Education studies

Selected Issues in Arab Education in Israel

Course type: Seminar, 2 weekly-hrs., Annual.

The seminar reviews various topics relevant to Arab education in the State of Israel. It aims to expose students to the characteristics, challenges, achievements, changes, and transformations that the Arab education system in Israel has undergone and continues to undergo, compared to both other periods and the Jewish education system, and to touch on the diverse social and religious background of Arab society in Israel and its contribution to the diversity of the Arab education system.

Future teachers seeking to engage in teaching and education in Arab society will significantly benefit from the seminar, which touches on important and current issues and aspects. While marking the impressive achievements and successes of Arab education, it also reveals the obstacles and challenges it faces. In this respect, the seminar offers a holistic view of Arab education in Israel from the establishment of the state to the present day, along with a forward-looking vision. It will include lectures, open discussions around important issues, analysis of bibliographic material, a classroom presentation, and ongoing consultation to write and submit a seminar research paper.

Final grade components: seminar final paper 70%, assignments 30%.

Philosophy of Education

Course type: Lecture, 1 weekly hour, Semester

Those seeking to engage in teaching and education need an ideological-philosophical basis that will assist them in developing and adopting an educational philosophy based on which they will function as educators. The course is designed to allow teaching and education students to get up close and personal with the essence of education for all its meanings. The course will deal with the educational act, its goals, and tools and introduce, define, and clarify the concept of ‘philosophy’, which forms the basis of all sciences. 

The concept of ‘Philosophy of Education’ will be the focus of the course and will be defined by different schools and branches, both old and new. Students will learn the impact of other educational-philosophical concepts on curricula planning, development, and implementation.

Among other things, the course will touch on topics such as human nature and its connection to education, different philosophical worldviews, education and its goals, who is an educator, education – between the individual and society, and key thinkers in the philosophy of education such as Rousseau, Pestalozzi, Ibn Khaldun, Al-Ghazali, and others. Particular emphasis will be placed on the issue of critical education and its pioneers, led by Russell, Illich, S. Yizhar, and Freire. The course will include introductory lectures and open discussions regarding day-to-day educational issues in schools.

Final grade components: active participation 20%, assignment 20%, exam or final paper 60%.

Emotional and Behavioral Aspects of Children and Adolescents: Normality and Pathology

Course type: Lecture, 1 weekly hour, Semester

The course imparts extensive knowledge regarding the world of children and adolescents. It perceives childhood and adolescence as basic developmental stages and emphasizes standard-normative development and how children and adolescents cope with their surroundings. It also examines the social and mental stages of development and the practical implications of this theoretical knowledge, using examples from kindergarten and school life. The course also addresses emotional difficulties and functional disorders. 

The course aims to enable students to develop sensitivity, empathy, and a supportive understanding as part of a relationship with children and adolescents; to distinguish between normative and abnormal responses in childhood and adolescence; to observe the developmental sequence of children and adolescents; to handle pupils with behavioral, emotional, and adaptive difficulties; and guide them in the analysis of scientific articles and discussions on issues related to course content.

Final grade components: final exam 70%, assignments 30%.

The Teacher as an Educator of Ethics and Values

Course type: Lecture, 1 weekly hour, Semester

At the core of the educational act is an ethical perception; therefore, teachers are, first and foremost, educators of ethics and values. The course aims to impart students with knowledge, expose them to basic concepts, and introduce them to teaching and operating methods in the field of ethical education and education for democracy; to develop their awareness of the major ethical dilemmas and challenges facing Arab educators in Israel; to expose them to a humanist-democratic worldview, and to examine the extent to which it is compatible for society and education in Israel in general, and for traditional Arab society in Israel in particular; and to introduce them to the characteristics of social and informal education in schools, as a means of ethical education and the development of democratic thinking.

The course touches on several key issues in the field of education, including what is ethics and what is ethical education; what are its characteristics and goals; democracy as a central value in the State of Israel; the values ​​on which democracy is founded; education for values in a democratic society, the characteristics of education in Arab society (in the family, at school, and in the community); fundamental values in Arab society and in the Arab school; education for democracy in traditional and in multicultural societies, the characteristics of Israeli society and their impact on local education for democracy; and the potential impact that a teacher’s personality, attitudes, values, and self-identity perception have on the ethical education in the school.

Final grade components: final exam 60%, assignments 20%, active participation 20%.

Developmental Psychology

Course type: Lecture, 1 weekly hour, Semester

The course is designed to impart knowledge regarding basic concepts in human development, developmental processes, and the various characteristics of the developmental stages – from infancy to old age. It presents psychological schools, developmental psychological theories, and a variety of fields in modern psychology; it offers an analysis of the aspects and characteristics of standard-normative human development versus the abnormal and the factors of resilience and risk affecting development.

The course aims to introduce students to the psychological terminology and basic concepts in development; to provide them with knowledge and understanding of developmental processes and stages; expose them to developmental, social, and cognitive developmental approaches and theories; discuss psychological problems in child development; develop their ability to observe children’s behavior; and guide them in the analysis of scientific articles and discussions on issues related to course content.

Final grade components: final exam 60%, assignments 20%, attendance and participation 20%.

Measurement and Evaluation in teaching education

Course type: Lecture + exercise, 1 weekly hour, Semester

The course focuses on the importance of measurement and evaluation within the framework of educational activity while addressing key theoretical and practical issues in education, including existing evaluation cultures, existing theoretical methods and tools for measurement and evaluation, and the extent of their application in the field; and applying the correct measuring method.

The course provides tools for analyzing and judging the quality of various measurement types and tools, and its main objectives are to impart basic concepts in measurement and evaluation; familiarity with traditional and alternative methods and techniques for evaluating student achievement; experience in developing evaluation methods and tools; developing the ability to adapt evaluation types to curriculum and other variables related to students, teachers, and school; weighing the use of innovative teaching techniques, learning, and assessment as tools for implementing future-oriented pedagogy in school; and strengthening the student’s abilities and skills.

At the end of the course, students will know how to distinguish between measurement and evaluation; sort evaluation types according to cultures, methods, and tools, and analyze the features of each kind; recognize principles in the construction of measurement tools such as achievement tests; and expand thought processes within school evaluation processes.

Final grade components: final exam 60%, assignments 30%, attendance and participation 10%.

Sociology of Education

Course type: Lecture, 1 weekly hour, Semester

The sociology of education examines the organizational, social, and national aspects of the craft of education. The course offers a unique perspective on education. It seeks new insights regarding the characteristics, factors, motivations, and interests – conscious and unconscious – of educational action and how it is organized within society.

In that respect, the course seeks to go beyond the obvious in the daily educational reality of social institutions, organizations, roles, and social activities as a means to reveal the gap between ideology and educational practice – between planning and execution, between initiated action and actual results, and between stated goals and practical policies – and try to reduce it. In this context, the issue of inequality in education is a central motif in the course, as are the means to disguise, justify and preserve it.

Another key goal of the course is to introduce students to the sociological way of thinking, which is one of the main disciplines in the study and analysis of education systems, and familiarize them with the three main paradigms in sociological thinking: structural-functional, critical, and symbolic interaction.

Final grade components: final exam 70%, assignment 20%, attendance and participation 10%.

School as a Multicultural Educational Organization

Course type: Lecture, 1 weekly hour, Semester

The course is dedicated to examining the school as a learning, synergistic organization, which develops itself and others, and has a holistic vision. To view the school as a subsystem of society, which exists and operates interactionally with its environment. In addition, the course will deal with the multiculturalism that characterizes the education system in Israel in general and Arab society in Israel in particular. It will present key models, approaches, and dilemmas in multicultural thought and touch on their adaptation to the reality of Arab society in Israel.

In recent years, there has been a growing preoccupation with the interactions between the hegemonic majority group and the minority group and the recognition of the Arab minority’s unique cultural characteristics within the Israeli education system against a national, linguistic, and identity background. The course will emphasize the role of multiculturalism in cultivating tools and skills among students regarding their attitude to their own culture and that of others. It will allow an in-depth discussion of the education system’s role in creating an educational climate of tolerance and acceptance of others.

Final grade components: final paper 50%, assignments 40%, active participation 10%.

Teaching Theory and its Methods

Course type: Lecture + exercise, 2 weekly-hrs., Annual

As part of the course, students will learn basic concepts in teaching theory and the characteristics of 21st-century education, such as the formulation of a variety of goals in teaching; teaching and learning theories, strategies, processes, methods, and activities; lesson plan design; teaching models; teacher and student profiles; class discipline; reflection in teaching; evaluation and measurement; and meaningful learning.

The main objectives are to expose students to current and future-oriented teaching, learning, and evaluation methods and innovative content; to develop them as independent learners able to acquire new learning skills; to assist them in constructing dynamic content that varies according to their learning needs and progress; to accompany them as educational mentors; to allow them to experience peer learning; to develop their strategic thinking for building and to analyze collaborative projects and content; improve their ability for self-evaluation; and increase their motivation as independent, influential learners and partners in the teaching, learning, and evaluation process.

Final grade components: final exam 60%, exercises and assignments 30%, attendance and participation 10%.

Qualitative Research in Education

Course type: Lecture + exercise, 1 weekly hour, Semester

As part of the course, students will learn qualitative research methods, experience the various tools available for data collection, and discuss the ways of data processing and analysis. They will also be exposed to philosophical, theoretical, and applied aspects of the naturalistic research approach, addressing uniqueness, advantages, dilemmas, ethical issues, questions dealing with the validity and reliability of research, and reviews accompanying qualitative research, emphasizing the field of education.

The goal is to develop students’ reading and critical observation skills in qualitative research and introduce them to tools for conducting independent research that will allow them to conduct research during their future endeavors in the school. The course will include lectures and exercises as well as hand on experience in writing a research outline and conducting mini-research at the end of the semester.

Final grade components: final paper 60%, exercises and assignments 30%, attendance and participation 10%.

Curriculum Planning

Course type: Lecture + exercise, 1 weekly hour, semester

The starting point of this course is a strong belief that all teachers should master the subject of curriculum planning on all levels – annual, semestrial, weekly, and individual lessons. Proper curriculum planning is one of the pillars of the work of educators and teachers. This knowledge constitutes an essential condition for their success. The main objectives of the course are to impart basic concepts in curriculum planning, cultivate the ability to exercise discretion regarding curriculum planning, provide tools for analyzing and critically reading curricula, developing the skills needed for planning and developing an extended curriculum, and dealing with the issue of curricula, in schools of the future. 

During the course, students will be exposed to theoretical material on curriculum planning and will exercise preparation of lesson plans and planning at an annual level. The course will focus on key topics and concepts in curricula, including rationale; goals; syllabus; content; design, development, and organization; execution, and evaluation; approaches to curriculum planning according to fields of knowledge; interdisciplinary approach; spiral curricula; concepts underlying existing curricula; models for analyzing and evaluating curricula; curricula designed for unique student populations; curricula on a defined topic; and a school curriculum.

Final grade components: final exam 60%, final paper 30%, attendance and participation 10%.

Quantitative Research in Education

Course type: Lecture + exercise, 1 weekly hour, Semester

In recent decades, the demand for quantitative research in the education system has increased to develop the ability to manage and make decisions based on accurate data. Quantitative research is essential not only for policymakers at the national level but also for educators working in the educational field daily. 

The main goals of the course are to present the principles of scientific research as a systematic way of thinking, to impart basic knowledge in statistics, measurement, and research methods accepted in the behavioral sciences, improve the ability to read and understand scientific literature; And impart skills for assessing the quality of scientific research, and for understanding and interpreting a data system. The course will deal, among other things, with the characteristics of the scientific approach; a comparison between the quantitative and qualitative approach; the quantitative research process; variables: settings and measurement scales; theory and its place in research; research problems and assumptions; theoretical statistics, inferential statistics and more.

Final grade components: final paper 60%, exercises and assignments 30%, active participation 10%.