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| Winter 2007 | |
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Why is Teach Them Diligently required reading in the
HUC-Cincinnati education class that I co-teach with
Rabbi Sam Joseph? Because the book provides a Jewish
way in to general education concepts, because it extracts
the thematic lessons of the Jewish holidays,
and because it offers the rabbinic
students a Judaic framework for their
own religious school teaching.
Teach Them Diligently extracts the thematic lessons of the Jewish holidays For the first lesson of the year—to set the tone—we offer four excerpts from the text, and ask students to choose one that resonates with them and to reflect on how it influences—and will influence— their own teaching. One such passage on Sukkot reads: "The sukkah is a powerful metaphor for the Jewish classroom. It is, first of all, a shelter, a place that protects our students and us…. But neither the sukkah nor the Jewish classroom is closed off from the world. We leave the roof of the sukkah open so we can gaze at the stars and feel the wonder of Creation. The Jewish classroom, too, is left open: to wonder, to possibility, to visions of all our students and what we might accomplish in this world." (Teach Them Diligently, page 16) |
One rabbinic student observed that this passage cautioned her about too easily labeling young male students with ADHD, or as students who are hard to teach or reach. It helped her form a vision of the safe classroom, a place where her students can feel protected and unjudged. She articulated her goal as encouraging her students to feel safe exploring their Judaism and being open to "the wonder, the possibility, the visions of what they can accomplish this year."  |
Rabbi Joseph's lesson later in the year about Jewish identity and Hanukkah provoked similar vigorous personal inquiry. Teach Them Diligently brings a spiritual dimension to the very practical matter of teaching and a Jewish lens through which to view our students, our curriculum, and our classroom settings. Stacey Delcau is Director of Outreach Education at Hebrew Union College— Jewish Institute of Religion in Cincinnati. Rabbi Sam Joseph is Professor of Jewish Education and Leadership Development. You can contact Stacey at sdelcau@huc.edu. Editor’s note: To hear a podcast from Teach Them Diligently, click on www.behrmanhouse.com/podcast. |
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