A group of mathematics and physics teachers participated in a 4-day study trip to London, England at the beginning of 2014, in order to expose them to colleagues abroad doing innovative work
Secondary school science and mathematics teachers are at the heart of the foundation’s work. We cannot take meaningful steps towards improving the quality of teaching without being attuned to the needs of teachers, and the everyday realities of classroom teaching and school organizational culture, as seen through their eyes. Therefore, consulting with teachers and engaging them in our work and learning processes are cornerstones of our DNA and crucial to the foundation’s success.To this end, in 2012, we convened a ‘teacher’s club’ of six excellent high school teachers of mathematics and the sciences, who have helped the foundation over the past year to review aspects of new and existing strategies and grants; actively participated in education conferences, internal meetings and collaborative initiatives; and have written blogs and articles for the media. In all of these instances, the teachers presented a very unique and valuable perspective – the viewpoint of an excellent practitioner who faces the daily life challenges of teaching and learning in an Israeli classroom.We have seen that their contribution is constructive and would like to reinforce it and to add to the ways in which teachers can learn about and influence the changes taking place in their field. We have noticed however that most teachers, including the best teachers, are not exposed to similar work in different contexts, and particularly, to innovations and methodologies that are used by fellow teachers in other education systems around the world. Their knowledge and knowhow is mostly based on their own experience, and they have a very limited acquaintance with the methods, the thinking and practice in the classrooms of countries with a proven track record in improving educational achievement.
In order to involve excellent teachers in this kind of learning and thinking, we invited five teachers to participate in a 4-day study trip at the beginning of 2014, in order to expose them to colleagues abroad doing innovative work. Participants visited successful schools and education initiatives in London, which have demonstrated significant improvement in educational achievement, or innovative reforms to this end. They examined the ways in which teachers are involved in improving teacher efficacy and teacher quality, focusing particularly on the role played by leading teachers in mentoring new teachers and other colleagues. They documented their visit and insights in this report(in Hebrew).