A forecast prepared by the Central Bureau for Statistics
(CBS) reveals that five years from now every third student in
Israel will be enrolled in the chareidi education system. The
report, which was submitted to the Education Ministry, shows
by the year 2012, for the first time ever, less than half of
all students will belong to the government (mamlachti)
nonreligious school system.
The number of students in the chareidi education system has
been on the rise across the country in recent years. The data
indicates that this year one-fourth of all first-graders in
the country are studying in chareidi schools. Of course
Ministry officials, who are constantly in search of ways to
hinder chareidi education, are less than thrilled by the
findings.
Despite the efforts to undermine Torah-based education
through budget cuts in every possible area — from
transportation funding for students in outlying areas
attending chareidi schools to regular funding provided by the
local authorities — forecasts confirm that the chareidi
education system continues to grow.
According to CBS predictions published this week in
Ha'aretz, the decrease in enrollment at government
schools in the Jewish sector that began in the early 1990s is
expected to continue during the coming years. Every year this
sector diminishes by 0.5 percent to 1 percent of the total,
with the corresponding gains mostly in the chareidi
schools.
According to the forecast, while the number of Jewish
students in government schools is expected to have dropped 20
percent from 1992 to 2012, the number of students in
government-religious schools will have increased 3.7 percent
— and 196 percent in chareidi schools!
The figures also show that five years from now the
distribution in the Jewish sector will be as follows: 50.9
percent of students will be enrolled in government schools,
18.2 percent in government-religious schools and 30.9 percent
in chareidi schools.
When weighted against the entire education system including
the Arab sector, government schools are expected to represent
41.7 percent of enrollment, government-religious schools 13.5
percent, chareidi schools 17.4 percent and Arab schools 27.4
percent.
