Ultra-orthodox Students Research Articles

‘Meeting them halfway’: legitimation in the discourse of secular social work educators at ultra-Orthodox campuses

ABSTRACT This paper critically examines the discursive practices used by secular social work educators when teaching ultra-Orthodox students, whose strict interpretations of Jewish religious law often clash with professional values. Utilizing data from a qualitative study based on in-depth interviews with 16 social work faculty members, the paper elaborates van Leeuwen’s framework for analyzing legitimation in discourse. The findings indicate that the lecturers often encounter controversial situations that require them to abandon their professional ethics in order to accommodate the differential needs of their ultra-Orthodox students. I contend that in order to legitimize and camouflage conflictual pedagogic actions, such as the exclusion of women, self-censorship or the acceptance of discriminatory attitudes, the interviewees use social work concepts and terminology, such as cultural sensitivity, discretion or rapport. That is, the lecturers paradoxically use their professional identity to suspend social work principles in an attempt to implement multicultural politics in the classroom. The study uses identity construction as a complementary analytical lens to van Leeuwen’s approach and illuminates the use of discursive legitimation in educational and professional settings.

Community engagement of underrepresented college students: Ultra-orthodox students in Israel as social change agents

This article aims to contribute to the emerging body of research on community engagement of college students from minority and underserved groups. It examines community engagement programs involving students from the Jewish ultra-Orthodox society in Israel, a minority group that is clearly underrepresented in the higher education system in Israel. Using qualitative methods, this article analyzes how ultra-Orthodox students experience their community engagement and perceive its effects on themselves and on their communities. The findings illuminate how the students' social interactions during their volunteer work enhance meaningful learning despite considerable challenges and dilemmas. Ultra-orthodox students constantly cross social and cultural boundaries, and their choice to enroll in higher education is often delegitimized in their communities. Their ability to contribute to their communities through collegiate community engagement programs helps justify their decision to pursue an academic education. This ability also empowers them in the challenging liminal state between the ultra-Orthodox society and academia. Hence, community engagement helps reinforce the academization of the ultra-Orthodox society. This case study proposes that student volunteers from underrepresented minority groups can bridge the gap between academic institutions and their minority communities, serving as agents of societal change.

‘The whole point of faith is not to know’: Jewish ultra-Orthodox students’ epistemological beliefs about science and religion

ABSTRACT Research on personal epistemology reveals how people’s epistemological beliefs about science intersect with their sociocultural background, cultural norms, and gender. Less is known, however, about how religious background and faith shape epistemological beliefs. The present study explores the epistemological beliefs of ultra-Orthodox (Haredi) Jewish students during their first days in academia using a combination of questionnaires and interviews. Comparing the questionnaires completed by students of Haredi and non-Haredi backgrounds showed significant differences in two out of four epistemological dimensions. Haredi students’ beliefs were more naïve and less sophisticated in that they conceived scientific knowledge as fixed and certain and relied on experts’ authority more than did non-Haredi students. In addition, the interviews explored strategies used by Haredi students to resolve or emphasise the potential tension between science and religion: collaboration, conflict, independent, and repression of contradictions. Their analysis reveals how students’ approaches are multifaced, develop within the interview context, and intersects with general beliefs about scientific knowledge. Finally, the article discusses how this study elaborates on previous studies about students’ epistemological beliefs, and offers educational implications, including promoting teachers’ awareness to their students’ beliefs and conducting interventions to help students reflect on them.

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.

Ultra-Orthodox Nursing Students' Cultural Challenges Inside and Outside Their Community during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

In line with findings that nurses from minority groups have an important role in making health services accessible to their community, our study aimed to identify the challenges ultra-Orthodox Jewish nurses faced during COVID-19 in their encounters with patients and health staff from other communities, as well as their own community. The ultra-Orthodox community is a highly religious group that maintains isolation from general society, a phenomenon that affected its member experiences during COVID-19. Our research followed sequential explanatory mixed methods. The quantitative phase included a questionnaire completed by 235 female students (111 ultra-Orthodox and 124 non-ultra-Orthodox), followed by a qualitative phase, which included six focus-groups (n = 15). The quantitative analysis showed that the ultra-Orthodox students felt a higher sense of responsibility toward their community. They used their authority and knowledge to guide their community during the pandemic. The qualitative analysis identified two themes expressed as challenges ultra-Orthodox nursing students encountered within their community and with other sections of Israeli society. Our research shows the important role that transcultural nurses play in mediating updated health information otherwise inaccessible to their community, especially in times of crises. It is important to address dilemmas this group faces inside and outside their respective communities.

The digital literacy of students belonging to different sectors and studying on multicultural campuses

ABSTRACT Most academic campuses in Israel are multicultural, with a diverse composition of students. Using a mixed-method, mostly quantitative approach, this article examines the extent to which students’ cultural backgrounds affect their level of digital literacy. The findings show that students in two groups perceived digital learning differently across all seven factors examined: digital information processing and presentation; evaluation of information from the network; data collection and retrieval from the net; digital information management; communication and teamwork; awareness of integrity and ethical standards; and social responsibility. Ultra-Orthodox students perceived the digital environment as a means that enabled them to study, access course sites, and submit assignments. By contrast, students from the general population, with full access to digital environments, perceived access to information and communication technology (ICT) as an end in itself. Accepting cultural differences and different worldviews, will grant students equal opportunities, social mobility, and successful completion of studies.

Inclusion of Ultra-Orthodox Students in Higher Education: A Case Study about Women Seminary in the Engineering College of Jerusalem

This study examines how far the establishment of an ultra-orthodox (Haredi) women-only curriculum and learning environment crafted for their needs, such as supplementary Biblical studies, fosters students’ enrollment and achievement in STEM. The methodology utilizes interviews with administrators accompanied by a Google questionnaire surveying students in order to compare the secular Azrieli College of Engineering with its new ultra-orthodox branch, Tmura Seminary, which aims to promote the acquisition by ultra-orthodox Jewish women of an engineering diploma so that they can find employment in the job market. This objective is significant because the ultra-orthodox community in Israel represents a unique family setting in which the men devote most of their workday to Judaic studies while the women are the breadwinners. The findings of the current study show that addressing the higher education gender gap by purposeful efforts to include ultra-orthodox women is indeed feasible. Still, it remains a challenging endeavor because besides being first-generation students subject to religious constraints, Haredi students are insufficiently prepared in mathematics and English before arriving at the campus, which requires that they participate in an intensive pre-academic preparatory program. The analysis of results showed differences between ultra-orthodox and secular students in their motivation for study, sources of information about suitable education institutions, balancing work and family life priorities, financial need for scholarships, and career path, which is directed toward finding a job in the high-tech industry rather than continuing after graduation to pursue a Master-level degree.

Does volunteering change attitudes towards people with disabilities? A qualitative study of the experience of orthodox Jewish nursing students

BackgroundPeople with disabilities identify negative staff attitudes and behaviors as barriers to accessing health services. Studies show that nursing education activities specific to people with disabilities improves nursing care. This study explores the experience of orthodox Jewish nursing students volunteering with people with disabilities, how their attitudes towards this population changed. DesignA qualitative design was used. This research is part of an extensive ongoing study of orthodox and ultra-orthodox (Haredi) students volunteering with people with disabilities. MethodsData from 13 semi-structured interviews, conducted between July and September 2017, with 14 male students (two students chose to be interviewed together) and four people with disabilities were analyzed using thematic analysis. ResultsVolunteering enhanced students' awareness of the needs of people with disabilities, changed their attitude towards this population and enhanced their confidence as nurses. The individuals with disabilities valued the help they received as well as the opportunity to change the students' prior notions and stigmas regarding disability. ConclusionsProjects such as ours could improve the attitude of nursing staff towards individuals with disabilities and improve nursing care. We recommend involving people with disabilities in designing such projects.

From Yeshiva to Academia: The Argumentative Writing Characteristics of Ultra-Orthodox Male Students

This study compares the argumentative writing characteristics of students from different sociocultural backgrounds. We focused on Jewish ultra-Orthodox (Haredi) students, educated in a segregated religious school for boys (yeshiva), who are now attempting to integrate in secular higher education in Israel. To better understand the unique characteristics of this population, we reviewed 92 essays written by Haredi students, and compared them with 76 essays by public education (PE) graduates. Our analysis was based on the cognitive and sociocultural perspectives of argumentation. Both bottom-up and top-down criteria were used to elicit the argumentative writing characteristics either emerging from the data or based on existing theories. Our primary findings indicate that Haredi students have distinct argumentative characteristics, including the use of more complex and dialectic arguments and unique persuasive tactics. These findings are discussed in light of previous research on yeshiva learning methods and recommendations are provided for adjusting the existing higher education curricula to suit both PE and Haredi students.

Legitimizing academic knowledge in religious bounded communities: Jewish ultra-orthodox students in Israeli higher education

In recent years, there has been a significant growth in the educational engagement of religious, fundamentalist, and bounded communities with modern society. This study examines the conflictual interaction in the context of the recent rise of Haredi (Jewish ultra-Orthodox) participation in Israeli higher education, asking: How do students from bounded religious communities legitimize their participation in academic learning? Through 27 semi-structured interviews with Haredi students, we uncovered four modes of legitimation: (1) existential—viewing academic learning as a means for improved welfare; (2) community-based—expressing communal tolerance toward academia; (3) tailored—referencing adaptation of the pedagogic environment to student needs and demands; and (4) epistemic—reconciling scientific and religious knowledge. Paradoxically, we found that the growth within academia of educational enclaves with firm boundaries actually fosters greater affinity toward scientific knowledge among learners.

A culturally-based socialization to social work: comparison of faith-based and secular students

ABSTRACT Meeting the needs of students from different cultures is a big challenge facing schools of social work. A total of 184 secular and faith-based (ultra-Orthodox) social work students in Israel participated in the study. Findings show that ultra-Orthodox students were significantly more interested in individual therapy, while secular students preferred group therapy, supervision or management. In light of the diverse backgrounds of social work students in Israel and throughout the world, it is important to enable accommodation of the study curriculum to suit students’ values and backgrounds, while maintaining the core values of the social work profession, such as engaging in macro and policy practice.

Conflicts and challenges faced by ultra-orthodox Jewish social work students: Broaching and a social constructivist approach to supervision as a forum for resolution

ABSTRACT The ultra-orthodox Jewish community is undergoing a societal change that has allowed young adults from the community to pursue higher education – including social work. As members of an insular population, these students face the challenge of integrating into a social work community whose values are very different from their own. Educators and supervisors are, by proxy, tasked with facilitating this complex integration. I propose three categories of challenges faced by ultra-orthodox students; values, community norms, and lost idealizations. The paper explores these classifications and examines how a social constructivist supervision approach can play a unique role in traversing these challenges.

Diving into Yeshiva's talk practices: Chavruta argumentation between individual and community towards crystallizing methods

Abstract The present study offers a systematic analysis of the evolution of talk practices of ultraorthodox Jews learning in dyads called Chavruta. We investigate whether and how these practices contribute to the maintenance of traditional legal discourses and or move in a transformative direction. We answer this question by observing two learners in a Chavruta setting in consecutive sessions. We show that the Chavruta learners are constantly seeking for finding methods of their own while discussing legal texts. We show that the study of Chavruta learning is relevant to both educational change and to civil law in Western countries. Although the institutions and contexts in which ultraorthodox students learn seem extremely stable, we show that this relevance relates to social change, both in education and in civil law.

Learning standards in a non-standard system: mapping student knowledge and comprehension in ultra-orthodox Talmud Torah schools

The Jewish ultra-orthodox (Haredi) Talmud Torah schools have been consistently resistant to the process of standardization in content, measurement, and evaluation, in contrast to the Israeli state education system which has progressed steadily in these areas. Talmud Torah schools are private elementary schools for ultra-orthodox boys. Studies are religious and the main subject of study is the Gemara (Talmud). For religious and ideological reasons these schools insist on total independence at all levels and resist assessment or regulation of any kind and as a result have rarely been studied by Israeli or international researchers. The present study examined the contribution of a unique Gemara study program to a sample of 159 sixth grade boys in Talmud Torah schools. Students completed questionnaires to evaluate general ability and language skills, Aramaic vocabulary skills, and knowledge of Gemara. After the intervention, the test results of the experimental group were found to be superior to those of the control group. The findings also provide first insights into the performance of ultra-orthodox students on verbal and general ability measures compared to the general Israeli school population. Thus, this study provides the first standardized measurement and evaluation of learning and literacy in the previously inaccessible Haredi student population.

Group identity and social closeness

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to study examine the social identity of Ultra-Orthodox students enrolled in institutions of higher learning in Israel, and specifically the ways in which the identity of Ultra-Orthodox students who interact with other groups on campus compares to the identity of self-segregated Ultra-Orthodox students. Traditionally, Ultra-Orthodox students have preferred self-segregated educational institutions. Today, however increasing numbers of Ultra-Orthodox Jews are enrolling in regular academic institutions. Although they study in separate, homogeneous classrooms, they interact with secular students within the framework of the institution. Design/methodology/approach A four-part questionnaire dealing with attributions, feelings, personal identities, and social proximity was administered to the Ultra-Orthodox students. Findings As hypothesized, the students in self-segregated institutions exhibited a different identity than the students in secular institutions. Contrary to the hypotheses, the self-segregated students had positive feelings toward secular Israeli students and a greater desire for social proximity than the more integrated group. Explanations center on structural identity theory. Originality/value In this naturalistic study, the encounters between Ultra-Orthodox students and other students in their academic institution were random, unplanned, and unmonitored, unlike previous studies of intergroup relations in institutions of higher education. These students were not involved in cooperative tasks, which theoretically could help improve the relationships between Ultra-Orthodox and secular students.

The effect of prior education on students’ competency in digital logic: the case of ultraorthodox Jewish students

In line with the growing interest in extending the diversity of CS students, we examined the performance of a unique group of students studying an introductory course in Digital logic: ultraorthodox Jewish men, whose previous education was based mostly on studying Talmud and who lacked a conventional high-school education. We used questions from the Digital Logic Concept Inventory . We compared the results to those of religious Jewish men with a conventional high-school education, and to the results reported in the literature. The ultraorthodox group performed better than the other groups in tasks that concerned number representation. No other statistically significant differences were found. Talk-aloud protocols revealed that the ultraorthodox students utilized a viable conceptual understanding in their performance. We can conclude that students’ unique, alternative prior education should not be merely viewed as an obstacle to their academic studies, but also as a potential source for strengths.

Undergraduate Haredi Students Studying Computer Science: Is Their Prior Education Merely a Barrier?

Aim/Purpose: Our research focuses on a unique group a students, who study CS: ultra-orthodox Jewish men. Their previous education is based mostly on studying Talmud and hence they lacked a conventional high-school education. Our research goal was to examine whether their prior education is merely a barrier to their CS studies or whether it can be recruited to leverage academic learning. Background: This work is in line with the growing interest in extending the diversity of students studying computer science (CS). Methodology: We employed a mixed-methods approach. We compared the scores in CS courses of two groups of students who started their studies in the same college in 2015: 58 ultraorthodox men and 139 men with a conventional background of Israeli K-12 schooling. We also traced the solution processes of ultraorthodox men in tasks involving Logic, in which their group scored significantly better than the other group. Contribution: The main contribution of this work lies in challenging the idea that the knowledge of unique cultures is merely a barrier and in illustrating the importance of further mapping such knowledge. Findings: The ultraorthodox group’s grades in the courses never fell below the grades of the other group for the duration of the five semesters. Due to their intensive Talmud studies (which embeds Logic), we hypothesized they would have leverage in subjects relating to Logic; however this hypothesis was refuted. Nevertheless, we found that the ultraorthodox students tended to recruit conceptual knowledge rather than merely recalling a procedure to solve the task, as novices often do. Recommendations for Practitioners: We concluded that these students’ unique knowledge should not be viewed merely as a barrier. Rather, it can and should be considered in terms of what and how it can anchor and leverage learning; this could facilitate the education of this unique population. Impact on Society: This conclusion has an important implication, given the growing interest in diversifying higher education and CS in particular, to include representatives of groups in society that come from different, unique cultures. Future Research: Students’ unique previous knowledge can and should be mapped, not only to foresee weaknesses that are an outcome of “fragile knowledge” , but also in terms of possible strengths, knowledge, values, and practices that can be used to anchor and expand the new knowledge.

Integrating Ultra-Orthodox Jewish Men in Academic Nursing Training.

As part of the national plan for integrating the ultra-Orthodox Jewish population in academic studies and in order to promote its labor force participation, the Tel Aviv-Yaffo Academic College School for Nursing Sciences created a BSN program specifically for ultra-Orthodox men, for the first time in Israel. Ultra-Orthodox students' entry into the academic world requires the program to be culturally sensitive without compromising on quality standards. The structure and context may be ultra-Orthodox, but the contents and learning experience expose the students to a different worldview than that of their religious studies. The ultra-Orthodox way of life requires adjustments also in the area of learning aids. Most important, the students are exposed to the Internet for the first time, and some of them are even unable to use a computer. The students in the first class of male ultra-Orthodox nursing students are the pioneers of this community. Their academic success in the first stage-and integration in the labor market in the second-is a test of the national labor force integration project.

When Bible and science interact: teachers’ pedagogic and value challenges in teaching religious minority students in higher education settings

ABSTRACTThe integration of highly religious minority students into institutions of higher education poses significant pedagogical and value challenges for students and teachers alike. We offer a framework for analyzing such challenges, distinguishing between practical concerns, identity issues and value conflicts. By contrasting a deficit perspective to ‘Diversity as resource’, we argue that the latter enables teachers to utilize a collaborative knowledge model in class, surmounting some of the value challenges involved. We present the case of ultra-orthodox students in Israel who have recently entered the gates of higher education for the first time in this society's history. We analyze the narratives of 30 lecturers who teach this population. Most of them adopt a deficit perspective and see their role as academic gatekeepers, minimally adjusting content and pedagogy. A smaller group fosters cross-cultural dialog via a ‘Diversity as resource’ perspective. These findings lead to recommendations for successfully teaching highly religious students.

Lip-service to service: the Knesset debates over civic national service in Israel, 1977–2007

This article explores the social and political dynamics behind the various legislative proposals to establish a civic national service programme in Israel, and the role of Israel’s High Court as a catalytic force for changing policy on this controversial issue. The idea of civic national service for those not inducted into the Israel military has been a controversial issue in Israel since the early years of the state. While Jews and Druze were inducted into the armed forces, Israeli Arabs, religious women and ultra-orthodox yeshiva students were either exempted or deferred from service. Members of Knesset primarily from small parties in the opposition proposed private member bills to establish an alternative civic service for those not serving in the army; however, Israel’s governments rejected these proposals and only in the case of religious Zionist women did the government establish a voluntary programme. Political considerations and coalition politics as well as an interest in protecting the unrivalled predominance of the military (IDF) in Israeli society led successive Israeli governments to maintain the status quo. Only the intervention of the High Court obliged the government to review its policy and take action.