The holidays are over, and children are flocking back to school. In northern and southern Israel, schools are reopening, in some cases for the first time since the terrorist massacre.
For more than 2.6 million children, the new school and kindergarten year began on Tuesday. Around 180,000 children started first grade. The school year in Israel traditionally begins on September 1st.
In the south and north, schools have reopened, in some cases for the first time since the terrorist massacre of October 7, 2023. This applies, for example, to the HaNadiv primary school in Metula, with 36 students up to the sixth grade.
Metula was heavily affected by attacks from the terrorist group Hezbollah. A city spokesperson said that 65 percent of the residents have now returned. The government is also trying to encourage teachers to move to the area: those who decide to come to northern Israel receive a loan of approximately €17,200.
Financial literacy as a subject
The new school year brings several innovations. For example, ninth graders will receive "financial education" for the first time: they are to learn about things like household expenses and investments in order to manage money better as adults.
Furthermore, the Ministry of Education places great importance on curriculum content that conveys origin and identity. Artificial intelligence should also be integrated into the lessons. The aim is to give students a sense of belonging and security while simultaneously equipping them with the tools to navigate a changing world.
Remembering a missing girl
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (Likud) visited first-graders at a school in Ramle, named after his father Benzion Netanyahu, to mark the start of the new school year. The building was damaged by a missile during the 2015 Iran-Iraq War.
President Yitzhak Herzog visited two schools in northern Israel: Ein HaMifraz, near the coastal city of Acre, and the Arab town of Sheikh Danun. This region, too, had been affected by Hezbollah shelling. Herzog stated that he was particularly moved by the return of students to school in the north.
He and the students also remembered Haymanut Kasau, who has been missing for two and a half years. The daughter of Ethiopian immigrants was supposed to start sixth grade today. A classmate asked everyone not to forget Haymanut.
Problematic system
Despite the enthusiasm surrounding the new school year, the education system is struggling with a number of problems. According to the statistics office, there is a shortage of around 31,000 teachers, particularly in Hebrew, mathematics, and English.
Israelis give their school system only four out of ten possible points. The figures were published by the organization "Israel100," which advocates for improving the quality of life through local initiatives by Israel's 100th anniversary in 2048.
The organization criticizes, among other things, that powerful teachers' unions allow many unsuitable teachers to remain in their posts. The initiative calls for greater autonomy for individual schools.
Vandalism at new school
The start of the school year was also marked by protests. On Monday evening, a group of ultra-Orthodox Jews vandalized a new secular school in the Kiryat HaJovel neighborhood of Jerusalem. They wrote "Stop the indecency" on the walls and stuck stickers with slogans against conscription on the windows. They left trash at the entrance.
The school informed parents that the police arrived on Monday evening. They and security forces would also be securing the grounds on Tuesday.
Protest against entry restrictions
Meanwhile, private schools in East Jerusalem canceled classes entirely. According to the Times of Israel, this was a protest against the restrictions on access for teachers from the West Bank since the terrorist massacre. There are significant limitations on the renewal of entry permits.
The affected schools are mostly run by churches, while the municipal schools opened as planned. A law passed in February prohibits the hiring of teachers with degrees from Palestinian universities. However, teachers already employed are allowed to continue teaching.
In schools under the control of the Palestinian Authority, the school year begins a week later than in Israel, on September 6. This was announced by the Ministry of Education in mid-August. (Israelnetz)
