"Uncommon Courses" is an occasional series from The Conversation US that focuses on non-traditional teaching methods.

Course name:

Education in a divided society: The case of Israel

What sparked the idea for this course?

The United States recently marked the 70th anniversary of the Brown v. Board of Education decision banning racial segregation in public schools. Around the same historical period, Israel established a divided education system based on nationality and religious affiliation, with four different school streams: Jewish secular schools, Orthodox schools, and ultra-Orthodox schools that taught primarily in Hebrew, and Arab schools that taught in Arabic. teach. It provides each community with a degree of autonomy within the school.

As a graduate of the Israeli system and now teaching in the United States, I often wonder: Is American education really no longer segregated? Is group recognition within the Israeli system free of discrimination? How does the Israeli case help us better understand U.S. social and educational policy when it is so different from the U.S. apartheid framework?

This course is an opportunity to explore these questions. As we talk about American and Israeli societies, we reflect on the different values, policies, and practices of each country's education system.

What does the course explore?

This course delves into the intersection of education and divided societies through the case of Israel. We also explore society's core values ​​and its educational framework, including the schools, summer camps, and colleges attended by students in the class. We analyze how these values ​​influence policy in the countries where students come from. We examine how these, in turn, influence social relations within each country.

We focus on three controversial topics to better understand the relationship between education policy and society: Israel’s state-led core curriculum, apartheid, and free speech. For each topic, we examine the core values ​​that give rise to controversy and analyze the various approaches within the Israeli education system.

Students then choose from controversial U.S. education policies such as book bans, affirmative action, and performance and assessment measures. They then apply the analytical tools we used in our discussion about Israel to examine these U.S. education policies and guide class discussions.

Why is this course relevant now?

Students are essentially part of the education system. As students enter adulthood, inviting them to critically engage with these systems is critical to their development as active and engaged citizens. It helps them think not just about their personal interests, but about the greater good.

While this lesson has eternal relevance, it is especially relevant now. The war between Israel and Hamas has also highlighted the polarization within the United States and attracted global attention. America’s academic leadership, faculty, and students are asking fundamental questions about unity, free speech, protecting the rights of groups and individuals, and their role in the fight for a better future. This course enables us to address these issues while linking academic theory to the complex realities of a changing world.

What are the key lessons from this course?

Education, like most things in life, is political. It encompasses more than personal opportunity, performance, achievement, or community connections. It is also about the wider society in which we live and how the education system reflects, structures and mitigates these aspects.

What materials are included in the course?

The course includes academic works, policy documents, news articles and television programs.

Students participate in policy documents such as Israel's Declaration of Independence and a plan by the Israeli Higher Education Council that focuses on increasing access to higher education for Arab students.

We also looked at examples of institutional policies, such as the Bezalet College of Art and Design’s Free Speech Guidelines and our mission statement at Washington University in St. Louis.

The Israeli television show “The Lesson,” which focuses on free speech and its impact on classroom dynamics, is also a favorite among students.

What will this course help students do?

I hope students will develop independent opinions about education, a divided society, and Israel. They should be comfortable talking about these topics and confident in expressing an evidence-based position.