The Be’eri Program for Pluralistic Jewish-Israeli Identity Education trains educators, creates innovative curricula, and partners with local and national change agents to provide a pluralistic, content-filled approach to Tarbut Yisrael (Jewish heritage studies) that transforms the way countless Israeli students, teachers, and government and community leaders lay claim to their Jewish-Israeli identity.
The Be’eri program has been central in strengthening Tarbut Yisrael in the secular Israeli educational system. Prior to Be’eri, Jewish-Israeli identity education in secular high schools was minimal.
Since its inception, Be’eri has grown to become the largest and most influential Jewish-Israeli identity education program in Israel, helping to bring about significant structural change within the Israeli education system.
The Ministry of Education now recognizes Tarbut Yisrael as a teaching discipline, mandates and funds compulsory Tarbut Yisrael hours for all grade 7 and 8 students, and allocates funding to promote Jewish studies in secular high schools.
The mission of the Be’eri Program is to:
Expand the breadth and depth of pluralistic Jewish-Israeli identity education among Israeli youth attending secular public high schools.
Introduce Israelis to a multifaceted approach to Judaism that is meaningful and relevant to their daily lives, enabling them to form a positive Jewish-Israeli identity.
Present Jewish-Israeli culture in a manner that can help Israelis who are not religiously observant to form a pluralistic worldview that enables them to deal with the challenges of living in a diverse Jewish-Israeli democracy.
Continually develop innovative formal and informal educational methodologies that encourage educators, students, and parents to create a new school culture and take Jewish values-based social action.
Tarbut Yisrael textbooks: to meet the need for curricula on this new subject, Be’eri has developed Ministry of Education-approved Tarbut Yisrael syllabi and textbooks for students in grades 7-12, addressing themes such as Jewish-Israeli identity, Jewish philosophy, the Jewish-Israeli calendar, and Jewish and democratic values.
• Milestones: A Journey of Jewish Identity
• “Herzl Says”: An Exemplary Zionist Society
• In Our Ancestors’ Path
• Democratic Values and Judaism
• Peace of Mind: Select Chapters from Hilchot Deot
• Circles of Belonging: Jewish Identity in a Changing World
• The Individual and Society
• Eight Chapters for Maimonides
The Be’eri ecosystem influences students and teachers through a holistic combination of components:
“Principals often look for steps that will advance their school’s values, atmosphere, the caliber of its teachers, and the like. For me, the introduction of the Be’eri program was undoubtedly a move that succeeded in doing so. Tarbut Yisrael lessons are extremely difficult for today’s student, who is not accustomed to debate and in-depth discussions, but the excellent Be’eri-trained educators were able to take on this challenge.”
– Dr. Nati Barak, Principal, Hof Hasharon Shefayim Junior High School
The Be’eri resource center provides comprehensive support for Israeli high schools: