Pathways is a unique educational program that enables
participants to actively solve problems and negotiate different topics. For two
days the participants cooperate with students from a different cultural
background in English only and learn how to think outside the box in order to achieve
their mutual goals. This year 20 students from Ramon’s 11th grade
who study English at a 5 point level together with Lilach Alshech, a member of
the English staff, paired with Al Faruk school from kseiffa to take
part in the program.
On the first day, we
went Al Faruk school in kseiffa which is located
southern to Gedera. When we first arrived there, we were exposed to
the cultural differences between the sectors. For example, when it
comes to clothes, the Bedouin girls were dressed in modest dresses and hijab.
In addition, our knowledge of language is very different. While we speak Hebrew
and English, the participants from Al Faruk school speak Arabic, Hebrew and
English. During the first day we've been through various activities, all within
the topic of negotiation and all in English of course. For example, we were divided
into pairs and discussed our dilemmas and tried to reach a compromise that was
acceptable on both sides. We played the old and favorite game of arm wrestling, but this time the
purpose of the game was to score as
many points as you can. At first we tried to fight against each other, and
the stronger won. Only afterwards, we understood that we could win this game
only if cooperate with each other.
On the second day of the
program, Al Faruk students came to our school, and we continued
working on negotiation skills and team work. One of the activities was to
build the tallest cup towers. In groups we brainstormed for ideas in order to
find the best strategy and to implement it. It was challenging because we
had to do it without talking and in 5 minutes only. During this task, our group
understood that the strategy we initially planned would not work. In order
to come up with another plan we had to pantomime and be very patient.
Eventually, our team won thanks to the great cooperation between us.
Throughout these two
days, we accumulated experiences and initiated conversations with teens whom we
do not get the opportunity to meet in our daily lives. As the days went by, we
realized that the teens from Al Farouk who seemed very different from us at
first, have a lot in common with us. For example, our interest in music,
movies, books and even animals. At the end of the program, each participant
received a certificate for participating in the Pathways- Game Changers
program.
To sum up, Pathways is
an enriching and interesting experience that enables students to meet members
of other cultures who live in Israel and practice their English skills.
The students that took part in the
program:
Adva Slotkin, Amit Shraibhand, Eden
Kariti, Ido Gal, Lior Avraham, Marin Batzon, Noa Aflalo, Noa Biala, Noam
Daniel, Noam Dassa, Oren Ner Gaon, Shaked Hami, Shahar Mensky, Shani Avisira, Yuval
Eshed, Tal Afargan, Tal Slotkin, Tamir Cohen, Noa Marash and Rotem Almasi
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עברה עלינו
מחצית ברוכה בעשייה ובחידושים;
כל חלום נובט בלב אם יש לך חלום 
