Arab Students In Israel Research Articles

Is contact theory still valid in acute asymmetrical violent conflict? A case study of Israeli Jewish and Arab students in higher education.

Is contact theory still valid in acute asymmetrical violent conflict? A case study of Israeli Jewish and Arab students in higher education.

The influence of teacher-guided mindfulness practice on inter and intra-personal abilities among Israeli Arab students

This study investigates the effects of a mindfulness-based program implemented by teachers for their primary school students in the Arab sector of Israel. The study included 958 fourth, fifth, and sixth-grade students, with 659 completing the program and 299 students serving as controls. The effectiveness of the program was assessed through interpersonal and intrapersonal questionnaires, measuring anxiety, perceived stress, mindfulness, tolerance towards an outgroup, and teachers’ availability and acceptance. Students completed the questionnaires before and after the program. Significant interactions between time and group were observed in all measured outcomes, indicating the program’s positive effects. The findings suggest that mindfulness practices, known to be effective for primary school students in Western societies, can also be effective in collectivist cultures, such as the Arab society in Israel.

Technological self-efficacy and mindfulness ability: Key drivers for effective online learning in higher education beyond the COVID-19 era

During the COVID-19 outbreak, Israel’s higher education system swiftly transitioned to emergency-adapted online distance learning. Yet, limited research has assessed effectiveness of online learning (EOL) for Arab students in Israel. This study delves into Arab students’ EOL perceptions, focusing on cognitive and emotional aspects. Using a quantitative method, it explored the link between technological self-efficacy (TS), mindfulness ability (MA), and EOL during the pandemic among students from three Israeli academic institutions (N=378). Results showed a positive association between TS and EOL. Further, MA moderated TS-EOL relationship. Men demonstrated higher TS than women. There were noticeable EOL differences between undergraduate (pre-service teachers) and graduate (in-service teachers) students, with the latter exhibiting an advantage. This research contributes to the evolving discourse on post-pandemic online learning, shedding light on potential gender disparities and highlighting the importance of both TS and MA for successful online learning. The findings have implications for instructional designers, educators, policymakers, and academic programs.

Factors shaping the choice in chemistry: insights from undergraduate students within a societal context

There is a decline in recent years in the number of students studying chemistry in higher education. Many studies have been conducted on elementary and high school students' choice with fewer focusing on the factors that influence undergraduate students to choose to major in chemistry. Research also indicates that belonging to a minority group influences the choice of pursuing science. Despite a higher percentage of Israeli Arab students studying chemistry in high school compared to Israeli Jewish students, the percentage of those who continue to study chemistry in higher education is small. They also lack sufficient representation in academia and industry. Analyzing the similarities and differences in the perceptions of Israeli Jewish and Arab students may shed light on the societal aspect and its role in shaping chemistry participation. This led us to ask the following questions concerning undergraduate chemistry students: (1) What are the factors that influence undergraduate chemistry students to choose a chemistry career? (2) What are the differences between Jewish and Arab undergraduate chemistry students in choosing chemistry career, if any? (3) How do the factors that influence chemistry career choice correlate, if at all? Guided by the social cognitive career theory (SCCT), we used quantitative and qualitative methods to identify and analyze factors and categories. These factors and categories were related to personal and environmental themes and influenced third-year chemistry undergraduate students to choose a chemistry career. 117 third-year undergraduate chemistry students took part in this research. The findings indicate that there are six major factors in choosing a career in chemistry by undergraduate students, which are divided into two themes, a personal theme, and an environmental theme. Our study shows that ‘self-efficacy – scientific/chemistry learning’ is secondary to students’ desire to complete an academic degree. The influence of their friends and family and extrinsic motivation related to rewards/status/prestige are more influential as well. When exploring differences between Israeli Jewish and Israeli Arab societies, our findings revealed variations in the factors influencing career choices. Our findings have practical implications for educational institutions aiming to foster a diverse and inclusive learning environment in chemistry education.

Cross-Generational Transmission of Intimate Partner Violence: The Role of Direction and Dynamics

Studies of the cross-generational transmission of intimate partner violence (IPV) have yielded controversial findings about the centrality of child abuse (CA) and child exposure to parental violence (EIPV) as a risk factor for interpersonal violent relationships in adulthood. This cross-sectional study examines the intergenerational cycle of IPV by differentiating the gender of the parent and the directionality of violence. The purpose of the study was to test (a) the prevalence of the three patterns of IPV as suggested in Straus’s (2015) Dyadic Type’s typology (e.g., man only, woman only, or both) for both CA and EIPV; (b) the relevance of the Dyadic Type’s Typology of IPV on the cross-generational transmission of IPV; and (c) whether the gender of the violent parent has any differential effect on the cross-generational transmission of IPV. A total of 1,196 Israeli Jewish and Arab students completed a cross-sectional self-report questionnaire, retrospectively addressing CA and EIPV in their childhood family environment and their own IPV experience as adults. Our findings show that among families in which any one of the three violent dyads took place, the involvement of both parents in the violent dyad is the prevalent one and raises the highest risk for cross-generational transmission of IPV in adulthood. Utilizing the Dyadic Type’s typology proved insightful in mapping the prevalence of CA, EIPV, and IPV in three ways: (a) it more accurately maps the prevalence of the different IPV dynamics than does the “dichotomous lens,” (b) it highlights the interactive violent dynamic as the prevalent one, and (c) it shows that exposure to aggression by both parents seems to be the strongest predictor of cross-generational transmission of IPV. Overall, the present study contributes to the developing understanding of interactions between retrospectively reported experiences of exposure to IPV and one’s own current behavior.

“Arab students do not reveal their difficulties”: faculty members’ perceptions of the barriers to higher education among Arab students in Israel

ABSTRACT Minorities encounter barriers to integrating in higher education. However, only a few studies have examined these barriers from the perspective of faculty members. The present study aimed to understand the barriers that Arab students in Israeli higher education face, from the perspective of deans and department heads. Using the naturalistic qualitative approach, we conducted semi-structured interviews with 30 deans and department heads in academic institutions where Arab students are enrolled. The analyses revealed four main themes, providing a holistic framework of barriers to higher education: 1) Socio-political barriers associated with a neglectful policy that produces a sense of victimhood among the minority, peripherality, lack of equal opportunities in the labour market and minority-majority relations in the nationalist context. 2) Institutional barriers related to the institutional policy and interpersonal relationships within the institution. 3) Social barriers related to characteristics of Arab society. 4) Personal barriers including language difficulties, lack of cooperation and passivity and immaturity of Arab students. Our findings show that the participants are not aware that these barriers are multitype and interrelated. Therefore, awareness of cultural competence should be raised in all academic institutions, among both academic and administrative staff, towards adapting teaching and services to minority students.

Students’ motivation to study science: The case of Arab students in Israel

The current study investigates the level of students’ motivation in Arab schools in Israel to study science subjects. In addition, we examined whether there was a difference in motivation: (1) between students in different types of schools (elementary, middle, and secondary schools), (2) between boys and girls, (3) between students according to the educational achievement, and (4) between students studying with male or female teachers. The study included 838 students from the different schools. The convenience sample method was used in which 25 items assessed five motivational categories: intrinsic, career, self-determination, self-efficacy, and achievement. The findings of the study showed that the motivation level among students to study science subjects was significantly high in all Arab schools (p≤0.05), but there were significant differences between the three types of schools (p≤0.05). In addition, the study revealed that the motivation level to study science was significantly higher: (1) among girls than among boys (p≤0.05), (2) among students with a high level of achievement than among students with medium/low levels (p≤0.05), and (3) among students whose teachers are females than among students whose teachers are males (p≤0.05).

The Effect of Hebrew Language Proficiency on Academic and Social Self-Image, Motivation and Academic Success of Arab Students in the Israeli Academia

The goal of this study was to examine the effect of Hebrew language proficiency on the academic and social self-image, motivation and academic success of Arab students in Israeli academia. This quantitative research centered on seven hypotheses that were examined by means of three questionnaires: social and academic self-image, Hebrew proficiency, and motivation. The sample included 857 Arab students in Israel. Most hypotheses were corroborated. The findings show a significant positive correlation between self-reported Hebrew language proficiency and academic and social self-image, motivation and academic achievements (current year’s grades). Also, Hebrew proficiency was found to be higher among university students than among college students. Furthermore, a significant positive relationship was found between academic and social self-image, and motivation and academic success; namely, the higher the students’ self-image was, the higher their motivation and academic success were. We also found a significant positive relationship between high school grades and Hebrew language proficiency and academic achievements. Also, Arab students who had taken 5-unit matriculation exams in Hebrew language reported greater proficiency, and their current academic year grades were higher, than students who had taken 3-unit matriculation exams.

Evaluation of the Feuerstein Instrumental Enrichment (FIE) program among Israeli-Arab students

ABSTRACT The Feuerstein Instrumental Enrichment (FIE) Program is a process-oriented program based on Structural Cognitive Modifiability and Mediated Learning Experience (SCM-MLE) theory. It is aimed at promoting learning how to learn, development of deficient cognitive functions, problem-solving strategies and metacognitive abilities. The FIE program was developed mainly for students coming from low socioeconomic backgrounds with low academic achievements. The FIE was implemented for one year in three Grade 4 classes (n = 73) in an Israeli-Arab school. Two comparison classes from the same school in Grade 4 (n = 58) learned the regular content-oriented curriculum for the same period. All students were administered the Raven’s Colored Progressive Matrices, Numerical Progression Test, and the B8-B12 Set Variation measures before the intervention. Students’ grades in English, Arabic, and Mathematics were recorded before and after the intervention. The findings showed that the students receiving the FIE significantly improved their grades from pre- to post-intervention compared with the comparison group, and that students who started the year with lower cognitive scores benefited from the program more than the students with higher scores. The findings indicating a far-transfer effects are discussed in relation to the SCM-MLE theory and previous research.

Mental health literacy among Arab university students in Israel: A qualitative study.

There has been a noticeable increase in the number of studies concerned with mental health literacy (MHL), specifically among students. Still, very few studies have examined MHL among students of non-Western minority groups. This study examined MHL among Arab students in Israel based on Jorm's conceptual framework. Twenty-eight Arab students in Israel took part in semi-structured, in-depth interviews. Most were single and Muslim, in their second year of studies, and most reported low socioeconomic status. The data were analyzed thematically, guided by the Jorm's six MHL dimensions. Different levels of literacy were found in the various MHL dimensions. The participants identified severe mental disorders more easily than mood disorders; reported a variety of possible causes of mental disorders; were well aware of available professional help (apart for rehabilitative services); identified significant barriers to mental health help seeking, as Arabs; and reported the internet as a major source of information about mental health problems and their treatment. The participants' MHL appeared to be associated with their unique sociocultural characteristics. This study stresses the need to raise MHL among Arab students in Israel, and in particular to promote positive attitudes to seeking professional help. It also highlights the need to develop culturally adapted mental health interventions for the Arab population in Israel.

Between particularism and pluralism: children’s literature as a multicultural agent

ABSTRACT Fostering multiculturalism in educational systems requires striking a balance between two approaches: particularist education that empowers the unique cultural characteristics of specific cultural groups and the preservation of their identity, and pluralist education that cultivates cross-cultural tolerance and respect and promotes dialog between groups. The present study examines Israeli children’s literature as reflected through two official programs: Pajamas Library and Lantern Library for Jewish and Palestinian-Arab students, respectively. Specifically, the article reports the findings of a content analysis into the goals and the particularist versus pluralist contents of the fifty texts included in each program in order to assess their role act as socialization agents in promoting multiculturalism. The findings of the study show that the literary works that are included in the Lantern Library blur the particularist components of the Palestinian-Arab culture, which hurts the process of the collective national identity among the Arab students in Israel. These findings can benefit other Arab minorities in the global context by informing future studies on how children’s literature is used for minority socialization.

From theory to practice: Jewish and Arabs students in academia practice multicultural education

PurposeThe research examined factors of academic studies as perceived by Jewish and Arab students in Israel, and changes in their implementation of activities in a multicultural context in the field of education, comparing between undergraduates studying for a BA in education and graduate students for MA in education and attending a course titled “Multiculturalism in the Global Era”.Design/methodology/approachThe findings are derived from a questionnaire distributed to Arab and Jewish students (N = 434), studying together in the Faculty of Education of one academic college in Israel. In total, 251 of them were graduate students, and 183 who were undergraduates.FindingsIt was found that insofar as the students from either programme acquired knowledge and tools regarding multiculturalism, they reported (1) more positive attitudes regarding the “Other” group and regarding multiculturalism, (2) implementation of a larger number of activities relating to multiculturalism in the field of education, (3) Arab students performed more activities in multicultural contexts and (4) older students performed a larger number of activities in multicultural contexts. The research findings also indicated a direct relation between participation in the course and activities conducted in the field of education. In addition, students' acquiring of knowledge on multiculturalism mediated the relation between participation in the course and implementation of multicultural activities in the field of education.Originality/valueThe research stresses the importance of higher education institutions in promoting knowledge and practice of multiculturalism in Israeli society.

Education for multiculturalism in a master's degree program in Policy and Administration in Education: Comparing Jewish and Arab students in Israel

<p style="text-align: justify;">The research investigated whether there is a correlation between participation in a course entitled "Diversity and multiculturalism in the global era" as perceived by Jewish and Arab students in Israel and a change in the students' attitudes and behaviors and their performance of activities in a multicultural context in the education field. The course was part of a master's degree program in Policy and Administration in Education in an academic college in central Israel. Pre-course and post-course questionnaires were administered to the course participants. Participants were 528 students; 177 responded to the pre-course questionnaire and 351 responded to the post-course questionnaire. The research findings indicated a direct association between participation in the course and activities conducted in the education field. In addition, students’ acquisition of knowledge on multiculturalism mediated the association between participation in the course and performance of multicultural activities in the education field. Differences were found between Jewish and Arab students' reports: Jews reported a multicultural academic atmosphere significantly more than Arabs. Contrastingly, Arab students gave significantly higher grades than Jewish students to reciprocal relations between the groups in the college and reported a more positive change in their attitudes towards the other group and towards multiculturalism and were more convinced that the course contributed to their multicultural thinking. These findings have theoretical and practical implications that can inform policymakers planning education for multiculturalism as a permanent component in academic programs, while responding to different sectors' cultural uniqueness to promote equality between them.</p>

Cultural factors related to the decision of music education career choice in Jewish and Arab students in Israel

The decision to become a music educator can be influenced by the musical background of an individual, the cultural values, and by the perceived utilitarian value in terms of viable career option. This study was conducted among Jewish and Arab music-education students in Israel. The aim was to identify aspects related to choosing a career in music, particularly culturally shaped attitudes and perceptions. Cultural differences were examined using the Cultural Attitudes toward Music Experience and Education (CAMEE) questionnaire. Participants were 50 Israeli Jewish and Arab students who were enrolled in music education programs. Findings showed culturally related differences between participants’ musical upbringing. The Jewish students reported that they listened mainly to Western-style genres, played Western-type instruments, and studied Western music theory. The Arab students listened mainly to Middle Eastern Arab-style genres, played mainly music instruments that enable playing Arab music, and studied Middle Eastern Arab music theory. The Jewish students reported more experience with music and instrumental playing than their Arab peers. Motivation for teaching music included educational and ideological components for both groups, with Arab students reporting a higher level of utilitarian motivation

Emotional Intelligence as a Mediator between Teachers’ Emotional Mistreatment and Long-Term Emotional Impact on Students

Teacher emotional mistreatment, which includes both verbal and nonverbal abusive behaviors, is a widespread and harmful experience for school students. However, its long-term emotional impacts remain relatively unexplored. This study explored the mediating role of emotional intelligence (EI) on the association between teacher’s emotional mistreatment towards school children and the long-term emotional impact on the students. A total of 377 Israeli Arab students in different stages of their university training completed the Psychological Maltreatment Subscale Questionnaire on teacher’s mistreatment while they were in school, and the Wong and Law EI Scale. The long-term emotional impact was measured using a tool developed especially for the study. Results revealed that 31% of the participants reported being mistreated by teachers at least once. The most reported long-term emotional impacts were feeling defensive, feeling a constant need to prove their worth, and fearing not to be perceived as lazy. Teacher mistreatment had significant long-term emotional impacts and was negatively correlated with EI. EI further acted as a significant mediator in the links between teacher mistreatment and its long-term emotional impact, with an indirect effect of .03. Raising awareness among teachers as to possible long-term emotional effects of abusive behaviors may help decrease mistreatment in the future. Determining the long-term impact of emotional mistreatment on social-emotional skills can help explain and prevent various types of negative outcomes in those students at a later stage in life.

INTEGRATION OF PALESTINIAN HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS LEARNING IN AN ARAB SCHOOL IN ISRAEL

This paper discusses issues of identity associated with Palestinian students’ integration in an Israeli-Arab high school. These students were born to Palestinian families that are considered as ‘traitors’ by Arabs living in the Palestinian Authority and in the State of Israel. Their parents have working relations with the State of Israel and are therefore living in a large city at the north of the country. The students experience some kind of identity conflict between them and the Israeli-Arab students learning in the same school. The students who came with their parents from the Palestinian Authority, have difficulties to define themselves and they constantly try avoiding the question: Where are you from? They usually say they are from Jerusalem and they hold a blue identity card. Moreover, these students deal with language difficulties. School today constitutes an educational framework for a variety of students, characterized by different abilities and needs. This sets a rather complicated challenge to the school management and staff that have to open the school doors and provide a response to the students. This paper is grounded in theories of high school education, self-identity, conflict between identities of minorities and adolescence. It reviews the identity issues associated with the Palestinian children’s national and self-identity, as well as the steps that school and the education system can take in order to promote their integration.

Inequity and Cultural Differences in Out-of-School Science Education: The Case of the Arab Minority in Israel

Abstract This paper examines the gap between Jewish and Arab students in Israel in the context of learning in informal environments. I attempted to understand whether the difference is a matter of inequity in terms of resource allocation and opportunities provided to the schools. I present the socio-historical-political context and the current situation, based on formal documents. To gain an insiders’ views, I interviewed five Arab science educators and an Arab superintendent. These conversations highlighted the cultural aspect of the gap and a cultural change toward integrating more learning opportunities in out-of-school environments. Using Gutiérrez and Rogoff (2003), rather than taking a deficit view, repertoires of practice is suggested to understand differences. Several implications relevant to other places where different cultural groups live and where educational and social practices affect the ways people use out-of-school time and resources are offered.

Lexical measures for testing progress in Hebrew as Arab students’ L2

Since Ure (1971) and Halliday (1985), different measures have been proposed in the research literature as a proxy for investigating lexicon advance. They are called lexical richness measures and are an important tool in assessing advance of the lexicon (Johansson, 2009). This article evaluates three lexical richness measures of progress in the acquisition of Hebrew by Arab students in Israel: level of abstractness, lexical diversity, and density lexical. My corpus consisted of fifty essays written in Hebrew by 9th and 11th graders. The quantitative analysis reveals several findings. First, abstractness increases with subjects’ age, as expected. The density test, however, did not show the expected increase in density with age. I suspect the reason for this is relatively high density in younger pupils’ essays, indicating lack of cohesion rather than high linguistic competence. The national high school language curriculum for eleventh graders focuses on connectivity, which causes a decrease in density. Third, the diversity test also did not yield statistically significant findings, probably because this test is influenced by text length, which in the ninth grade still does not enable a reliable test. Conclusions: The lexical measures can be divided into two types: basic tests, that can be applied at any level of competence; and advanced tests, which require a high level of competence. Level of abstractness is of the first type: it is effective as a measure of progress in L2 acquisition even in the initial stages of acquisition, while diversity and density require a higher competence level. Â

Acculturative Stress among Arab Students in Israel: The Roles of Sense of Coherence and Coping Strategies.

Background: In Israeli colleges and universities, many Arab students experience acculturative stress. Such stress arises from the need to learn new cultural rules, manage the overarching conflict inherent in maintaining elements of their culture of origin (i.e., Arab culture) while incorporating elements of the host culture (i.e., Jewish academic culture), and deal with experiences of prejudice and discrimination present in the host culture. Methods: This study investigated the association between acculturative stress and depressive symptoms among 170 Arab undergraduates from northern and central Israel. It also explored the roles of sense of coherence and coping strategies in the relationship between acculturative stress and depressive symptoms. Participants completed questionnaires on acculturative stress, depressive symptoms, sense of coherence, coping strategies, and demographics. Results: The findings reveal gender differences in the use of different coping strategies and in levels of depressive symptoms. However, academic-year differences were found only in levels of sense of coherence and depressive symptoms. Specifically, female students expressed higher levels of both active and avoidant coping. Moreover, female students and those in their first and second years of university studies reported higher levels of depressive symptoms. Among the male students, acculturative stress was related to depressive symptoms indirectly via sense of coherence and active coping. In contrast, among the female students, acculturative stress was related to depressive symptoms both directly and indirectly via sense of coherence and avoidant coping. Among first- and second-year students, acculturative stress was related to depressive symptoms indirectly via sense of coherence and avoidant coping. However, among third- and fourth-year students, acculturative stress was related to depressive symptoms both directly and indirectly via sense of coherence. Conclusions: This article underscores the significance of gender and academic-year differences in pathways involving acculturative stress.

Code-switching: The case of “Israeli Arab” students at the Arab American University-Palestine

This study aims at shedding the light on the factors lying behind switching to Hebrew, represented with age, gender, work history and place of residence the phenomenon of code-switching between Hebrew-Arabic among Israeli Arab students at the Arab American University in Palestine. It also studies how code-switching may affect the Palestinian identity of those students. The sample of this study is twofold. The first was conducted quantitatively through randomly selecting 70 Israeli Arabs to answer an 18-item questionnaire. The findings were statistically analysed using SSPS, showing the frequencies, values, means and standard deviation which were analysed using content analysis. Also, the reliability of the paper was tested using the Cronbach Alpha formula of which the reliability coefficient was accepted and satisfied at (0.70). The researcher also conducted a qualitative approach through interviewing six students, analysed using conversational discourse analysis. The study reveals that both age and place of residence were significantly different and affected the choice of Hebrew.
 Keywords: Code-switching, identity, Israeli Arabs