Doron Weinberg ends his position as principal of Tschernihovsky School in Haifa

(haipo) - The director of the "Tscheranhovski" school in French Carmel, Doron Weinberg (55), is retiring from the management of the school after 18 years on the job. As the principal of the school he also faced quite a few challenges, wars, corona and more, and not least with changes that occurred in the students over the years.

What do you leave behind after 18 years of management?

"In 18 years, I built a very high-quality, professional team that knows how to teach. Equally important is that the team loves children, which is something I was very careful about. In addition, I built an "oral-ethics" model (a model designed to develop the students' interpersonal communication skills) This was a long-term move, together with the development department of the Ministry of Education. The construction of the model was done in collaboration with experts, when it comes to a model that responds to the children of the Alpha generation, who were born into the reality of screens.

In addition to the model, we built the school with a flowing ecological stream that is 15 m long, spaces for bushes in the middle of the school, soil with which we sculpt letters and a tabon position. Opposite we built the Pa-Ethics classroom, which is made entirely of natural materials. We built it according to our educational model, where it has a raised platform, so that the students can speak in front of people. There is a special swing on the stage, which allows the students to learn while sitting on the swing and there are also bicycles for the same purpose. This is part of our concept, which encourages listening to each other and teamwork.

I am very proud that I had the privilege of leading the school community through very complex crises. First of all, in 2006 during the Second Lebanon War we painted a wall at the school. This was in my first year as manager. The second crisis was Corona and the third was the current war. We were able to respond to parents, students and teachers in each of the crises.

Over the years, we have been able to give answers to many male and female students, we have invested a lot in the emotional field and in the academic field, we have strengthened the soft skills of the students, such as listening and speaking in front of an audience, we have also run a program for outstanding students."

What other challenges have you faced?

"I also faced a challenge that is not in line with the national crises I mentioned - managing a school in an area where the potential for enrolling new students is not great due to demographic changes and also in light of the fact that parents have quite a few options to enroll their children in good schools in addition to Tschernihovsky. This reality pushed us at the school to develop a significant uniqueness".

How did you make the decision to finish your school work?

"I have been in the education system for 24 years and those were very good years. The first 6 years were at the 6-year school "Hogim", of which I am a graduate. In Hogim I worked as a teacher, educator and class coordinator in high school, and in my last year at the school I replaced the director of the upper division. I think I have accomplished all the goals I set for myself and it is a good time to start a new path. I have the possibility to retire and do other important things."

What do you plan to do from now on?

"I am involved in the Mofat association, which has been operating throughout the country for about 30 years and promotes excellence in education. The association is external to the education system and its main activity is in middle schools and high schools. The association operates tutored classes (the purpose of which is to encourage students with academic motivation and an affinity for mathematics and physics studies to achieve academic, personal and social excellence) and accompanies managers and teams. I will be integrated into the team that leads entry into the elementary schools, which is a new thing in the association. The second thing is that I will be an organizational consultant. First, I will work with the school principals and the education staff, because the Ministry of Education's innovation department authorized me to be an innovation trainer in education and I will combine this with the organizational consulting. The last thing, to change the atmosphere, is to guide trips abroad as part of a company Ishte Torres, when first of all I will guide trips to Montenegro.

We all maintain a routine and it cannot be separated from the national context. I got to lead a team and students during the war. The children should be isolated from the reality of the war. I really hope that the day will not be far away and all our abductees will return. It was part of the reality at the school, on the one hand to have an open eye on the staff and the students and on the other hand it is very important to create a reality of learning and the advancement of the children. The first days when you have to rise from the terrible news and have energy for the children, the parents and the staff are very complex days."

What challenges do you think the education system faces?

"We are experiencing a reality that has quite a few challenges. This is due to the instability of the governments in our country. There is no long-term plan for the education system due to the turnover of the ministers of education and the directors of the ministry. As a result, even though people within the system give their 100%, we encounter problems such as a lack of teachers, because fewer and fewer people want to join the system. The managers work very hard to find quality people. It is very difficult to find the right ones. Another challenge is those children who are defined as the alpha ball, born in 2009 and on, these are children with other attention skills, they lose attention very quickly and it is difficult to interest them. Some of them were in kindergarten during the Corona period and they lack basic social skills, such as yielding to one another, which requires the educational teams to look for the right ways to address this. This year I was outside every break and taught children how to play, alongside the educators and teachers.

We should also refer to the opportunity that the Ministry of Education gave to school principals - the change that the Ministry of Education led in regards to the GFN program (administrative pedagogical flexibility). As a result, we have more significant capabilities, for example in the economic field. School principals can buy emotional treatments for students inside the schools Principals can provide remedial teaching to students. We have a CBT program for students. Every student can benefit from it to serve all students".

Do you remember a principal or teacher who was significant to you as a student?

"The most significant teacher for me is Nitsa Tal, who educated me in grades 9-XNUMX and later served as the CEO of the Hogi school. Nitza was very humane, sensitive and attentive to the students, professional and interesting. She was a character to follow. She is the one who took me in as a teacher who returned to school after XNUMX years, and she is the one who recommended that I go to a management course. She is definitely a teacher, educator and manager to whom I owe a lot.

What would you like to come after you and the team?

"I wish for those who come after me in the role of success and enjoyment of management - in the happy and satisfying moments, and also in the challenging moments that come from time to time. I wish the staff to continue to enjoy working at the Tscheranhovsky School, and to bring the good and professional energies to the children. In general, I wish the whole community good years and good things for our country." .