Higher Education In Israel Research Articles

Cultural Adaptation of Digital Learning Tools in Israeli Higher Education: A Case Study of Lecturer Perceptions and Practices

AbstractThis qualitative case study examines the cultural adaptation of digital learning tools in Israeli higher education. We explored three questions: (1) How do lecturers experience and implement digital learning tools? (2) What unique challenges and opportunities arise in this cultural context? (3) What strategies do educators employ for culturally sensitive adaptation? Through semi-structured interviews with 15 lecturers, we identified four key themes: balancing traditional and digital pedagogies, cultivating cultural resonance, addressing integration challenges, and developing innovative strategies. These findings informed the Cultural-Adaptation Digital Learning Integration (CADLI) Framework, which extends existing models by centralizing cultural dimensions. Our study reveals that effective cultural adaptation involves 'cultural-technological co-evolution', fundamentally reimagining educational practices. This research contributes valuable insights for policymakers and practitioners navigating technological advancement and cultural preservation in higher education.

Managing Crisis Overload in Israeli Higher Education: Exploring the Servant Leadership Roles of Program and Department Heads During Uncertain Times

Managing Crisis Overload in Israeli Higher Education: Exploring the Servant Leadership Roles of Program and Department Heads During Uncertain Times

Economic inclusion and ethnonational exclusion of Arabs in Israeli higher education: two tales of one policy

ABSTRACT Higher education systems worldwide strive for diversity, equity, and inclusion. However, policies meant to support these values often – intentionally or not – construct new forms of labeling, discrimination, and exclusion. This study examines this dynamic through the case of access and participation plans for Arabs in Israeli higher education. An analysis of citizenship discourses used throughout the policy narrative is applied to state policy documents and interviews with policymakers and implementors. The analysis reveals two narratives describing a single policy: a ‘shared interests’ narrative focused on economic development and growth, and a ‘balancing tradeoffs’ narrative balancing economy and security. These narratives help identify the policy as a ‘multiple diversity regime’ with social, economic, civic, and ethnonational dimensions. Diversity, equity, and inclusion values are promoted through social, economic, and civic convergence, while labeling, discrimination, and exclusion arise through economic and ethnonational convergence. This study contributes to higher education research by accounting for the complex and multi-dimensional dynamic of diversity policies, especially in deeply divided societies. It calls for higher education systems and institutions to take on a more comprehensive approach, going beyond the social and economic dimensions of diversity, to pursue substantial ethnic and national equity and inclusion.

חבלי הלידה של אוניברסיטת חיפה

The University of Haifa was founded in 1972 and was the first university in Israel to be established in a city that already had an academic institution, namely the Technion. The article discusses the principal questions and practical issues on the university’s journey from an affiliate of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem to an independent institution and analyzes the political struggles against both its parent institution and the Technion. The research period spans a decade: from the summer of 1962 with the initial contacts between the Haifa Municipality and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem until the summer of 1972 when it became an independent university. The article clarifies the motives for the Haifa Municipality's decision to establish a separate academic institution in the city, examines the responses of the Technion and the Hebrew University, and addresses how and why the University of Haifa became an independent university rather than merging with the Technion. These questions are discussed while examining the different interests of the three institutions involved—the Hebrew University, the Haifa Municipality and the Technion—and the power relations between them, against the backdrop of the political processes in the local and national arenas. The article surveys the relationships between the institutions, their collaborations, and the difficulty in merging them. The Technion was a national-state institution, which is closely aligned with state institutions and enjoys a reputation as a national institution, while the University of Haifa developed as a local-municipal institution, established by the municipality to serve the residents of Haifa and the North and to promote the city's status in the country. With the emergence of these two different models of academic institutions—national-state and local-municipal—the broader dilemma in the development of higher education in Israel comes into focus: centralization versus decentralization and the budget distribution between the small number of existing institutions versus the establishment of new institutions with particular characteristics.

‘Not ours’: Palestinian Arab students’ perceptions of the campus ethnonational climate in Israeli higher education

ABSTRACT Rooted in the campus racial climate framework by Hurtado and colleagues (1998) and utilising a qualitative-led mixed methods approach, this study explored the perceptions of Palestinian Arab citizens of Israel (PAI) who are undergraduate students of their campus ethnonational climates. Focus groups (n = 19) were conducted, followed by an online survey (n = 453). The results show that PAI students perceive their campuses as foreign and often exclusionary, leading them to expend a great deal of time and energy negotiating the terms of their presence on campus. PAI students respond to the negative campus climate by forming pockets of belonging, asserting their identities and giving back to their home communities. Campuses were described as highly segregated with little contact between ethnonational groups, yet a desire to connect was strongly expressed. Variations across types of HE institutions as well as implications for practice and research are explored in the paper.

Jerusalemite Students: Challenges in Israeli-Occupied Higher Education Institutions

An educational system has the potential to uplift occupied societies, yet it can also serve as a “soft” weapon prolonging ignorance, particularly when under the control of an occupying force catering to a minority, as seen in Jerusalem. This study aimed to explore the challenges and discriminatory practices encountered by Palestinian students from Jerusalem as a minority within Israeli-occupied higher education institutions. Utilising a descriptive design, qualitative data were obtained by surveying the experiences of 23 Jerusalemite students studying in Israeli colleges through online open-ended questions. The gathered data underwent content analysis, revealing themes that were grouped into challenges and types of apartheid acts faced by the participating students. The findings exposed numerous challenges, including cultural, academic, political, and financial hurdles, along with issues related to enrolment policies, acceptance examinations, the preparatory year, and facility provisions. Additionally, the study revealed various discriminatory acts experienced by Palestinian Jerusalemite students within Israeli higher education.

Student Expectations in Hebrew Teacher Training: On the First Cohort of Palestinian Female Students from East Jerusalem

The study focused on the first cohort of Palestinian female students from East Jerusalem to enroll in a “Hebrew for Arabic speakers” teacher training program at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. This novel curriculum is designed for Hebrew teachers in Arab schools, particularly in East Jerusalem. The research examined the students’ expectations from the curriculum and instructional staff. The study’s main argument was that students’ expectations from the program were impacted by a variety of historical, sociocultural, and political factors specific to the context of Jerusalem, as was their ability to become Hebrew teachers in East Jerusalem schools in accordance with the Israeli curriculum. Analysis according to Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Theory indicated that students’ expectations pertained to: the development of personal and professional identity; the need for lecture support on academic and occupational issues; command of the Hebrew language as a stimulus for academic, occupational, and social development; integration in the Jerusalem employment market; and social mobility. The findings contribute to the little existing research on Palestinian Jerusalemites’ academic integration by conceptualizing a minority population’s aspirations in Israeli higher education. In this way, they may help policymakers in Israeli academic institutions to develop training programs targeted at specific populations.

Comparison of oral and written argumentation by Ultra-OrthodoxJewish students

Abstract This study examines the relations between oral and written argumentation in two contexts: written assignments and structured interviews among Ultra-Orthodox (Haredi) Jewish students in Israeli higher education. The segregated education system for Haredi students focuses on dyadic oral discussions about religious texts. When Haredi men start their way in academia, they move from an oral to a written culture. To understand this complex process, I compared forty argumentative essays and structured interviews of Ultra-Orthodox students. I identified which argumentative patterns recurred or differed across the two contexts. The comparison elicited complex findings: whereas dialectic patterns of weighing supporting and opposing arguments and counterarguments were prominent in both contexts, sweeping generalizations and firm arguments were found mainly in the essays. The similarity of the argumentative patterns in writing and in the interviews may be explained by the stability of argument schemata across different contexts. The findings expand on previous theoretical and empirical findings and demonstrate how the dialectic process of examining different perspectives leads to complex positions. Finally, I present educational implications for teaching argumentation, such as careful activity design and choosing discussion topics that elicit weighing and sophisticated arguments.

‘Arabic creates an atmosphere of safety because it is our mother tongue:’ inclusive training for Arab students at a teacher training college in Israel

ABSTRACT This article describes the learning experiences of Arab preservice high-school teachers on a teacher education programme tailored to their needs at a teacher-training college in Israel. The aim of the study was to gain a deep understanding of Arab students’ learning experiences on courses taught in Arabic and focused on the Arab education system. A qualitative data analysis revealed one main theme: Use of the native language, Arabic, promotes learning. This theme was divided into seven sub-themes. The findings indicate a significant contribution of courses taught in Arabic to the students’ positive emotional learning experience, promoting a sense of confidence, intimacy, and sharing in a sociocultural context. To this end, the issues are examined in depth and conceptualised in theoretical and practical terms. The results of the analysis are expected to assist Arab preservice teachers’ professional and personal development and to facilitate inclusion of minority groups in higher education in Israel and worldwide.

Navigating academic habitus in a higher education system that prioritises external funding – the case of Israel

ABSTRACT Israelis consistently secure European Research Council (ERC) grant funding at higher success rates compared to peers from most participating countries. Israeli scores in the ERC metric within the Adjusted Research Excellence Index (AREI) have been significantly above average and double those of the next highest (Switzerland) – yet on other AREI indicators, including publication and mobility measures, Israel has scored only modestly. Since governmental funding mechanisms in Israeli higher education are heavily weighted to reward institutions for securing external funding, competition between Israeli institutions is intense. This study seeks to understand how various actors in the Israeli system position themselves within their field, and how they navigate and negotiate their positions framed by various disciplinary, institutional, and national pressures. To explore this question, this study uses 43 interviews with stakeholders within the higher education system (including policy makers, senior administrators, and grant winning academics) and documents’ analysis to present the perceptions and strategies of actors at all levels of the Israeli academic research system, using Bourdieu's field theory. We show that the national academic habitus regards grantsmanship as cultural capital and grant attainment as symbolic capital. We highlight differences between the humanities, social, life, and physical/engineering sciences in their perceptions and strategies around external funding.

The OECD’s influence on national higher education policies: internationalisation in Israel and South Korea

ABSTRACT An extensive literature has explored the influence of the OECD on school education policies globally, while their influence on higher education policies has been underexamined. This article addresses that void by analysing the internationalisation of higher education in Israel and South Korea. We suggest that joining the OECD provided political legitimacy for both countries and that the OECD comparative metrics and guidelines were crucial in generating anxieties about their underperformance in the global market for international students. These metrics served as benchmarks for internationalisation policies and shaped the foci, aims and definitions of success (i.e. parity with OECD averages). The desire to compete spurred cross-national policy referencing and borrowing, initially with little adaptation resulting in a form of ‘prefabricated internationalisation’. Over time, the (im)balance between global aspiration and local realities resulted in localisation. We argue that policy isomorphism is overstated, and call for the recognition of complexity in the convergence debate.

Changing trends in remote teaching among instructors in higher education in the shadow of the coronavirus crisis

PurposeThe purpose of the study is to examine whether the remote teaching experience of instructors in higher education during the COVID-19 pandemic has improved after one year.Design/methodology/approachThe study involved 75 instructors teaching at an institution of higher education in Israel, who answered twice (once in 2020 and again in 2021) a quantitative questionnaire that examined their remote teaching experience.FindingsThe hypotheses about greater use of digital tools and about more positive attitudes of instructors toward remote teaching and learning at the second measurement than at the first one were confirmed. This hypothesis about lower levels of technical difficulties in remote teaching at the second measurement was not confirmed, but the level of reported difficulty was already low at the first measurement.Practical implicationsIt is recommended that academic institutions continue the trend of deploying innovation in teaching with confidence in the ability of instructors to adapt to change. At the same time, instructors should be provided with mental and technical support.Originality/valueFew studies have examined the change in attitudes of instructors toward remote teaching over time. In the present study, we used a repeated measures design, which made it possible to monitor the instructors’ adaptation to remote teaching. Adaptation to the new teaching method can contribute to innovation in teaching in academic institutions and to improvement in its quality.

Separate But Equal? Diversity Policy Narratives in Israeli Higher Education

Separate But Equal? Diversity Policy Narratives in Israeli Higher Education

Utilization Trends of the Israeli Higher Education System by Generation Z from 2015-2020

This study focuses on members of Generation Z, born from the mid-1990s until the end of the first decade of the current century into a world of technology, social networks, and a culture of immediate messaging. The study seeks to examine the effect of this generation’s pragmatic outlook both in general and in the context of acquiring a higher education, on trends involving registration for undergraduate studies. The Israeli system of higher education was chosen as a case study since the rate of Israelis with a higher education is among the highest in the world. Academic studies are perceived in Israel as a crucial milestone and an essential developmental stage in the life course of many young people. Data on the distribution of students among the different disciplines shall be analyzed by correlational examination of changes in these trends in the various degree levels from 2015-2020. The research findings show that from the mid-2010s a drop is evident in the number of undergraduate students. Moreover, a conspicuous increase is evident in the number of students in the fields of medicine and allied health professions, science and mathematics, engineering and architecture, which are considered applied fields, while a decline is evident in the social sciences, the humanities, law, and business administration. These findings point to the tendency of Generation Z to practical and technological studies more than fields considered less practical. The research conclusions call for implementing several regulatory steps in order to adapt the system of higher education to the characteristics and needs of Generation Z, such as expanding the professional training program in less practical disciplines, shortening the duration of studies in technological vocational departments, increasing the use of online teaching, and others.

Attitudes Toward the Integration of Digital Games Into Instruction in Teacher Education Colleges During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Aim/Purpose: This paper examines how senior academic staff from a large sample of teacher education colleges regard the integration of digital games into teacher instruction. These colleges serve general or religious populations, and we examine what, in practice, their policy and vision were in this regard in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Background: The sudden adoption of online teaching-learning due to the pandemic has been termed disruptive in that it drastically disturbed higher education in Israel and worldwide. The senior academic staff of Israel’s colleges of education was responsible for leading policy decision-making during this period. The use of digital games for pedagogic purposes may be direct when used for knowledge acquisition and reinforcement and student development or indirect. Methodology: Using semi-structured interviews, the current study applied an interpretive-constructivist approach to examine how senior academic staff from several teacher education colleges perceived the integration of digital games into teacher instruction and elicit their policy and vision in this regard, in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Contribution: The findings suggest that discussions surrounding technology-related vision and policy and their translation into practice should relate to the specific cultural needs and academic preparedness of the population(s) served by the college. Findings: Half the participants expressed a desire to integrate digital games into teaching and learning but acknowledged that in practice this was uncommon. Only a small minority considered themselves to have achieved successful integration in practice, with doubt and skepticism expressed by some of the religious colleges. Most colleges had policies to encourage the integration of technology in general into teaching, with these, in turn, supported by ongoing funding. Although a considerable gap between policy and implementation remained, the COVID-19 pandemic was viewed as having considerably accelerated the integration of digital games into preservice teacher instruction. Recommendations for Practitioners: Discussions pertaining to technology-related vision and policy and their translation into practice should relate to the specific cultural needs and academic preparedness of the population(s) served by the college. Recommendation for Researchers: The findings reflect the spectrum of challenges faced by the different populations the colleges employ and serve and the outcomes of the colleges’ ongoing attempts to negotiate and reconcile different concerns. Impact on Society: The findings have implications wherever colleges serve other socially and culturally conservative populations that are interested in or compelled to adopt techno-pedagogies. Future Research: We call for further research into whether continued pandemic-related restrictions have increased the practical integration of techno-pedagogical tools such as digital games into the curricula of teacher education colleges.

Mind the Gap: Integrating Arab Students into Higher Education in Israel

Mind the Gap: Integrating Arab Students into Higher Education in Israel

Student volunteering in historical perspective: debates and tensions in Israeli higher education

ABSTRACT This study explores the historical construction of student volunteering in higher education (HE) and the implications of this process for present-day organisational structures and common understandings. This critical-historical analysis, which focuses on the Israeli HE field, draws from archival data spanning the 1970s–2000s, from two leading Israeli universities. The findings reveal three major debates surrounding the historical development and shaping of student volunteering in Israeli HE: over the purpose and nature of volunteering activities; over making volunteering a mandatory requirement; and over awarding academic credits for volunteering. I show how these debates embody critical tensions about the meanings of ‘volunteering’ itself, as well as about universities’ mission, unequal power relations within universities, academic autonomy, students’ freedom of choice, and the role of universities in society. Furthermore, I show that, while critical literature on student volunteering highlights the tensions embedded in the current neo-liberal climate of HE, contemporary framing and structures of volunteering – such as the logic of individualisation, the organisational structure of monitoring and control, and demands for benefits for those who volunteer – are based on and shaped by debates that took place decades in the past.

Effective Regulation of the Israeli Higher Education System in the Global and Neoliberal Era

For over six decades Israel’s system of higher education has been managed by the Ministry of Education and the Council for Higher Education (CHE). During this period, significant transitions have occurred in the academic system throughout the world and in Israel, leaving their mark on research and teaching and on the related regulatory agencies. The purpose of the study is to examine the need for regulation of higher education in a capitalist world, with Israel serving as a case study. 
 
 The study examines the CHE’s management of changes that occurred in the academic world and the overall considerations utilized by the pilots of this regulatory agency, which led to shaping policy from a perspective of time and with an eye to the challenges of the future, in comparison to supervisory agencies around the world. The research method is based on research literature addressing the system of higher education in Israel and elsewhere as well as on interviews with senior academics occupying key positions in the CHE in the past and present. The research findings indicate that the CHE has a bureaucratic image, a short-sighted policy, and that it reacts to events more than leading them, as opposed to its declared goal of promoting high standard, innovative, and accessible research and teaching processes to benefit the economy and society. 
 
 The conclusion generated by the research findings is that implementation of a hybrid model suitable for the twenty first century, which combines liberalization and regulation, should be explored. This model will let institutions of higher education develop independently while reducing government supervision, and will allow the regulatory body to regulate their activity via incentives and restrictions, while identifying market failures that it will define. Such a regulatory body will include an array of academic experts from the field of higher education with proven experience in the fields of academic research and teaching, in order to separate the managing of Israel’s system of higher education from politics and bureaucracy.

Cultural value conflicts of Arab social work students in Israel: a critical multicultural approach

ABSTRACT Social work education in Israel is taking place in a multicultural, multireligious, and multiracial context. However, while social work schools in Israel are likely to discuss culturally sensitive practice, it has not yet become a dominant training perspective, and an advanced multicultural approach has not been given enough consideration in the professional academic socialization process so far. As part of a grounded theory study, this article describes the personal benefits gained and the cultural tensions encountered by thirty Arab social work students undergoing academic socialization in Israeli higher education. The findings underline the complexity of the academic socialization process of Arab students. They emphasize the importance of considering the cultural and political identity of students and of strengthening critical reflexivity and a critical multicultural approach in social work education. Implications for social work education with minority students are discussed.

Implications of the Digital Divide for the Learning Process During the COVID-19 Crisis

With the outbreak of the COVID-19 crisis, higher education institutions organized for online learning. The aim of the present study was to examine the implications of online learning for students with limited access to information and communication technology (ICT), content infrastructures, and digital environments, assuming that such limited access may impair their ongoing learning process when instruction moves online, and cause situations of stress and frustration, as well as a desire to drop out of school. The mixed-method study involved 639 students studying at institutions of higher education in Israel, who completed a questionnaire containing open and closed questions. The findings show that 13% of participants reported that they had limited access, difficulties, and malfunctions resulting from a weak connection to the Internet, and numerous disconnects, especially during synchronous lectures. They reported having difficulties downloading content from the Internet and uploading materials. It has been shown that limited access to the Internet has implications for the learning process, motivation, self-efficacy, as well as for feelings and emotions. It is liable to lead to the widening or the creation of gaps between students who have full and those who have limited access to the Internet. The findings show that little use is made of forums (10%). A more extensive use of the forums is recommended in courses where students have limited access to the Internet, to create a supportive learning community.