<HTML>I taught limmudei kodesh to middle school students in the US for three
years before making aliya, and I am now, thank God, finishing my fourth
year teaching here in Israel. The discussion on leadership is fascinating
to me because, on the one hand, I both grew up in and taught in US day
schools, and on the other hand because I have the Israeli system to
compare it to.
Much of the debate has been about money, justifiably in my opinion. But
one thing my Israeli experience has taught me is that while one's total
salary is very important, the *components* of that salary are no less
important. This is a problem that is entirely ignored in most US day
schools, at least the ones I am familiar with (and taught in). Let me
explain what I mean.
Most Americans who make aliya expect a drop in salary, regardless of their
profession. My own total salary as a teacher dropped somewhat too, as I
expected. But the shocking thing is that while my *total* salary dropped
a bit, my pay *per hour* in Israel actually went *up* in real terms!! In
America, as a "full time" teacher, I was expected to teach at least 7
hours per day, sometimes even 8. All of us know that an hour of teaching
can be as draining as ten hours in an office environment, and at the end
of each teaching day I would arrive home utterly wasted (pardon the
slang).
Here in Israel, on the other hand, "full time" means teaching 24 hours per
week, or an average of under 5 hours per day, and with absolutely no other
responsibilities besides teaching your subject matter. The fact that the
hours + responsibilities of an average "full time" day school rebbe in the
US are actually ABOVE THE LEGAL LIMIT for Israeli teachers should really
make us start thinking seriously not just about salary, but also about
working conditions.
By "responsibilities" I mean the following: In Israel, being a "homeroom
teacher" ("mehannekh" in Hebrew) means a significant jump in salary. But
in US day schools, if the concept of "homeroom teacher" even exists at a
school, it certainly isn't matched by pay for the responsibility. It is
simply assumed. The same goes for numerous positions like "rakazei
miktzoa" =3D a teacher responsible for coordinating a certain subject at th=
e
different grade levels, "rakazei shikhva" =3D coordinator of activities
among classes at one grade level, and countless other similar positions
involving planning and coordination. The extra responsibility of
preparing students for matriculation exams is also rewarded financially in
Israel.
In short, here is my personal example: When I taught the legal limit, or
nearly 140% of "full time" in Israel, taking into account "extra"
responsibilities, I still only taught 29 classroom hours per week! The
burden of a "full time" US day school teacher is simply too great. Thank
God the law here in Israel recognizes that.
Another "job condition" that I was astounded by in Israel has to do with
guidance. Not only are teachers themselves trained and paid to guide
others, but the ministry of education has "subject supervisors" who go
from school to school not just to inspect teachers, but to spread teaching
materials and good advice from one school to the next. Plus, continuing
education courses become an increasingly important component of a
teacher's *salary* in Israel as the years go on. In America, they hardly
exist and are certainly not rewarded financially.
Finally, the discussion was about "leadership". The Israeli model
provides numerous and varied opportunities to *gradually* add both
professional responsibility and salary *without* simply jumping from
"teacher" to "principal".
I don't want to sound like this is yemot ha-mashiah. There are indeed
plenty of serious problems with the Israeli public religious school
system. Here I have focused on the positive aspects. The truth is that
Israeli teachers of Torah, just like their North American counterparts,
are extremely concerned about issues of salary and prestige. And yet,
after having taught in both systems it seems to me that (at least
relatively) the Israeli teachers feel they are being treated as
professionals more so than do their US counterparts. (This is true
despite the fact that in Israel I don't have to wear a tie and jacket to
work! :-)
In any case, if we are concerned with fostering talented teachers and
leaders in the Diaspora, there is much we can learn from Israel.
Bivrakha,
Seth (Avi) Kadish
Amit Karmiel Torah & Science High School</HTML>
