The Hebrew University of Jerusalem

This course offers an additional conversational component to the Modern Hebrew: Aleph, Intermediate Level Hebrew course. For an additional 2 hours a week the class meets and discusses, debates, and practices conversational skills in Hebrew. This course is at level Aleph, the first and elementary level out of six levels of Modern Hebrew language instruction at the Hebrew University. In this course, students acquire the foundations of the language. Hebrew classes in level Aleph are generally subdivided into Aleph Beginners (for absolute beginners), Aleph Intermediate Beginners, and Aleph Advanced Beginners (for students with basic knowledge, including the alphabet and a limited vocabulary).

The course explores the rich body of literature on multiculturalism that has developed and raises questions regarding the advantages and disadvantages, the freedom, and the limits that a society of separate and sometimes semi-autonomous culture presents. The course examines various theories regarding multiculturalism and applies them as part of an analysis of the complicated relations between political authorities and the many minorities in Jerusalem, including Ultra-Orthodox Jews, various Christian sects, and the large Moslem minority. The course addresses the conflicting interests of these groups on both municipal and national levels, as well as the international aspects and ramifications of recognizing the various ethnic, religious, and national groups. The lecturer draws on their experience with timely issues as a member of Jerusalem's City Council.

The course introduces students to the origins and the history of science fiction through of classic works in the genre. Students read classic works in science fiction, engage with critical writing on the genre from its inception to the 21st century, and identify themes and concerns of the genre in contemporary films and texts.

The course examines the teachings, traditions, and history of the Hasidic movement, from its revolutionary beginnings to its current, reactionary position. The movement is examined for its original philosophical and theological teachings, and how changing assumptions affected its history and development over the last three centuries. The movement’s history can be divided into approximately four historical and ideological periods: the 18th century and the movement’s beginnings, its pioneering figures, its mystical-messianic vision, and the social controversy which surrounded it. The 19th century with the consolidation of the Hasidic movement into mainstream Judaism, the founding of Hasidic dynasties and their internecine battles, Hasidism’s relationship to modernity and the Jewish Haskala (Enlightenment), and the nascent Zionistic movement. The 20th century sees the budding of a contemporary Hasidism, in dialogue with the world, only to be cut short by the Holocaust and replaced by extreme reactionism. And the 21st century, with the current challenges facing the movement, both in Israel and America. Attention is also given to “neo-Hasidic” groups, such as the Jewish Renewal movement, Carlebach minyanim, Breslov, and Chabad. Students approach Hasidism through its primary texts (in the original Hebrew with English translation), culture, customs, and literature, in addition to more contemporary media forms such as magazines, movies for and about Hasidism, web logs, etc. Several films and television shows about Hasidim are assigned for viewing during the semester. The course also includes first-hand meetings with Hasidic Rebbes and members of the community.

This course introduces students to adapted literature and scientific works, and increases their vocabulary (with an additional 800 words), in particular with regard to the daily use of Hebrew as well as the understanding of articles written in easy Hebrew from the press and scientific journals. Students gain command of the fundamental structures of Hebrew and its basic grammatical forms. The class also consolidates and broadens the grammatical structures and vocabulary studied in level Aleph. By the end of this course, the student is familiar with the basic structure of the Hebrew language, including: comprehension: listening to the news, recorded radio programs, and lectures in easy Hebrew; conversation: conversations, discussions, and short lectures based on the passages read and heard; informal meetings with Israelis, reported on afterwards in class; reading: passages from stories and texts adapted into easy Hebrew and short newspaper articles in easy Hebrew; writing: writing structured compositions and short passages on the topics studied; and grammatical skills: syntactic consolidation and elaboration of basic structures, inflection of the strong verbs in the future tense, and frequent weak verbs.

This course charts the history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict from the rise of political Zionism and Palestinian-Arab nationalism to the present day. It provides an understanding of the political and scholarly debates surrounding the causes for the dispute through the eyes of the belligerent societies, and the efforts that have been made to resolve it (and their degree of success or failure). It includes an evaluation of attempts to resolve the conflict and the factors shaping peace-making efforts to the present day.

The course provides an overview of key sociological theories and research on the many ways in which culture (defined variously as values, frames, repertoires, narratives, symbolic boundaries, and cultural capital) is shaped by and, in turn, shapes social hierarchies along the lines of class, gender and race/ethnicity. The course explores how these features of inequality intersect with processes of globalization.

This course is an introduction to Modern Standard Arabic, the formal language employed in books, newspapers, scripted news broadcasts, and formal speeches across the Arab world. The classes and activities facilitate the acquisition of a basic proficiency in the language and the basic linguistic skills, analytical abilities, and cultural knowledge required to read, write, and speak Arabic at a basic level. The program is based on the principle of immersion, the comprehensive and active use of the language of study, both inside and outside the classroom. Arabic is therefore taught in Arabic, though certain subjects may be taught in English at the beginning of the program, with a gradual move to Arabic as the program progresses. Participants interact with the Arabic speaking community in various field trips and special activities. The course runs for 11 weeks. At the end of the course, a workshop is held in an Arabic speaking environment and students engage in activities with native speakers.

Jerusalem's glory rests not only in the archeological sites and ancient monuments which shed light on its past, but also in the multiple dynamic religious groups whether of Jewish, Christian, Islamic, or other origin, which flourish in it today. This unique course tours the city, meeting representatives of these religious groups, visiting their communities, and thus understanding the complex but also amazing fabric of this exquisite city. 

Over the past century Israel has transformed from an agricultural colony, to a welfare state, and on to a globally integrated "market economy” characterized by great income disparities. What lies behind this transformation? How did egalitarianism give rise to inequality? What are the implications of a constant state of conflict on a country's economy? How does being an island of democracy surrounded by non-democratic regimes effect the development of a country's international economic relations? This course explores how different issues have affected the Israeli economy, including periods of economic growth or stagnation, the governments' domination of capital and credit markets in the 1970's and 1980's, the stabilization program of 1985, the implications of peace processes, and the wave of Russian immigration in the 1990's. The course concludes with an overview of the international economic relations between Israel and The European Union, The USA, and the global economic institutions (GATT and WTO, IMF and the World Bank, and the OECD).