Arab, Jewish Children Share their Cultures at Jerusalem 1)Bi

Broadcast: Feb 06,2003

 

In the Middle East, a region marked with considerable hatred¹ and distrust, there are still some places where lessons in harmony and respect are lived every day. One of them is a school in Jerusalem where Arab and Israeli children learn together.

These children sing a song made popular by the world famous Lebanese singer Fayrouz. This might seem an ordinary event at a school in Beirut or any other Arab capital, but this nursery is in Jerusalem, and the children are both Arabs and Israelis. This is the youngest group of students enrolled³ in the Bilingual School, one of two such primary schools founded by the organization Hand-in-Hand, which aims to promote peaceful ²⁾coexistence between Arabs and Jews. It opened during a more hopeful time in 1998.

Here, unlike almost every other school in Israel, Arab and Jewish students learn side by side. In each class, there are two teachers, one Arab and one Israeli. Instruction is in both Hebrew and Arabic and the aim is to make the students equally fluent in both languages. And through this process, they are also learning about each other's culture, with the objective of greater understanding and respect between the two peoples. The music teacher, Hanna Shehadeh Habib, an Arab, is excited about the prospects⁴ for the project, offering hope for a brighter future, despite the current violence between Israelis and Palestinians.

"It is a very hard situation now, but after [each child] knowing the other from inside, the feelings of the other, I think that it will help solve this problem [of the violence] over here [in the Middle East]," she said. Other teachers at the school share his view.

Waffa Shira Grossberg, a Jew who immigrated⁵ to Israel from New York eight years ago, also sees the school as a bastion of hope in a time of despair.

A teacher for 10 years, she is ³⁾enthusiastic about her first year at this school.

"I am more than hopeful. This school is definitely making a difference in the lives of the students, in the lives of the teachers and people who are in contact with our school," she explained. One of the key people who has worked hard to promote the project is Paul Leventhal, who immigrated to Israel from Sydney, Australia. He carries with him not only a passion for Hebrew and a dedication⁶ to Israel but also university degrees in Arabic and Islamic studies.

Mr. Leventhal, who has worked as an associate director of Hand-in-Hand, believes that the challenge ahead is for Arabs and Jews in Israel to fully⁷ understand and respect one another's languages and traditions.

"What we want to achieve is full integration⁸, Jewish, Arab education, fully bilingual and a full acceptance of the other," he said. But applying this theory can be uncomfortable, and Mr. Leventhal is the first to acknowledge that the task is not easy. Take for example, the problem of national holidays. Each year, Israelis celebrate the founding of their state on Independence Day. But at this school the Jewish students learn that their Arab counterparts commemorate⁹ the same occasion as the Nakbah, meaning the ⁴⁾catastrophe¹⁰. But Mr. Leventhal insists that both sides must know the truth about each other's beliefs from an early age.

"We don't see a threat by marking the Nakbah day," he said. "We don't encourage hatred, we encourage listening. It was very difficult for both sides of course."

Reflecting its unique character, the school has two principals. The Arab principal, Ali Khatib, says the goal should be to encourage other schools to adopt the same innovative¹¹ approach.

"If we succeed with this and many parents want to register their children at the school, it will be a model for other schools in Israel," Mr. Khatib said. So far, the school has 123 children and there are classes to the 4th grade. Mr. Khatib says the dream is to enroll² more students and expand the project into secondary education. He works along side Dalia Peretz, who is the Jewish principal. She believes the school is promoting positive changes by bringing Arabs and Jews together from an early age.

"I didn't meet Arab friends until I was in university, and this is the common case," she said. "And when you meet Arabs as a Jew in Israel, you meet them as your waiter, as your worker, something like that. It is very seldom on an equal level. And here [at the school] it is a totally different case because the children grow up together. Reality is complex. There are Arabs and there are Jews and the conflict does not have only one side, it has at least two sides." The ability of the students to see both ⁵⁾dimensions is evident.

Ten-year-old Arab student Basil Eid answers in fluent Hebrew and comments that he counts some of his Jewish classmates as his best friends. And even at their young ages, students here seem to realize they're involved in something potentially bigger than just going to school. Eight- year-old-Jewish student Jaime Einstein said, "I think it's good because if Arabs and Jews will be together, so maybe the people in the world will be together."

Keeping such hopes alive with the clouds of war gathering¹² once again over the Middle East is not easy. But at this school at least, the students and teachers are doing their best.

Ross Dunn, VOA news, Jerusalem

 

1)      bilingual [bai5liN^wEl]adj. 双语言的

2)      coexistence [7kEui^5zistEns]n. 共存

3)      enthusiastic [in7Wju:zi5Astik]adj. 热心的, 热情的

4)      catastrophe [kE5tAstrEfi]n. 大灾难, 大祸

5)      dimension[di5menFEn]n. 范围，尺寸, 尺度

1 hatred   

n.憎恶，憎恨，仇恨

参考例句：

• He looked at me with hatred in his eyes.他以憎恨的眼光望着我。
• The old man was seized with burning hatred for the fascists.老人对法西斯主义者充满了仇恨。

2 enroll   

v.招收；登记；入学；参军；成为会员（英)enrol

参考例句：

• I should like to enroll all my children in the swimming class.我愿意让我的孩子们都参加游泳班。
• They enroll him as a member of the club.他们吸收他为俱乐部会员。

3 enrolled   

adj.入学登记了的v.[亦作enrol]( enroll的过去式和过去分词 )；登记，招收，使入伍（或入会、入学等），参加，成为成员；记入名册；卷起，包起

参考例句：

• They have been studying hard from the moment they enrolled. 从入学时起，他们就一直努力学习。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He enrolled with an employment agency for a teaching position. 他在职业介绍所登了记以谋求一个教师的职位。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 prospects   

n.希望，前途(恒为复数)

参考例句：

• There is a mood of pessimism in the company about future job prospects. 公司中有一种对工作前景悲观的情绪。
• They are less sanguine about the company's long-term prospects. 他们对公司的远景不那么乐观。

5 immigrated   

v.移入( immigrate的过去式和过去分词 )；移民

参考例句：

• He immigrated from Ulster in 1848. 他1848年从阿尔斯特移民到这里。 来自辞典例句
• Many Pakistanis have immigrated to Britain. 许多巴基斯坦人移居到了英国。 来自辞典例句

6 dedication   

n.奉献，献身，致力，题献，献辞

参考例句：

• We admire her courage,compassion and dedication.我们钦佩她的勇气、爱心和奉献精神。
• Her dedication to her work was admirable.她对工作的奉献精神可钦可佩。

7 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

8 integration   

n.一体化，联合，结合

参考例句：

• We are working to bring about closer political integration in the EU.我们正在努力实现欧盟內部更加紧密的政治一体化。
• This was the greatest event in the annals of European integration.这是欧洲统一史上最重大的事件。

9 commemorate   

vt.纪念，庆祝

参考例句：

• This building was built to commemorate the Fire of London.这栋大楼是为纪念“伦敦大火”而兴建的。
• We commemorate the founding of our nation with a public holiday.我们放假一日以庆祝国庆。

10 catastrophe   

n.大灾难，大祸

参考例句：

• I owe it to you that I survived the catastrophe.亏得你我才大难不死。
• This is a catastrophe beyond human control.这是一场人类无法控制的灾难。

11 innovative   

adj.革新的，新颖的，富有革新精神的

参考例句：

• Discover an innovative way of marketing.发现一个创新的营销方式。
• He was one of the most creative and innovative engineers of his generation.他是他那代人当中最富创造性与革新精神的工程师之一。

12 gathering   

n.集会，聚会，聚集

参考例句：

• He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
• He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。