The evolution of language, and perhaps departure from a minority’s language further isolates the Arabs in Israel, propelling social discontent. As a peace building program between Jews and Arabs in Israel, the Hand in Hand school was founded in 1997, basing education on bilingual and multiculturalism. By 2007 four Hand in Hand schools have been established, as each school is co-directed by and Arab and Jewish co-principals, and each classroom is co-taught by an Arab and Jewish teacher.
Structural Violence in Israel
The structural violence of the Israeli-Palestinian crisis is built into the educational system in Israel. A majority of families in Israel send their children to segregated schools, promoting antagonistic viewpoints and attitudes that “other” their fellow man. Separated from learning about the other culture indirectly exploits the youth into becoming proponents of violence because they are taught to think of the other as an enemy. As Mendelson describes from his lecture, Hand in Hand programs have discovered that, “Within Israel, the schools of the minority Arab population become incubators for resentment and hostility, while the schools of the majority Jewish population tend to reinforce a sense of insulation from the concerns of others.”
What Education Does
Schools build future generations of leaders and members of society who will eventually choose to live in harmony despite their differences. The matter is in the hands of the youth. While the school directly teaches students to “uphold the values of the nation, and are indirectly socialized into groups with diverse attitudes toward Israel and its institutions”, Hand in Hand also builds community among the parents, teachers, and neighboring families, affecting nearly every person whether they be Jewish or Arab in Israel. Similar to Northern Ireland’s conflict-transformation, the distinct demographics are unifying under secular organizations instead of religion or ethnicity.
The Hand in Hand program had modest beginnings as just 45 students began integrated schooling in 1997, but the steady long-term vision of a nationwide network of integrated schools that fundamentally challenge and change the face of education in Israel, will reconstruct the interaction between Jews and Arabs.
Long Term Results
While the realists believe there is no hope for harmony, and negative peace is the best result, constructivists believe that negative peace develops into positive peace through long-term societal development like education and community building. Israelis and Palestinians are traveling the proverbial road to peace, as they commit to wander the desert of political and social change where the Promise Land is in the horizon, and harmonic coexistence is in clear view.
 |
