In Jerusalem, the gap between the number of students in the
chareidi education system versus other sectors is widening in
the 5764 school year. A total of 188,176 students are
enrolled in Jerusalem schools, with 83,621 students enrolled
in the chareidi education system compared to 64,201 in
government and religious government schools and 40,354 in the
Arab sector, according to figures presented at a press
conference held by Mayor Rabbi Uri Lupoliansky last week.
Based on these numbers, excluding the Arab sector, chareidi
students comprise 56.5 percent of the total. Including the
Arab sector, chareidi students comprise 44 percent of all
students in the city, government schools claim 34 percent and
Arab schools claim 21 percent.
Last week Rabbi Lupoliansky led reporters on a tour of three
schools: a Bais Yaakov school in Bayit Vegan, an Arab school
in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Issawiyah and a
government school in Neveh Yaakov. During the tour and the
subsequent press conference the Mayor stated the
municipality's goals for the school system during the coming
year and preparations made over the past several months.
Rabbi Lupoliansky was accompanied by several ranking city
officials: Director-General Eitan Meir, Deputy Mayor Rabbi
Uri Maklev, in charge of chareidi education; Deputy Mayor
Shmuel Shakedi, in charge of general education; Department of
Chareidi Education Director Rabbi Binyomin Cohen and
Director Mrs. Yehudit Shalvi.
According to the figures, 16,916 children will attend the
city's 619 chareidi nursery schools and kindergartens in a
total of 656 classrooms (an average of over 25 children per
classroom), an increase of 2 percent over last year. At the
city's 138 primary education facilities 41,946 students will
study in 1,699 classrooms, which represents a 4 percent
increase. In the city's 134 educational institutions for
upper grades, 21,959 students will study in 760 classrooms,
an increase of just 1 percent.
At the 52 special education institutions, 1,141 students will
study in 131 classrooms this year, an increase of 18 percent.
An additional 569 students will study in preparatory and
integrative programs with another 1,190 at learning
centers.
The Department of Chareidi Education attributes the dramatic
increase in the number of students in special education
programs to increased awareness, the development of
additional services and increased activity by the executive
committees, which reviewed the cases of 500 students,
including 200 students recently introduced into the system.
Due to the pronounced increases, the City had to make special
accommodations by enlarging existing educational institutions
and setting up new ones.
In the coming school year, seven new first-grade classes will
be opened out of the 218 additional classes. A total of 5,452
chareidi students will begin their studies in first-grade
classes this year. Meanwhile 12 new kindergartens will be
opened.
Spokesmen for the Department of Chareidi Education note that
no dramatic change has taken place in the number of
classrooms. Chareidi educational institutions still lack over
1,000 classrooms. In order to ease the problem, the
Department has budgeted NIS 4 million for over 40 movable
classrooms. Another 40 classrooms have been added to existing
spaces and several vacated buildings have been brought up to
standard for use as classroom space.
"The Ministry of Education does not do enough for education
in Jerusalem," said Mayor Lupoliansky at the press
conference. "Jerusalem has the most residents of any city in
Israel. A family in Jerusalem is larger than a family living
in Haifa. The number of students in all of Jerusalem is
greater than the total number of residents in Haifa. The
Ministry of Education does not provide funds proportional to
the number of classrooms the City of Jerusalem should have
according to its size and population, which accounts for the
large shortfall. I hope Education Minister Limor Livnat
rectifies the shortage by budgeting hundreds of classrooms
for Jerusalem."
Rabbi Lupoliansky added that the Department of Public
Facilities is working extensively with the Department of
Education to solve the problems of institutions facing a
severe lack of dormitory space. Although less budget funding
was allocated to the municipality and despite its policy of
budget cutting, the City has made available to the education
departments the same sums as last year.
A survey conducted by the Department of Chareidi Education
notes that last year the City was active in the area of
safety on school buses. A conference on child transport
safety was held for school principals in addition to a
conference for bus drivers--particularly those who drive
children in special education programs--to emphasize safety
precautions to be practiced when transporting children. At
the beginning of the school year another conference will be
held for escorts.
In addition to these three conferences, the issue of caution
and road safety was given high priority, including joint
activity by the coordinator of road safety for the chareidi
sector at the City's traffic department, whose efforts led to
an impressive reduction in the number of traffic and safety
violations by bus drivers. "We will make arrangements for
traffic and road safety so that parents can rest assured when
they send their children to educational institutions," said
the Mayor.
These efforts have led to a dramatic reduction in the number
of accidents and injuries in Jerusalem. During the past five
years, the city has posted a 46 percent decrease in the
number of traffic accidents, from 2,242 in 1998 to 2002
recently. The number of serious traffic accidents also
decreased from 147 five years ago to 59 last year. In
addition the number of fatal accidents dropped and the number
of accidents in which schoolchildren were involved was cut in
half, and no schoolchildren were involved in accidents in
2003. "All of this was the result of imbuing students with an
awareness of the issue of caution and road safety," said
Rabbi Lupoliansky.
The Department of Chareidi Education continued removing
safety hazards at educational facilities at a cost of NIS 5
million, which comprised a considerable portion of renovation
funding. In addition air conditioners were installed in 250
classrooms, due to ventilation problems and noise through
open windows that disturbed classroom studies, at a cost of
over NIS 1.2 million.
