(haipo) - One year after the Iron Swords War, displaced families are still living in Haifa and its surroundings, far from their homes. As soon as the war broke out, many settlements from the northern border were evacuated, alongside other families who were not officially evacuated, but preferred to evacuate independently, and settled at least temporarily, in the Haifa area.
A year has passed and the families of the evacuees have integrated into daily life in Haifa, where naturally one of the main things is an educational framework for the students.
447 students are being evacuated in Haifa
A review was published on the Knesset website regarding education services for students evacuated from their homes during the Iron Swords War. The review shows that the Ministry of Education established temporary frameworks for evacuees, alongside students who were integrated into the education system belonging to the cities where they were absorbed.
According to data from the Ministry of Education, evacuees were taken in by 54 local authorities, with Haifa being one of the main receiving cities. According to the data, as of 31/12/2023, 447 students were accepted in Haifa and it is among the authorities that accepted the largest number of students, after Tiberias, Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. The review repeatedly emphasizes the difficulty of reaching each and every student and obtaining the complete data regarding the educational institution where each of the evacuees' children studies.
1500
בHaifa This year, 274 evacuee children, from kindergarten to XNUMXth grade, were integrated into the education system.
בTirat Carmel 13 elementary school students in grades XNUMX to XNUMX participated, in four schools: Hathor, Yigal Alon, Degania and Nof Yam.
בKiryat Ata 54 evacuee children were integrated into the education system. 8 children were integrated in kindergartens, 30 students in elementary schools, 11 children were integrated in middle schools and 5 teenagers were integrated in high school.
בKiryat Yam Dozens of evacuated students integrated into kindergartens and schools.
In Haifa district as a whole there are currently about 1,500 evacuated students.
"The girls are wrapped in love"
Shiran Barzon, 37, from Shlomi, has been in Haifa for almost a year, and her daughters have joined the "David Yelin" elementary school. "We moved to Haifa from Shlomi on 7/10, my husband was drafted into the reserves and we were told that whoever could leave Shlomi, should leave. We went to Kiryat, to my family. The first week there were no frameworks and the girls did not study.
On 18/10/24 we arrived in Haifa to a hotel in the center of Carmel. The thing that gives me the strength to face a year away from home is the strength of the community, which really keeps us above water. The majority in the hotel here came from Shlomi.
I have two daughters, 6 and 10 years old. The little daughter started first grade at 'David Yelin' school and the 10-year-old is in fifth grade, this is her second year at school. The eldest is very satisfied with her teacher, she is very supportive and instills confidence. In Haifa, evacuees are subsidized at noon and two classes within the school and we are very satisfied with that."
"Haifa is wonderful and full of life"
"The little one in the first grade received a lot of warmth and love at 'David Yelin'. There are no more students than Shlomi in our school. It turned out like this by chance. Last year there were children with the older daughter, but they did not stay in Haifa.
The children happily go to school and I am very satisfied with it. In Haifa, the services and help are very good for the evacuees and there is a feeling that they really want to make it easier for us. Of course there are still many difficulties. I haven't cooked my own food in a year, although I am only now feeling the lack.
Haifa is great, it has so much life. A really not boring city, there is always something to do. I'm also satisfied because I know it's temporary, along with our conditions, and the feeling that we're very close. I don't see myself staying in Haifa for the long term, we are waiting for the security situation to improve and we can return to peace. The things that have been happening in the last few weeks encourage me, I feel that I am getting closer to home. I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Haifa municipality."
"Become an integral part of the social fabric in the classroom"
Zohar Padal, a 50th grade teacher at the "Naot Peres" elementary school and the pedagogical coordinator, tells about the absorption of the evacuee students at the school: "Last year our school took in almost XNUMX evacuee students, from the northern and southern communities. In my class I took in five students who were evacuated from Solomon, when I entered Their class was during an intense war in the south and in the north as well. They were very afraid and faced quite a few challenges.
Entering a new class and a new school also brought with it quite a few challenges and concerns.
"The best place for them"
The first step we took in a school as an educational team that took in evacuated students was consolidation and inclusion within the classroom. We dedicated several hours each school day to ventilated, social and consolidating activities, in order to quickly integrate the children into the classroom and make them feel that they are in the best place for them.
At the same time, we conducted an assessment in the emotional field through the school psychologist and the counselor, in order to identify behaviors and struggles that require the assistance of a psychological team.
"After we felt that the integration in the class was successful and that meaningful friendships were formed with the students of the class, and after we mapped the emotional needs of each student, we moved on to the pedagogical issue. We performed assessments in the class in order to identify the academic abilities of each of them. We built personal plans, held joint conversations with the parents And with the educational staff from the school in Shlomi and together we promoted the students in the academic field.
The students immediately entered an individual hours system and received assistance in small groups, along with a complete system on behalf of the Haifa municipality, which responded to educational needs and reduced gaps within the host hostels and hotels."
"Haifa and the school became a second home for them"
"Today I can say that we feel they are completely ours," says Zohar happily. "These children, who were evacuee students last year, have become an integral part of the social fabric and we are proud, I am proud that they are part of our class! They are enjoying themselves in Haifa, receiving a wide response, both from the municipality and from the school and it seems that they are doing well. I am sure that in the end they all want to return to their home , to their natural place, but at the same time, I know that for them Haifa and the 'Naot Peres' school have become nothing less than a second home."
Kudos to the education system of the municipality of Haifa headed by Mrs. Ilana Aktok. Yasher Chokh
How nice to read about the children from Shlomi who were received with great love at school, and who love their stay with us. I wish them and their families, an easier continuation. And they will return to my health soon. Go up and succeed. 🇮🇱
could you Is there a chance that you are tired of the retarded ideology that comes from America? what happened No longer "students-and-yet-wom-yen"? I don't know how to think and because you didn't write that female students were evicted, I understand that only male students were evicted.
Zohar Manaot Peres is a teacher with supreme grace. And all the staff who took in the children from the north with exceptional quality and sensitivity