Some 200 educators from 50 schools around the world have arrived in Israel for the 2019 International Educators Conference, held under the auspices of the KKL-JNF Education and Community Division. Between 22-28 July, educators will embark on excursions around Israel and participate in pedagogic workshops.
The 2019 International Educators’ Conference held under the auspices of KKL-JNF’s Education and Community Division is now underway, with the participation of some two hundred school principals, teachers and other educators from fifty schools worldwide, including the USA, Canada, France, North Africa, Switzerland and England. The participants will spend a packed and fascinating week getting in touch with Israel, exploring the country on foot, taking part in a variety of enrichment workshops and observing at first hand some of KKL-JNF’s activities for the benefit of the State of Israel.
“This conference enables us to get in touch with our roots and work together for the sake of the future,” said Director of KKL-JNF’s Education and Community Division Sar-Shalom Djerbi in his opening speech. “You are the ambassadors of the Jewish People, of the Land of Israel and of the people’s connection to the land,” he told the teachers.
The delegation’s opening ceremony took place in Yarkon Park’s Rosh Tzippor [Bird’s Head] Forest, where, with the support of its Friends in Australia, KKL-JNF has established an ornithological center. The artificial lake, the constructed wetlands, the winter pond, the water-filled ditches and the local vegetation all combine to attract a wide variety of bird species. Visitors that come to enjoy this natural corner in the heart of a bustling urban area can observe the birds from within concealed hides. As the guests arrived at the park, a klezmer band was on hand to greet them with traditional Jewish music.
“The special connection between the people and their land is also a connection to their roots, to a love for their country and the environment,” said Hani Dassa, Director of KKL-JNF's Overseas Education Department. “We look forward to you undergoing a meaningful experience here and acquiring a set of educational tools that will help you to communicate this experience to your hundreds of thousands of students.”
Elissa Spertus-Barnes of Los Angeles, who teaches English and mathematics, was visiting Israel for the first time. “I knew I would love Israel, and I really do love it,” she said. “Now I’m getting to know the country better, and this will help me to arouse my students’ interest in the subject.”
Later the delegates split into groups. The English-speakers went for a walk along Tel Aviv’s Independence Trail, which leads from the historic KKL-JNF building all the way to Independence Hall. En route, they passed historical sites that tell the story of the city’s earliest beginnings and the State of Israel’s Declaration of Independence. Dr Arie Ben, director of the educational center and museum at KKL-JNF House, told the visitors: “If the walls of this building could speak, they would tell some wonderful tales of the events that led up to the founding of the State of Israel.”
Amy Cytron of JNF USA, who hails from Minneapolis, pointed out how important it is for teachers to learn about the JNF’s activities for the benefit of Israel. “We want to connect the JNF to the community, so that the younger generation, too, will learn about our important work.”
“Because we teach our students about Israel, we educators need to acquire a real understanding of the complexity of life here,” said Aviva Polonsky, who teaches history in Canada and is also president of the Federation of Teachers in Hebrew Schools in Toronto. “A seminar like this one can inspire and strengthen a sense of connection to Israel.”
The group made its way northwards for a visit to the Nahal HaShofet gully in Ramat Menashe, where KKL-JNF has created a disabled-accessible path alongside the riverbed. Nearby is the Peace Valley ecological farm, which offers activities in natural surroundings for people with special needs. There the visitors met their guide, wheelchair-user Raz Rutman, who told them about KKL-JNF’s collaboration with the Lotem organization, which makes nature accessible to people with disabilities. “It’s very important that nature be accessible to everyone,” emphasized Raz Rutman.
The French-speaking section of the group travelled to Tiberias, a city that, apart from a rich heritage of history and religion, also offers beautiful views and natural surroundings that attract tourists.
Dominique Dahan, principal of a Jewish school in Paris, spoke about her school’s new program, which is designed to strengthen Jewish identity. “Israel is an important part of our identity, and I believe that a seminar like this one can inspire us and give us tools and ideas that will help strengthen our students’ sense of identity,” she said.
The groups reunited at the KKL-JNF field and forest center in Lavi Forest, which includes woodland playground equipment, tents and cabins. The site is used for activities focusing on nature, Zionism and the environment. An advanced learning center enables visitors to study Zionism and ecology through games and exhibits. “Here we educate children to love nature and humankind,” said Simha Gruper, the center’s director.
Here the teachers planted trees with their own hands as an expression of their profound connection to the Land of Israel, wherever they might live.
The first day of the conference concluded with an evening of Israeli and international folk music that had everyone up and dancing, and left them looking forward to the days to come.