(haipo) - Back to school: 58,508 students will start the school year this coming Sunday, 01/09/2024: 11,297 children in kindergartens, 27,263 in elementary schools and 19,948 students in high schools. Three new kindergartens and three additional classes will be opened this year in the city's educational institutions.
The wage crisis
As of this moment (28/8/24), the chairman of the teachers' organization Ran Erez announced that classes in the high schools will not start, since the teachers do not have a salary agreement.
The transition to five study days a week
Several local authorities have decided to reduce the number of school days and switch to five days a week. The municipality of Haifa announced that it will not join this move, to reduce the school week and will continue to take responsibility for a six-day school week.
Ilana Truk's words at the beginning of the school year:
We contacted the Head of Education, Society and Leisure Ilana Truk in order to check what is planned in the Haifa education system for the coming school year.
Q: Since the beginning of the Iron Swords War, families of evacuees have arrived in Haifa. How did the children fit into the education system?
"On October 8, the first evacuees began to arrive in Haifa. At first they were housed in host homes, and then they arrived in hotels. Haifa Municipality was prepared to receive them from the moment the first evacuees arrived. The education system in Haifa received 821 evacuee children and youth, from the south and the north, from birth to XNUMX years old. Upon their arrival in Haifa, the Education Administration opened a very broad system of assistance to the evacuees.
The municipal schools accepted the students, in accordance with the needs raised by the parents and the proximity to the hotels where they stayed, a transportation system was built that took care of transporting the children to the schools every day and educational enrichment centers and free classes were opened, along with subsidizing family activities in Haifa entertainment centers, such as the cinemas, the climbing wall , bowling and more".
"The absorption was done in three models, the "integrating model" in which we absorbed most of the evacuated students, in small groups that were integrated into the classrooms and kindergartens in the city. The second model was the "surrogate model", in which we absorbed entire classes with educational teams for educational institutions, and the third model is the "authority model "Within an authority" - a model in which Shlomi's authority operated kindergartens in hotels in Haifa.
"For us, it is an enormous privilege to be an essential part of the mutual guarantee on which the state is founded. This period also made us understand the depth and importance of social solidarity. The displaced families who arrived in Haifa and other cities, were practically the defenders of the borders throughout all the years of the state's existence, in the north and in the south. Therefore, in the last year and even today, we consider supporting the evacuees a right, simply that it is our turn to respond to them, to be there for them."
Q: According to a study by the Knesset, recently published in a special report, in Haifa 42% of the educational institutions are without protection (data from the beginning of the war). Can parents send children to educational institutions wholeheartedly, when there is no shelter or protected space?
"During the past year, the Haifa Municipality invested huge budgets and efforts to reduce the protection gaps, and to my delight - today the vast majority of kindergartens are protected, and in the schools during this period we succeeded in reducing protection gaps. During the summer, the construction of fifteen MMMs (protected institutional space) in kindergartens began , and another 6 in the schools. In addition, the construction of 6 additional cisterns at the Gordon and Megini school has been completed.
Q: Is there an intention to protect more educational institutions? Is there a budget for this?
"Yes, of course, we continue according to a regular work plan to protect the educational institutions in the city, and reduce the gaps in protection. At the same time, the educational institutions are getting used to operating according to the "most protected" method.
Q: Which educational institutions were renovated during the summer? Is the renovation at Maginim school finished?
"During the summer, approximately 15 million NIS were invested in the renovation of the school buildings and the improvement of the protected spaces. Among the renovations, sealing works were carried out in 24 educational institutions, air conditioning systems were installed in 38 educational institutions, new shades were placed in 35 educational institutions, courtyards were prepared and spread new adequate surfaces in 5 educational institutions, 9 classrooms for hearing and visually impaired students were made available, we started building two science laboratories, restored the facade of a beach school, and significantly upgraded the Gordon school in a renovation that included the construction of 4 mmms, the development of the backyard, the replacement Sports facilities and shade installation. In fact, we will continue the renovation program until the end of the holiday season. The final works at Maginis school are expected to be completed during the Sukkot holiday."
That: The Mazor school will house the children of the Ofer school, which was on the way to the sea. Are the building and the yard ready for the start of the school year?
"The school started moving to its residence in Mazor on the 14th of this month. The building and the yard were prepared and adapted to the requirements of the Ministry of Education and the school. The institution is prepared and ready to receive the students."
Q: The bilingual track - according to the parents, the municipality is preventing them from opening a second compulsory kindergarten for non-business reasons... Is there a solution to the problem?
"The bilingual school began over a decade ago as a course established by the current mayor, from a concept that advocates full equality and respect for the different opinions and feelings involved in the partnership between Jews and Arabs.
In the last school year, the students moved to the current building in "Mazor" where the bilingual school was also transformed from a track to an elementary school. Back in its founding, together with the parents, we built an educational model based on a balance between the number of Arab students and the number of Jewish students. The school grew Nice, and this year for the first time 2 balanced 50st grades are opening, alongside a full and balanced kindergarten, and we strive to continue to create a balance of 50:61 in the entire educational continuum which currently stands at 39:XNUMX.
I hope that the enrollment trend will continue - both among the Jewish population and among the Arab population, so that in the end we will be able to create a campus where two balanced classes will operate in each layer that will express the spirit of the city and the importance of the existence of this institution."
Q: What do you think about the Alma School for religious girls, by the sea? Do you think it is possible to cancel an allocation to a school structure, because there are many non-Haifa students at the school, and on the other hand allow many students from outside the city to study in Haifa?
"At the Alma School, the number of students who are not Haifa exceeds 70%.
In the schools in the city, the percentage of students who live outside the city is only about 4%, excluding the Reut that was built in an agreement with the state, where 25% will always be accepted from outside the city. The city council made a decision to cancel the allocation of the institution due to non-compliance with the municipal rule for receiving allocation, which states that at least 70% of the visitors to the educational institution must be residents of the city, and in Alma the situation is the opposite."
Q: The educational institutions for the Arab population - are you satisfied with their condition, is there any intention to continue investing in them?
"We do not distinguish between an Arab institution and a non-Arab institution, all the frameworks are treated according to the unique needs of each institution."
Q: There are those who claim that it does not make sense to continue teaching as usual, when we are at war. Do you agree with these things?
"One of the main roles of an education system is to give students stability and resilience. Every child/student needs a framework, a place where he can have social interaction in a protected manner, a place that will challenge him and prepare him for adult life accompanied by adult teams trained for this.
During the war, more than ever, the children need this stabilizing framework. Let's not forget that the parents also need a stable framework, to continue working, to grow the country's economy, when their children are in a stable framework that strengthens their child's resilience.
Q: Are you satisfied with the cooperation between the municipality and the Ministry of Education in the district?
"We have an excellent cooperation, an excellent partnership and a regular and good dialogue with the district director and her team."
Q: Are there topics that are important to you to promote in the coming year or beyond?
"The education system that I am at the head of leads two main goals: strengthening the students' sense of belonging, and relevant education. As I said, I believe that the education system is the basis for civil and national resilience, and therefore it must deal with the values of equality, tolerance, social integration and community belonging. In addition to that, Education must be relevant, and this in two ways - relevant to the daily life of the student and relevant to the future, by giving him skills for development in the worlds of career, society, economy and the like.
A weekly activity that breaks the routine
This year, we are opening a new program across the entire educational continuum, from Kindergarten to 12th. When we started building the program, our first goal was to create a break from the study routine in an enriching and experiential way. That's why we also called it the Program Wednesday Shabbat (breaking the routine). Every Wednesday of the week the children went to different learning in the urban spaces. The entire urban space becomes the best teacher on this day. Fortunately, we are blessed in a city with plenty of opportunities for enrichment, exploration and learning. All educational institutions in the city - kindergartens, elementary schools and high schools, including special education - will have activities in the urban area and its institutions - culture, sports and sea, medicine, science and academia and industrial and hi-tech centers.
The activity within the program will expose the students to new and intriguing fields, encourage creativity, strengthen the sense of belonging to the city and the country, and promote the importance of relevant education for the student and his future."
Musical and research enrichment
"The children of the kindergartens will participate in the programs of "research on wheels" with the National Museum of Applied Science, and will be engaged in developing curiosity for scientific thinking. The Haifa Symphony will come in small ensembles to the kindergartens, to engage in the development of a sense of rhythm, coordination, and most importantly improve the listening and concentration skills of the kindergarten children .
The children of the kindergartens also went to urban enrichment centers developed by the education system, such as the "Bereishit Center" which is a nature center where the children will plant, weed, scratch and learn about the importance of environmental sustainability and the meaning of maintaining a green environment for personal and global health. In addition, they will also deal with the marine environment at the "Gan Yam" center, where they will meet sailors, see marine animals up close, and learn about the importance of preserving the marine environment for the future of the earth and life in the water."
At sea and in the theater
"The elementary schools will go to the municipal theater to learn to write plays and try acting, they will surf at the aquatic center, they will participate in agricultural activities in the agricultural farms in the city that cultivate belonging to nature, to the values of protecting the earth, environmental health, and sustainability. As part of the "Routine Breaking Wednesday" program, the students will also deal with health personally and developing resilience and will meet with professional instructors of martial arts, athletics, artistic gymnastics and ball sports, a connection to the fascinating historical story and heritage of Haifa."
"Thanks to the city of Haifa being a multicultural city, the municipal education system allows students in Haifa to get to know different cultures through an in-depth experiential process and joint projects. Additional emphasis will also be given to the cultivation and improvement of the Arabic language for Jewish children, and the Hebrew language for students from the Arab community - a goal of the mayor who sees language as a bridge to the city's future and the state".
"The high school students will participate in unique programs at the high-tech centers, museums, the academy, and the city's cultural and sports institutions. On Wednesdays, they will meet with their peers from other schools, and together they will research and create solutions to existing social challenges, with the goal of making the world a better place."
"The special education children will go on activities around the city, experience riding buses, hang out and learn at the zoo, the science tech, the museums of the city of Haifa and more. And most importantly, this day will also emphasize the value of solidarity, the students will volunteer on this day at nursing homes, cleaning the sea, cleaning streams, activities in the neighborhoods and more".
Is there a teacher who influenced you and you remember her?
"My high school teacher, Dr. Israel Rosenson, who trained us the muscles of solidarity and pluralism. And from there the way was open."
would you like bless you My students and female students Haifa?
"Wishing us a year full of hope, a year in which we will be able to pick up the pieces from the past year, and together with our abductees who will be restored, we will return with full strength to develop, love and strengthen the solidarity between us. Together we will strengthen the wounded and their families, embrace the families of the victims and for all of us, we will ask for a new year and its blessings" .
How many facetunes did to her picture lol...