WOW! Columbus’ Supplementary School

Initiative

Discover!

Presented at Summit June 6, 2010

2/9/2011 | 2

Group Huddle

Examine the “key elements” of best

educational practices and the

characteristics of an ideal learning

environment.

– At your tables, try to come to a

quick consensus over the “top

three” in each of those

categories.

– Does your group want to add items

to either list?

2/9/2011 | 3

Focus Group “Take-Aways”

Areas of consensus:

KNOW FEEL DO

Basic literacy

-Shabbat rituals

-Holiday rituals

-Hebrew decoding

-Prayer recitation

-History of the Jewish people

(including Holocaust & family

history)

-History, Politics, Land & State

of Israel

Basic Jewish beliefs

Different ways of expressing

Judaism (Jewish streams)

WHY they are doing what they do

Where to find Jewish information

and answers

Confidence, pride & security

in their knowledge & beliefs

Secure/legitimacy in their

Jewish choices

Strong connection with Israel

and Jews around the world

(peoplehood)

Community connection

Curiosity/desire to learn

more

Judaism adds to their lives

Make choices informed by Jewish

knowledge

Go to Jewish sources for answers to

questions/ challenges/problems in

their lives

Have Jewish friends

Connect with Jewish community in

college and beyond

Celebrate Jewish holidays &

milestones

Be a “thinking Jew”

Contribute to the community through

tzedakkah, hesed & tikkun olam

2/9/2011 | 4

Focus Group “Take-Aways”

Additional Emphases:

KNOW FEEL DO

RABBIS Kashrut

Deep textual knowledge

Ability to speak Hebrew

EDUCATIONAL

DIRECTORS

תנ״ך

Hebrew for סדור understanding

Hebrew to manage in Israel

Fulfillment in living Jewish life

Had good experience

Guilt at not knowing

Seek to teach others

Answer questions re Judaism & Israel

Marry Jews; Raise Jewish kids

TEACHERS Basic modern Hebrew Sensitivity to Jewish issues

Something to offer to Jewish community that is

of value to Jewish community

Create own religious identity

Choose university with sizable Jewish

community

Visit Israel

Ask question: who am I? What is my

relationship to God and the Jewish people.

Find a teacher/mentor

PARENTS Jewish Values: How Judaism relates to everything

in life

Hebrew Conversation

Comfort to go to other synagogues & feel

welcome

Respect for synagogue

Has a spiritual place to go

Sensitive to the risk of prejudice and not take

part toward others

Have Judaism add value to their lives & world

Do good in the world through Jewish actions

Raise Jewish kids; Have Jewish home

Be part of something like we have at home

Help others as expression of Jewish ID ; Fight

injustice. Live Jewishly in secular place;

Communicate they have Jewish needs

TEENS How to discuss Jewish texts

How to experience holidays on own

How to keep Jewish identity in college

Connected/bonded to Israel

Connected to God, etc. by their own choice

Connected to Jewish community

Whatever needs to be done “religiously”

2/9/2011 | 5

Key Learning

After analyzing the last two charts,

what was your key learning?

2/9/2011 | 6

Focus Group “Take-Aways”

Family involvement and impact:

• Professionals (rabbis, educational directors, teachers) seek deep

family involvement and impact

• Some parents welcome and crave involvement; others are wary of

changes to their life style; others are concerned about time

constraints

2/9/2011 | 7

Focus Group “Take-Aways”

Challenges to getting desired/desirable supplementary education:

• Programmatic challenges:

– Not enticing

– Not individualized/supportive

– Spending afternoon with strangers and not feeling included

– Time: Lack of contact time

– Timing: Lack of available time/how to fit everything in of one piece so it is meaningful and

not compete with other options.

• Organizational challenges

– Inflexibility

– Not user friendly

– Tension: community vs individualization

– Competition

– Denominational labels

– Rich community in terms of synagogues – but too siloed in how we educate children

– Need courage to shake it up and get leadership to do it

• Finances

– Cost to families (when do cost/benefit analysis decide to wait till 2nd or 3rd grade

– Economic resources: lack of resources in synagogue (human, financial)

2/9/2011 | 8

Looking ahead…

2/9/2011 | 9

Focus Group “Take-Aways”

• Community approach – Larger Jewish community experience

– Community recognition that open doors benefit all

– Not silos – more interconnection

• Cross congregational PT Jewish education

• All meet together (or by denomination) More connection between OSU and community educational institutions (sharing resources, taking advantage of assets)

• Not feel “the divide”

– More options • More self-guided tools. Option of home schooling model

• “University concept”

• “Transdenominationality” – Greater interaction across denominational lines’

• Each learning style validated and respected

• Low threshold activities for people not ready to fully commit

• Opportunities for “next step”

• Multiple choices for “nibblers”

• Flexibility

• “Home Groups” /One-room schoolhouse a la Kehilla

• Bonding experiences

2/9/2011 | 10

Focus Group “Take-Aways”

• Students

– Excitement

– Students asking “why”

– Peers outside niche

– Higher retention in High School/Post Bar/t Mitzvah education = norm

– Earlier and continuing enrollment (Jewish early childhood and early

grades)

– 90% of eligible Columbus kids involved

– Accessibility for all kids according to their needs

– Student input included

– Focus on learners/audience

– Measurable learner outcomes

• Metrics for success

• Accountability – incentive – commitment

2/9/2011 | 11

Focus Group “Take-Aways”

• Educators

– Cadre of educators

– Higher value on quality of educators

– Passionate and knowledgeable teachers “teaching across the lines”

– Young well-trained teachers in Jewish education

– Accessible teacher support (resources, media, coaching)

– Teachers engaged and excited

– Interest from clergy & teachers who “really care”

2/9/2011 | 12

Focus Group “Take-Aways”

Educational Approach

• Individualization

- Meeting needs of individual learners (rather than congregation’s needs)

• Experiential

- Jewish experiential learning and travel

- More Jewish camp and Israel experience; integrate more Jewish content in JCC camp

- Variety of learning modes (e.g., arts, music, outdoor/environmental education)

- Tie together youth activities and more formal education; more education through youth groups

- Retreat Center/retreat component (e.g., Sukkot camping)

- “Young Life”/Hillel/Chabad model (experiential and fun, with solid content)

Curriculum

• Integrate building blocks (know/feel/do) of education

• Relevant to life

• Variety of available options (e.g., art, social justice, environment, intensive Hebrew)

• Effective use of technology

• Meshed with congregational visions

2/9/2011 | 13

Focus Group “Take-Aways”

What is needed to achieve idealized vision?

• Measurable goals

• Systematic well-thought out curriculum (throughout community)

• Relevance of content

• Openness to innovation

• Support for risk-taking and growth

• Consistency

• Diversity

• Variety of methods and tools

• Timing (when, how long, enough hours per week)

• Full-time teachers (to maximize preparation, PD, integration)

• Low student/teacher ratio

• Support for teachers (rabbis, board)

• High quality professional development (embedded, systematic, intensive, ongoing)

• Resources (financial, educational, human)

• Parental involvement

• Social group to support learning

• Welcoming buildings

2/9/2011 | 14

Group Huddle -Is Anything Missing?

Are there any glaring omissions from

these last 5 slides lists (slides 24-28)

that your table believes should be

added?

2/9/2011 | 15

Clarifying Questions and Sharing

• Are there any clarifying questions

related to any of the data presented?

• Reflect on all you heard in this

presentation

– What was your major learning,

insight or discovery?

– What surprised you?

– What challenged you?

– What’s missing from this picture?

What are not seeing? What do we

need more clarity about?