Israel Ministry of Education Officially Adopts Givat Haviva’s Face-to-Face Program for Coexistence
February 8, 2007
Israel’s Ministry of Education has officially recognized Givat Haviva’s Face-to-Face Program as their main effort in field of education for co-existence between Jewish and Arab students.
Recognizing the power of coexistence encounters to bridge the gaps between the Jewish and Arab sectors, and to promote awareness of and respect for both individual identity and other cultures, the Ministry has begun preparing a work plan for the next school year that will expand the numbers of students who participate in Givat Haviva’s Face-to-Face encounters.
The Face-to-Face program is an encounter program for Jewish and Arab high-school students (11th-12th grades) in Israel. The program is based on a model developed by the Jewish-Arab Center for Peace at Givat Haviva over many years of experience in the field.
The two-day seminars at Givat Haviva are led by a Jewish and Arab facilitator, and are designed to foster familiarity, break down stereotypes based on alienation and fear, and promote dialogue between Jewish and Arab citizens of the state. In addition to the intensive seminar, in-depth activity is also conducted among the teaching staff at the schools, as is follow-up activity for students.
In preparation for the joint encounter, the students and teachers participate in a uni-national clarification process at their schools. During the two-day encounter, the students participate in workshops in mixed groups – Arab and Jewish. After the encounter, the students participate in a workshop to process the experience and continue to communicate with their peers through special Internet platforms.
In 2006-2007, approximately 4,000 students will participate in the Face-to-Face program. The more funding can be raised, the greater and faster the expansion of the program will be.
An evaluation program that studied the project (Prof. Gabi Solomon, the Center for Peace Education Research at Haifa University, with Kalman Geier) showed that that in groups that had completed the encounter, there was a decrease in negative stereotypes, more openness towards the other side and recognition of the complexity of finding solutions that will facilitate a joint future.
Says Director General of the Ministry of Education, Shmuel Abuav: “I believe we must make every effort to try to bridge the gaps between the Jewish and Arab sectors. We all have a single goal and that is coexistence in the State of Israel and, therefore, I believe that these types of encounters are extremely important.”
Minister of Education, Yuli Tamir: “I warmly welcome the expansion of Face-to-Face, a program that facilitates encounters between Jewish and Arab youth; I believe that joint communication and activity are very important. Given the reality of our lives, it is a critical experience that works to bring youth closer together, to eradicate racist stereotypes and to promote joint citizenship.”