I have a dream, that someone will ask me to create a Jewish Day school, money is no issue and this is how it would look.

The guiding principle of the school is the Hershian principle of Torah im derech eretz (Torah with worldly involvement.) This, in itself was way preceded by the Avos (forefathers and mothers,) who had intimate dealings with the world and universe and later the Sanhedrin (supreme court,) the members of whom needed to have some knowledge of everything.

The idea is that nothing exists that does not relate to Torah and is not in some way, founded in Torah. The expertise required is to translate or interpret the worldly phenomenon into Torah-speak.

The campus will be circular, Jewish Studies will be the hub in the centre. This would have arms out to all other faculties leading to conference rooms. All faculties will consult with Jewish Studies. This department would have two major programs:

1.       Devise and facilitate a program of general knowledge Yahadut, covering levels of knowledge expected for each grade. Students will be required to pass this in order to pass the year. This could be e-learning.

2.       Torah Perspective will be the pilot of the school. Anything and everything that the secular departments are teaching will become fuel that will fire the Jewish program.

For example:

English comes in to brainstorm their set work, Pankration, on the Roman gladiator days, beginning with a citizen who has lost most of his family to plague and going on to a gory description of gladiators.

Torah Perspective:

·         Laws of: Netilat yadayim (washing hands); kavod habriot (self-respect); washing for Shabbat; vehayu machaneichem kodesh (observing hygene in living areas) etc. to explain why Jews were frequently spared from plague.

·         Who lived in the Jewish world at the time:

Rebbi Akiva; who’s slogan was ve’ahavtah lere’acha kamocha… love your neighbour as yourself…

·         Lessons from the vast tractates of nezikin (damages)

·         Hashkofa (outlook): What Jewish adults and children were learning and observing, as the Romans threw people to the lions.

Results:

1.       Illustrate the massive divide between Jewish life and non-Jewish in those times

2.       Exposure to advanced Torah learning and sources

3.       Inspire an appreciation of how sophisticated our Jewish legal, moral and ethical system is

4.       Greatly improve holistic understanding and resultant performance of the subject matter

Example 2: Jewish wishes to teach Parshat Noach:

·         Internet research – engage science and IT departments to train in valid research and biology to do a zoo expedition for logistics of caring for animals, maths department to teach calculation of areas and displacement etc.

·         Calculate approximate surface area required to house 2 of every animal and resources required

·         1 Group collects all data

·         G & T group devises a formula to calculate displacement

·         At conclusion compare results with dimensions of teva (ark) and teach hashgocha (Divine providence) and value of hishtadlus (human effort.)

Result:

·         Learning is fun and engaging

·         Students learn much about the parsha almost subliminally and obtain a good understanding of the deeper lessons to be learned.

·         Applies principles learned in other departments to a practical exercise.

Some Advantages to this Approach:

1.       Jewish Studies becomes dynamic and exciting, changing constantly

2.       Addresses the impossible situation of trying to provide two separate curricula in a regular school day

3.       Makes Jewish learning automatically relevant since it is part of other compulsory studies and

4.       Engaging because it will afford an advantage in assessment knowledge for all subjects.

Using this methodology, one can address every level of endeavour. The most advanced university-level maths can be afforded a Torah Perspective in, for example, the myriad Talmudic discourses handling numerous moving variables in one applied situation. Or learning the calculation of the lunar cycle and breakdown of the halachic hour into 1080 parts etc.