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Multiple Ethnic Identities among Israeli Immigrants in Europe
Author(s): Lev Ari, Lilach
Date: 2013
Topics: Main Topic: Identity and Community, Israeli Expatriates, Immigration, Jewish Identity, Surveys
Abstract: This paper describes and analyzes the multiple ethnic identities and identifications among first-generation Jewish Israeli immigrants in Europe, and specifically in London and Paris, by means of closedend questionnaires (N=114) and in-depth semi-structured interviews (N=23). Israelis who live in Europe are strongly attached to Israel and are proud to present themselves as Israelis. Despite their place of residence, these Israelis, particularly those residing in London and over the age of 35, manage to find ways to preserve their Israeli identity. They also perceive the need to expose their children to other Israelis as another means of preventing assimilation. On the other hand, those who are under the age of 35, and in particular those residing in Paris, have less opportunity or less need to maintain their Israeli identity in Europe. The older Israelis in London are also somewhat more integrated with the proximal host and have a stronger Jewish identity than do younger Israelis, particularly those residing in Paris. Living in Europe allows Israelis to flourish economically without having to identify with or belong to a cultural and social ethnic niche. The ethnic identity of first-generation Israeli immigrants in Europe is multifaceted. While it is primarily transnational, it is also dynamic and constantly changing though various interactions and is, of course, susceptible to current local and global political and economic events. For younger Israeli immigrants, assimilation into the non-Jewish population appears to be a possible form of identity and identification. This assimilation may be moderated among young adults who build bridges with local Jewish communities in tandem with their transnational formal connections with Israel, a process that can benefit both sides. Such a process - the reconstruction of ethnic Israeli-Jewish identity and collaborative identification with local Jews - has the potential to strengthen and enhance the survivability of European Jewry at large.
Teaching ethnic history in school: experience from the West and the case of Jewish history in the Former Soviet Union. A literature review
Author(s): Tartakovsky, Eugene
Date: 2010
Topics: Main Topic: Education, Jewish History, Jewish - Non - Jewish Relations, Multiculturalism
Abstract: This article discusses the teaching of ethnic history in the public
school system. It argues that the struggle for human rights, the ideology
of multiculturalism, and concern for the psychological well-being of
ethnic minorities encourage the teaching of ethnic history in many
countries. At the same time, the importance of emphasizing a common
identity among youth, together with the psychological difficulties of
teaching different and often contradictory historical narratives, are listed
as possible obstacles on the way towards a multicultural curriculum. This
article reviews the results of numerous studies that demonstrate how
students belonging to ethnic majorities and minorities differ in their
historical knowledge, trust of teachers and texts, motivation to study
history, and perception of the material. The experience of teaching
Jewish history in the former Soviet Union is reviewed, and directions for
further research are suggested.
Values and Religious Identification among Affiliated Jews in Eastern Europe
Author(s): Cohen, Erik H.; Kovács, András
Date: 2013
Topics: Main Topic: Identity and Community, Surveys, Statistics, Values, Jewish Community
Abstract: This article analyzes data on the values of adults affiliated with the
Jewish community in Bulgaria, Hungary, Latvia, Poland and Romania.
There was wide agreement among the populations’ value prioritization,
but they are not monolithic. Overall, family-related values were more
important than materialistic values. Those in Romania were the most
religious, those in Hungary the least so.

A graphic portrayal of the data is presented and interpreted, guided
by the Schwartz axiological typology. Sub-populations by home country
and age group are compared in the context of this model. The older
cohort tends towards Family-related values, while the younger cohort
tends towards values of Hedonism and Stimulation. The placement of
the national sub-groups illustrates their relative emphasis on materialist
values versus post-materialist values of self-enhancement, which reflects
the degree of democratization of the countries and the socio-economic
level of the Jewish communities.
What should I have learned as a Jew after 12 years in a Jewish school?: A Curriculum Study of Centrist-Orthodox Jewish Day Schools in the UK
Author(s): Kohn, Eli
Date: 2011
Topics: Main Topic: Education, Jewish Schools, Jewish Education, Curriculum, Orthodox Judaism
Abstract: What is the ideal Jewish Education for children going to Jewish schools in the Diaspora in the 21st century? This paper aims to offer some directions in response to this question within the context of centrist orthodox Jewish day schools in the UK. In June 2005, the Lookstein Center for Jewish Education at Bar Ilan University in Ramat Gan, Israel was approached by the United Jewish Israel Appeal (UJIA) of the UK to design a Scoping Paper outlining the Jewish studies curriculum expectations of graduates from central orthodox day schools in the UK. This work was to provide the foundations for intensive curriculum work in Jewish studies in these schools. The paper focuses on the process by which these curriculum expectations were reached. The conceptual model that is presented attempts to show how a synthesis between Fullan's collaboration model and Schwab's 'commonplaces' concept can yield a fruitful foundation for a successful curriculum process. The paper also outlines the weaknesses of the Fullan/Schwab model as evidenced in the process of consultation undertaken with various stakeholder groups within the UK Jewish school setting and subsequent implementation of the curriculum model.
Supplementary Jewish education in Britain: Facts and issues of the cheder system
Author(s): Miller, Helena
Date: 2010
Topics: Chedarim / Supplementary Schools, Main Topic: Demography and Migration
Abstract: Whilst the focus for the community in the last twenty years has been on putting enormous resources into developing the day school system in the UK, the result has been that the supplementary system has lagged behind in every sense. One reason for this deficiency of resourcing is that the community has been focusing their attention on the goal of having almost all Jewish children in Jewish day schools by 2020. A consultative research project has taken place to determine recommendations to take to the UJIA to invest in a strategy which addresses the needs of those children who attend supplementary Jewish schools and not Jewish day schools, as the locus for their Jewish education. Stage One was comprised of desk research to determine the history, demography, and quantitative data related to the field of supplementary Jewish schooling in the UK. Stage Two involved interviews with professionals and lay leaders throughout the different denominational sectors (Liberal, Reform, Masorti, and Orthodox). 14 individual semi-structured interviews were conducted over a four week period. Stage Three put theory and research into practice. A series of group meetings attended by key professionals and stakeholders working in central agencies and synagogues in supplementary education across the community took place. The purpose of these meetings was to work towards recommendations for a strategy to re-energize the cheder system. At present, one year later, such a strategy is already in place to address the outcomes of the research.