(live here with the schools) - At the Reali School in Haifa, a big storm has been going on for the past few days, after the parents of the students received a message from the school administration, according to which the tuition will increase immediately by an amount of nearly NIS 3000 per student. (when to begin with the payment for a school year exceeds NIS 30,000).
The straw that broke the camel's back
The surprising announcement caused a widespread uprising among the parents, and according to the intensity of the storm, it seems that this is a kind of "last straw" that broke the rickety dam, which previously held hard feelings that have been simmering under the surface for a long time, and complex relations between the parents and the management.
Information conference and answering questions
At this point, in light of the parents' uprising and the letter of protest they sent to the school management, it was decided that the process will be stopped for the time being, and that tomorrow (Thursday 22/12/22) there will be a meeting on the issue, in which the members of the school management will participate together with the parents, in order to discuss and reach decisions . It should be noted that last night (Tuesday) in the evening hours, a meeting was held in which the management of the Reali and the chairmen of the branches were present, in which it was decided that a joint team would be established, which would discuss everything related to raising the salaries of the teachers at the school, and that the aforementioned conference would be held for all parents, in which The reasons why the tuition fee increase is required will be detailed.
It is difficult to say that the invitation to the conference put the parents' minds at ease, as the spirits are still turbulent and the feeling is that the difficulties and claims are not necessarily related to this specific announcement, which is difficult in itself, but to a broader and more inclusive conduct that sparked the protest.
But let's start from the beginning:
The management of the Reali has issued a letter to the students' parents, detailing the reasons for the tuition increase, when for each student in grades 260-XNUMX, the monthly payment will increase by NIS XNUMX.
As you may recall, last August an agreement was signed between the Teachers' Union and the Ministry of Finance, according to which the salary of teachers in the Ministry of Education will increase in two increments. At the Reali School, it was decided to raise the salary of the school's teachers as well, with the aim of preserving the quality workforce, according to them.
Moreover, in a letter sent from the administration to the parents, it was mentioned that in 2017 the administration reached an agreement with the Ministry of Education, in which it was promised that for 6 years the tuition fee would remain unchanged, and indeed, it was. Although prices in the economy as a whole rose during these years, which also affected the expenses of the Reali, tuition prices remained unchanged.
The Reali management also promised that the discounts parents receive for a second and third child at the school will remain unchanged. The agreement between the Ministry of Finance and the Teachers' Union talks about a salary increase in two installments, and the administration also allows parents to pay the salary increase in two installments, accordingly. In the letter, the management emphasizes that there will be no change in tuition fees for grades 9-12.
The letter sent to parents from the Reali administration:
"The immediate demand for additional payment is bullying"
The parents rushed to reply in a letter to the CEO of the Reali, Dr. Yossi Ben Dov, in which they expressed their anger at the additional demand for payment and even noted that at the beginning of the current school year there had already been a significant increase in the tuition fee, therefore they do not understand the demand to raise it again and again "from today to tomorrow" , and claimed that for them it was a step of bullying. In addition, the parents claim that there is no transparency towards them on the part of the management and demand that this change, because currently they and their children are in fact a captive audience, since they have no power to do anything against the evil of the decree, certainly not in the middle of the year.
The parents' letter to the Reali management:
- The parents' letter, which in a short time managed to be signed by about 500 families.
"A school for the rich only"?
The parents opened WhatsApp groups, which are joined by more and more parents, who express their difficult feelings about what is happening. Some of them openly admit that they are unable to pay beyond the amount they are already paying, and that if the increase is indeed required, they will be forced to transfer their children to public schools. Others are troubled by the fact that the increase in the amount of social security makes Reali a "school for the rich only", and this is not what they wanted when they enrolled their children in the school. The parents also believe that it should also be taken into account that the schools have moved to 5 working days, and some of the classrooms now have more students, so there may not be room for another increase in the tuition fees.
The parents suggested that the school management consider giving up the definition of the Reali school as a private school, which would allow it to receive funding for teachers' salaries from the Ministry of Education. In 2017, the management of the Reali started a fight with the Ministry of Education and did not agree to accept it as a regulator, claiming that the uniqueness of the educational institution could not be sustained from the funds that the Ministry of Education authorizes to collect, and that additional funds would be required to be collected.
As a result, the elementary classes in Reali were excluded and Reali waived the state budget and was given the option to charge tuition as it saw fit. The parents explain that for a job seeker with 2-3 children monthly tuition, which ranges from 6,000 NIS to 10,000 NIS, is not reasonable, even though they greatly appreciate what their children receive in school.
Spirits are stormy in the parents' WhatsApp groups, as the lack of trust and the feeling of disappointment with the school come up again and again:
"There is a great disappointment in the ability to influence, and more and more parents experience silence, threats and an attitude that 'if it doesn't fit, then you are welcome to leave'. I think this is a large part of the damage to trust and the anger that has arisen now. There has been a fear mechanism for many years, parents are afraid to speak and now everything will open".
"I think we are wrong whenever we continue to compare the school's transformations in relation to public schools, it is clear that it will always surpass them, the comparison should be to other private schools in Israel and there I am quite sure that Reali loses in every parameter."
"It seems to me that everyone agrees that Reali 2030 and its entire fertilization department, came in a completely opposite interest to parents and students and became a total economic interest of the school (reducing frontal study hours, reducing school days, increasing classes, increasing the number of children in the class, etc.)".
"In the meantime... they cut the school day (Friday) and combined classes under the deceptive excuse of "experiencing something new" meaning - they give less. Much less! And in general, there are quite a few teachers who are not the most talented (to say the least) and let's not talk about all the private teachers that everyone needs to maintain in order to strengthen the students. Because NIS 32,500 is not enough... there is a general feeling that they receive less. much less. Even in relation to public schools. There is a feeling that there is no return. And with the last case of violence, which is very, very serious and could have ended completely differently (pulling a knife), I wonder where my sense of security as a parent is when I chose to pay a lot of money also for personal security, and I don't accept that either. In short, a feeling of severe disappointment."
"I would like to raise a point that, in my opinion, is not discussed enough (or at all) is the fact that everyone discusses the expenditure line in the budget, but not the income line. School faculty members receive a very significant benefit of an almost full subsidy of their children's tuition, at the expense of the paying parents. Why doesn't the school publish what percentage of the students receive a subsidy at the expense of the paying parents? At a conservative estimate (because there is no official data), between a quarter and a third of the students have their tuition subsidized by the paying parents and that means (again, at a cautious estimate) between a third and a half of the tuition That the parents pay is for the subsidy for those faculty members who increase their salary (at the expense of the paying parents). Isn't this a double or triple supplement?"
"The issue is not the pocket. If we treat the problem as a financial problem, then we will get a freeze and then a double increase in another year. The issue is the absolute control without any conversation with the parents and the treatment of the parents as captive customers, not only in the matter of money! The money is a sign... very painful, but a sign" .
"So true, the school is in moral, educational, educational bankruptcy, they have also dropped extracurricular activities, trips, etc., compared to my older children."
The VP of Pedagogy of the school is the one who is responsible for rocking the ship that we all pay for as parents. He is completely disconnected from the field, but in order to justify his position, he drags the management into changes that cause educational damage to our children and financial damage to us as parents. Every Reali 2030 plan is bogus and tainted by extraneous considerations If they throw it in the trash, the whole problem will be solved.
Just disgusting. A country for the rich only. Even for people with means, this is a considerable amount. I am a simple person and I was educated in the public system about 40 years ago, I remember other days and other values, also free of charge. As in any field, also in education, the payment increases and the return decreases in a constant and continuous trend. I hope that the parents will succeed in their struggle, and maybe there is no longer such a difference between the Reali and other schools. Save tens of thousands of shekels a year, save them for your children's studies after the army.
Turn gutta upside down. The private schools are at the top of the achievements in the country, and many municipalities are covered by matriculation figures and high academic studies in their field behind the fig leaf of the outstanding private education. Haifa would be better off with 30% privatized education anyway, to become a pilot city for complete privatization of the education system in the city. When there is competition between the schools like in Singapore, the academic level will rise and not only the teacher's salary because of strikes. The private schools functioned well in Corona while the state schools collapsed.
The time has come for every child in Israel to receive an excellent education with excellent teachers and this cannot be achieved in the state education system where you do a favor by babysitting your children for a few hours with two and a half months of vacation per year.
What is needed is tax credits for all parents for paying for the children. After all, we all know that even in the free state education there are parental payments of thousands of shekels a year. And also about the kindergartens. So why not the entire education system? Those who do not work and are in a difficult financial situation will receive scholarships and assistance from the municipalities. But education should be fully privatized, it will save tens of billions of shekels that can go to the facilities and rebuilding of thousands of old schools that do not meet earthquake standards (Haifa has dozens..)
The tuition fee is set in advance, so we signed up. It is illegal to change it in the middle of a year because where will we go. I also have a business, I can't change an agreement in the middle of a year because something has changed...even if I didn't know...next year I will correct.... Reali use pacifiers until when???
My children attended Raleigh School. The level of the school both in terms of the content of the study, both in terms of the quality of the students and in terms of the level of the studies has dropped year by year. The real of the early 2000s was nothing like the rally of the 2010s and the reals of 2018.
Today I would not send my children to school because
: the quality of the students which has become heterogeneous because they accept everyone with money and regardless of the level of academic ability, because the number of students in sects has increased significantly (in 2010 the number of students in the high school was 26, in 2018 the number of students has already reached 36), violence in the school, quality Poorer teachers, the quality of the lessons, excellence has become a dirty word in the school because girls are encouraged to be like everyone else.
In my opinion, today we need to either close the real school or bring back the concept that the school had in its heyday
The teachers receive a great benefit of free education for their children. Even in the academy, faculty members receive a huge benefit.. it is tens or hundreds of thousands of NIS.. there is no justification for this. If teachers' salaries are improved, the teachers will finance private education for their children. If you accept extreme conditions in the academy that the faculty will finance the children's studies at the university like everyone else. Why these privileges? They are the ones who burden the school and create, together with the murky pensions, heavy debts in all the universities in Israel. The public must demonstrate about the direct and indirect cost of living.
Be frugal, Alec...
The Reali try to admit only vaccinated children to kindergarten and first grade.
The extensive vulnerabilities from the routine vaccines and the experimental corona vaccine that are not necessary for children are ignored. Stupidity and carelessness of the management.
Discrimination on medical grounds - disgusting
Modesty?
What about the poison injections?
Do we continue to damage the immune system of our children?
The injected material is a toxic spike protein material - which wanders through the body! Take care of the children!
In addition, there is graphene oxide in the solution!
Graphene oxide.
Do some research on this stuff. Search on YouTube, Google.
You won't be able to sleep tonight.
As an old graduate, the return for the tuition amounts does not yield goods worth money. Also, the school is just a factory for grades. Attitude and empathy for students is minus zero. My children were not sent to study there and yet have advanced careers. Even at the time there were teachers who came from the diaspora and pretended to have stuffed academic degrees. It is certainly possible to save on tuition because the state education is increasing in quality. But he lacks the prestige
The rally is already a school for the rich only. That's why the Haifa municipality needs to stop participating in his financing. There should be a total separation between public and private:
Public - managed by the state, with registration areas, without filtering students (no preference for siblings and children of the faculty either)
Private - they teach what they want, charge as much as they want and the state and the local authority do not pay him a single shekel.
The disgrace of the Haifa Municipality or the Ministry of Education is putting money on screening schools. Funding for high schools should also be stopped or they should be opened to all and discrimination should be stopped in favor of those who completed Kindergarten through 8th grade.
It is a disgrace that there is a school in the heart of the Hadar neighborhood where there are no children from the neighborhood.
And the austerity is gone
joke
The Rally is entitled to state subsidies just like the independent Torah Talmuds of Shas and Torah Judaism.
They receive money without supervision and without even teaching core studies.
There is no reason why private secular schools should not receive identical amounts.
My children did not study at Reali, they all finished with degrees in the academy and the required profession. Money does not make students more talented. Those who are talented will succeed even if they were not at Reali or at another snobby school.
It is already known that the Haifa people are arrogant and racist, what's the wonder?
Suddenly when it hits their pocket, they wake up?
It's good that they don't blame Yona Yahav, Kalish or Bibi this time either.
What is the matter of going to Mount Sinai?
Are the Haifaites arrogant and racist? Are you a resident of Haifa?
And how is this related to the matter? It seems that there is only one brat here and not particularly smart.
The parents must examine whether all or half of the teaching staff comes from the ranks of the academy, or whether they have completed the twelfth grade, and leave it at that.
Because the mother says in the article that she has to finance private lessons for her children in addition to the high tuition fees, and hence the teaching methods are not at a high level or suitable for the students, and a change in teaching methods should be considered. It seems to me that in Finland a public school has a very high level of teachers and students due to excellent special teaching methods, it was broadcast about two months ago on TV.
It has turned into a safe, you want it, you demand it, and whoever doesn't like it, let him leave, a betrayal of the moral values and the friendships that have been formed for years between the students of the school and the institution itself, if it is possible to kick them for a second just because of a desire to milk the parents' ATM
A bunch of snobs...what do they think of themselves there in the Reali management? That they are all billionaires?
I am very proud to be a graduate of the "Harieli" school. There is no school of this level even abroad. Every shekel that parents pay is priceless, and those who are not ready to invest in their children's education should not enroll them in this school. This is a private school and it should remain so. Most of my friends who studied with me at the school reached senior positions in the academy and in many other fields where a higher education is required.