Primary & Secondary Education
School attendance is mandatory from age 6 to 16 and free to age
18. Formal education starts in primary school (grades 16)
and continues with intermediate school (grades 79) and secondary
school (grades 1012). About 9 percent of the school population
aged 1318 attends boarding schools.
The multicultural nature of Israel's society is accommodated within
the framework of the education system. Accordingly, schools are
divided into four groups: state schools, attended by the majority
of pupils; state religious schools, which emphasize Jewish studies,
tradition and observance; Arab and Druze schools, with instruction
in Arabic and special focus on Arab and Druze history, religion
and culture and private schools, which operate under various religious
and international auspices. In recent years, with the growing
concern of parents over the orientation of their children's education,
some new schools have been founded, which reflect the philosophies
and beliefs of specific groups of parents and educators.
Curriculum
Most hours of the school day are devoted to compulsory academic
studies. While the subject matter to be covered is uniform throughout
the system, each school may choose from a wide range of study
units and teaching materials, provided by the Ministry of Education,
which best suit the needs of its faculty and pupil population.
With the aim of enhancing pupils' understanding of their society,
each year a special topic of national importance is studied in
depth. Themes have included democratic values, the Hebrew language,
immigration, Jerusalem, peace and industry.
Administration and Structure
The Ministry of Education is responsible for school curricula,
educational standards, supervision of teaching personnel and construction
of school buildings. Local authorities are charged with school
maintenance as well as with acquisition of equipment and supplies.
Teaching personnel at the kindergarten and primary school level
are Ministry employees, while those in the upper grades are employed
by local authorities, which receive funding from the Ministry
according to the size of the school population. The government
finances 72 percent of education, while the rest comes from local
authorities and other sources.
Secondary Education
The majority of secondary schools offer academic curricula in
science and in the humanities leading to a matriculation certificate
and higher education.
Certain secondary schools offer specialized curricula which lead
to a matriculation certificate and/or vocational diploma. Technological
schools train technicians and practical engineers on three levels,
with some preparing for higher education, some studying toward
a vocational diploma and others acquiring practical skills. Agricultural
schools, usually in a residential setting, supplement basic studies
with subjects relating to agronomy. Military preparatory schools,
in two different settings, train future career personnel and technicians
in specific fields required by the Israel Defense Forces; both
programs are residential, one open to boys only, the other is
coeducational. Yeshiva high schools, mainly boarding schools,
with separate frameworks for boys and girls, complement their
secular curricula with intensive religious studies and promote
observance of tradition as well as a Jewish way of life. Comprehensive
schools offer studies in a variety of vocations, ranging from
bookkeeping to mechanics, electronics, hotel trades, graphic design
and more.
Youth not attending one of the above schools are subject to the
Apprenticeship Law, requiring them to study for a trade at an
approved vocational school. Apprenticeship programs are provided
by the Ministry of Labor in schools affiliated with vocational
networks. Lasting three to four years, these programs consist
of two years of classroom study followed by one/two years during
which students study three days a week and work at their chosen
trade on the other days. Trades range from hairstyling and cooking
to mechanics and word processing.
Education for Exceptional Children
Gifted children, who rank in the top 3 percent of their class
and have passed qualifying tests, participate in enrichment programs,
ranging from fulltime special schools to extracurricular
courses. A classroom for the gifted is characterized by the level
of its students and its studies, with emphasis not only on imparting
knowledge and understanding, but also on applying the concepts
mastered to other disciplines. Children in these programs learn
to research and handle new material independently.
Children with physical, mental and learning disabilities are placed
in appropriate frameworks according to the nature of their disability,
to help them eventually achieve maximum integration into the social
and vocational life of their community. Thus some are taken care
of in special settings, while others attend regular schools where
they may be assigned to selfcontained groups or to mainstream
classes with supplementary tutoring. Responsibility for their
wellbeing is shared by health care personnel, psychologists,
social workers and special education professionals, as well as
by the family and various community support groups. A committee
constituted by law and appointed by the Minister of Education
determines the eligibility of disabled children for special education
programs and facilities, which are free from age 3 to 21.
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