STATE OF THE FIELD:
HEBREW TEACHING AND LEARNING

by ARNEE R. WINSHALL

I s the state of Hebrew teaching and learning in the United States where it should be? Are student outcomes meeting our expectations? Many educators and consumers of Jewish education believe we have a long way to go. Professionalizing Hebrew-language educators is crucial if we are to succeed at raising the bar and improving outcomes.

In education, the growth of a field depends on a dynamic interaction between the experiences of researchers and practitioners. This interaction is key to defining and pushing the boundaries of the profession. In fact, each element that characterizes a field is dependent on such interaction:

So how does the field of Hebrew-language acquisition, teaching and learning in the United States measure up?

There are very few degree-granting graduate programs in the teaching of Hebrew in North America, and the enrollment in these programs is minimal (e.g. Brandeis University, the University of Maryland). The American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Language (ACTFL) offers certification in student assessment for proficiency in most languages, including Hebrew. At The Shoolman Graduate School of Jewish Education at Hebrew College, there are Certification Programs for teachers of NETA (for grades 7-12). There are other programs such as the Masters in Jewish Education at Gratz College, where a few courses focus on teaching Hebrew but no track exists for becoming a Hebrew-language teacher in particular. This is indicative of the state of the field: teaching Judaic subjects is lumped together with teaching Hebrew, and the teachers are expected to do both whether or not they have received adequate training.

There are few experts and little to no research focused on advancing the field of Hebrew teaching and learning, promoting an understanding of the discipline and assisting in the professional growth needs of practitioners.

Currently, the only professional organization in existence is the National Association of Professors of Hebrew (NAPH). NAPH is comprised of professors and instructors who specialize primarily in the grammar and literature of ancient, medieval and modern Hebrew. Unfortunately, the expertise required for the teaching of literature is not distinguished from that which is necessary for teaching a language. As a result, very few of the members focus on the area of Hebrew teaching and learning, and, in any case, their work does not focus on professionals working in pre-kindergarten through high school education.

In addition, dialogue among and between practitioners and academics is largely absent. There is no forum in which the creators of current curricula can share their insights and interact with researchers and others working in professional development. Instead, a competitive, non-collaborative spirit infuses their work.

Assessment, where it even exists in the ready-made Hebrew curricula, currently measures whether students have learned items specific to the given curriculum, but does not necessarily measure a student’s proficiency. Very few of our Hebrew-language educators are equipped with reliable, standardized and benchmarked student-assessment tools. Less than two dozen educators in the United States have been certified in Hebrew-language proficiency by the ACTFL, and less than half a dozen are certified as trainers.

We must move away from our reliance on a curriculum-based approach, which assumes that the teacher is not a professional but an agent in the classroom who is incapable or ill-equipped to take responsibility for Hebrew teaching. Instead, we must develop programs that prepare Hebrew-language teachers who are well-versed in and familiar with learning resources and who have the expertise and authority to make teaching and learning decisions for their students and their schools.

While some of these criteria are partially satisfied within the world of academia and institutions of higher learning, there is virtually no professional field when applied to Hebrew teaching and learning in early childhood through grade 12. Outside of the work associated with Dr. Vardit Ringvald and Hebrew at the Center in professional development and assessment and professional development and certification associated with specific curricula, there is little evidence that the above criteria are being satisfied for Hebrew teaching and learning.

The funding community has reinforced this situation by investing millions of dollars in the development of ready-made curricula without requiring and funding significant assessment and research into what works and why. Some commitment of funders to Hebrew has been demonstrated, albeit not enough.

The challenge is to leverage such investment and interest in order to realize the goal of creating, advancing and perpetuating a professional field that will, in turn, promote mastery among teachers and spur the highest levels of student performance. The professionalization of Hebrew-language teaching and learning should be characterized by experts convening to question the current status of the discipline; discuss issues of concern; collaborate to advance teacher performance, recruitment and retention; and ensure the highest levels of student proficiency in the Hebrew language. ■

Arnee R. Winshall, who pursued graduate studies in Developmental Psycholingustics and Language Acquisi-tion at the University of Chicago and earned a BA in Contrastive Linguistics from Boston University, is the Founding Chair of Hebrew at the Center and the Chair of the Board of Directors of RAVSAK. Arnee also serves on the Executive Committee of JESNA as the lay chair of the Lippman Kanfer Institute and on the board of the Foundation for Jewish Camp. She is Founding Chair of JCDS, Boston’s Jewish Community Day School.

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