<HTML>There has been much discussion on the teaching of Gemara. I do not teach Gemara in the classroom, but the basic rules I use for teaching Chumash extend to Gemara. I use them in my own learning and in shiurim and have found this method to be successful and motivating.
1) The concepts and issues the Gemara discusses are not understood by the students from reading the text, even if the translation of each word is known. It is often the case that even the basic meaning of the Gemara is not understood. Knowing translations of words plays a very small role in understanding the Gemara. It is only after a basic understanding that
diyukim can be analyzed and compared.
2) The teacher should divide the text into sections. Each section has a certain theme or question that is being asked and answered. The teacher should give the section a title, and identify the question that is being answered in this section. It often works out that there are about 3 sections per amud, but it depends on the sugya, the teacher, and the students. To understand Gemara, it is important to see the flow, how one
point leads to the next. Dividing into bite sized sections helps see the big picture, and how the pieces fit together to form the whole.
3) The students should be armed with as much knowledge as possible about the section before it is studied from the text. This includes understanding the issue the gemara is discussing, other issues that are mentioned, background information, and understanding how life at that era and place differs than life as the student knows it. The students should know the details of a machloket mentioned in the section, and the different sides of the questions that will be asked. There is nothing wrong with their knowing the maskana of the Gemara, either.
4) Most references should be looked up by the students, not just the teacher. This includes psukim in Tanach, beraitot that are also mentioned in other Mesichtot, Halachatot in Rambam and Shulchan Aruch, and using an encyclopedia. The teacher can decide how many references to look up according to the students' levels.
5) The Gemara must be made relative to the student. Many of the Sugyot learned today deal with business law or civil law. Many of the ideas seem very silly, but they happen to be identical or similar to laws in the countries that we live in. A little background of the need for the law, and how it is applied in our society gives the sugya relevance to the student. Likewise, do not use the literal case used by the Gemara, but substitute a similar case using present day terms. For example,
instead of using an example of trivial amounts like $100 and $50 like the gemara uses, give an example of a business loan of a half million dollars. Make the case as realistic as possible, while sticking to the basic ideas that affect the outcome of the case.
Example: When there is a machloket in the inferences made from a pasuk, look up the pasuk with the students before they meet the machloket in the Gemara. Ask them what can be inferred from the pasuk. The teacher's role would be to push the students to a split, with a group taking each side of the machloket. They can argue it out, or make their argument in
writing. The teacher can then show them that this same argument is in the gemara. It is important not to say that one side is right, because both are legitimate opinions. It is just that one side is preferred, or that the halacha follows one side because it has a stronger argument.
I use these methods teaching Chumash in 4th Grade. I deal with skills separately from content.
Rabbi Chaim Kosofsky
Springfield, Massachusetts
ChaimKoso@juno.com</HTML>
