building and statecraft surface in the campers' exterritorial encounter with…

This study investigated the coverage of desecularization in Israeli non-religious public education in national and local newspapers from 2016 to 2022. We conducted a content analysis and coded key elements for each article, such as the activists who carried out or opposed the desecularization activity and their narratives, arguments for and…

Evolution is a fundamental part of biology and thus it is essential that biology preservice teachers understand and accept it. The relationship between knowledge and acceptance of evolution, and specifically human evolution, has not been fully investigated in Israel. We sought to learn about that relationship amongst Israeli Jewish religious…

This study applies the notion of 'alternative futures' in globalisation and education by focusing specifically on the intersection between religion and education. Through an in-depth exploration utilising a case-study approach, we delve into the organisational dynamics of an Israeli school catering to a closed-off, traditional Jewish religious…