| Galil Jewish-Arab School בית ספר גליל –דו לשוני - مدرسة الجليل- ثنائية اللغة |
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|---|---|
| Location | |
| Eshbal Galilee, Israel Israel |
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| Information | |
| Religious affiliation(s) | Jewish-Muslim-Christian |
| Principal | Kamal Abu Yunis |
| Vice principal | Iris Geller |
| Grades | 1-9 |
| Number of students | 200 |
| Language | Bilingual Hebrew and Arabic |
| Website | yad.sisma.org.il/school/galil/Pages/Default.aspx |
Galil Jewish-Arab School is the first joint Arab-Jewish primary school in Israel, founded in 1998 by the Hand in Hand: Center for Jewish Arab Education in Israel, which also runs three other bilingual schools in Israel. It is located in Eshbal, a Jewish Kibbutz in the Misgav area of the Galilee, near the Arab town of Sakhnin.
In 2007, 200 Jewish and Arab students of different faiths (Jewish, Muslim and Christian) studied together at the Galilee School, from first to ninth grade. The students come from the local Misgav, Sakhnin, and Sha’ab municipalities, whose residents and municipal authorities have given their support for bilingual, multicultural education.
As in all Hand in Hand schools, Galil School strives to maintain an equal number of Arab and Jewish students; each class has two teachers, one Arab and one Jewish, the school has two co-principals, Arab and Jewish (currently Tagreed Hatib and Orna Eylat).
Hand in Hand's approach to bilingual education aims to create equality, understanding, and coexistence between the Arab and Jewish populations of Israel, who often live segregated from one another. Classes at Hand in Hand schools are co-taught by an Arab and Jewish teacher, each teaching in his or her native language. Teachers do not translate, providing a strong incentive for students to attain fluency in the second language.[1]
The school exposes the students to the three cultures: Jewish, Islamic and Christian, and demonstrates in a straightforward and practical way the principles of democracy and social equality.