Makom’s Gap-Year Israel Educator Team is Offering Virtual Learning Opportunities for Students
In this time of uncertainty, when many of our students’ learning experience has been disrupted by the Coronavirus, we are now offering continued learning online.
Whether a one-off lecture or a mini-series, Makom Israel can offer multiple opportunities for students to continue learning about Zionism, Modern Israel, Israeli Politics, the Arab-Israeli Conflict and Jewish Peoplehood now that they will only be able to learn at home for the foreseeable future.
If your school is interested in arranging one of these learning opportunities listed below, please email our Gap Year Program Director Benji Davis at BenjaminD@jafi.org.
This can be hosted on our Makom Israel Zoom, and scheduled based on when is best for your students.
WEBINAR WEDNESDAYS
In these times of corona, Makom is keeping you connected to Israel with a series of weekly online classes on various topics. All are welcome to join us on Wednesdays, 8PM IST, 1 PM EST, 10 PST on this Zoom link.
On March 25th , we discussed "The Jewish question and has it come back?" Please click here to check out the video of the webinar.
On April 1st, we discussed the current political situation in Israel as Bibi and Gantz attempt to form a unity government during the Corona pandemic. Please click here to check out the video of a webinar on the topic.
Interactive 60-90 Minute Webinars*:
Explaining the Territories
A short intro to the issues in the West Bank/Judea & Samaria
Zionism - The Jewish Renaissance
A brief history of Jewish nationalism from antiquity to today
The Return of the Jewish Question in the West
Why are we seeing so much more antisemitism? What has changed?
History of Jerusalem
Biography of a 5,000 year old city
Israeli Politics: I don’t get it
Breakdown the Israeli political system, debate its pros and cons, discuss where the political currents are flowing and what the Israeli political map may look like in the future.
21st Century Challenges for Israel society
What are the main challenges facing Israeli society in the coming decades? This session analyses societal trends, issues within the Jewish world, and long-term national security threats.
Israel Update
How does today’s news fit into the local political context and the greater geopolitical challenges and opportunities facing Israel.
The US-Israel Relationship
Why are the United States and Israeli governments so close? This session will explore the many layers of the US/Israel Relationship and discuss where it may be headed in the future.
Israeli Jewishness and Diaspora Jewishness: Are we one people?
Why is one people’s Jewishness rooted in ethno-nationalism and another rooted in liberal-religious values? Discuss the trends in how the two largest Jewish communities understand what it means to be a Jew in the 21st century and how that impacts the future of the Jewish people.
Israel and the Middle East: Geostrategic Threats and Opportunities
On the one hand, the IDF is the most powerful army in the region and opportunities abound for Israel to expand its influence. At the same time, several significant threats – from Iran, Hezbollah and the consequences of the Arab Spring, provide significant challenges to Israel. This session looks at these challenges and opportunities.
*Most of these sessions can be adapted to a 2-3 part mini series as well
Three Part Webinar Mini-Series:
Zionism & Liberalism - Can it Work?
“Progressive”, “Liberal” “Zionist”, these are terms that we hear and use every day, but do we really know what they mean? How do they interface with each other? Are they contradictory? Is there overlap between them? We have put together this seminar to help open a conversation to explore the terms and to begin to answer some of these questions.
Good Controversy Seminar
This 3-part series is aimed at teaching participants about how to engage in “good controversy,” with Israel as the subject for discussion. We will discuss and model how to “argue for the sake of Heaven” in a society where “yes, and” and “safe spaces” are the norm. In this workshop, we will teach our signature framework for understanding disagreements about Israel – the Four Hatikvah Questions. We will then help participants get more comfortable with differences of opinions, enabling them to engage in deeper, meaningful conversations. And finally, we will activate participants to practice using this framework, to help them analyse their own viewpoints to understand how they differ from other viewpoints
“To be a People Free In Our Land” - להיות עם חופשי בארצנו
What does it mean “to be a free nation in our land?” This mini series will be a deep dive into the penultimate line of the Hatikva.
