Sample Course Descriptions  ||  Core Courses  ||  Teacher Education  ||  Adult Education  ||  Israeli Fellowships

Posen Foundation Teacher Education Seminars

Designed for middle school and high school teachers, the Posen Foundation Teacher Education Seminars emphasize the history, cultures, and literature of the Jewish people from the 17th century to the present.

When closely examined, this rich subject acts as a springboard for important questions about Jews and other minorities, and the roles they play in our schools, our society, and in the lives of our students. The seminars will emphasize the relationship between the student, the teacher, and the texts that inspire genuine learning, as well as the relationship among students as they learn. Also emphasized: the importance of working with a variety of primary documents, secondary analyses, artistic representations, and prose.

Bringing together the fields of Education and Jewish Studies, the Seminar offers a unique educational and professional development opportunity.

Generous stipends available for graduate level credit, CEUs, travel and lodging


Culture and Identity, Past & Present:
Exploring the Jewish Experience Through Texts, Films & Literature
July 25-30, 2010
Cincinnati, OH
The intensive five-day summer seminar will be held at The Jacob Rader Marcus Center of the American Jewish Archives in Cincinnati. Participants will handle primary documents and exhibits from the American Jewish Archives during the seminar.

The application deadline is May 15, 2010, or until full.
Please click here for further information and application.

___________________________________________________

The Challenge of Teaching Jewish Studies Topics
in Multicultural Middle Schools and High Schools
April 18-19, 2010
New York, NY
The two-day seminar will be held at the Museum of Jewish Heritage – A Living Memorial to the Holocaust in New York City. Participants will use primary documents and items from the Museum’s collection during the seminar.

Limited space is still available.
For further information click here.

____________________________________________________


In Israel, following the conclusions of the Shenhar Commission (1991-1994), the Posen Foundation has developed training programs for educators to teach Jewish Studies and Judaism as Culture. Several innovative programs are preparing the next generation of Israeli educators to teach in Israeli state (secular) schools, among them:

* Initiated in 2004, The Ofakim Program for the Study of Judaism as Culture, Tel Aviv University, is a three-year program that trains exceptional students to teach Judaism as Culture in Israeli state schools. In addition to their "Jewish culture" studies, students learn Jewish philosophy, Hebrew culture, and one other subject from the department, and participate in a special program to obtain a teaching certificate. Upon graduating, students receive a B.A. and a teacher's certificate. The program grants its participants full tuition plus a stipend. In exchange, the students commit to teaching Judaism as Culture in the education system for at least three years, as well as perform community service during their studies. Upon completion of their studies, the Ministry of Education places the graduates in high schools within the state system.

* The Kerem Institute for Jewish Humanistic Teacher Training, founded in Jerusalem in 1974, trains teachers in the fields of the humanities, Judaism and arts in the spirit of humanism. The Kerem Institute offers teachers a year-long program in Judaism as Culture supported by the Posen Foundation.

Top of page