Program To Expand The Excellence Circle In Kfar Kana

Kfar Kana is a small Arab city in the northern district of Israel located in the Lower Galilee with a population of 22,400, and 2,527 students attending middle and high schools. There are two middle schools in Kfar Kana, in which 25% (116) of the students graduate excellence classes in 9^th grade. However, only 10% actually take the five-unit matriculation exam at the end of 12^th grade. The municipality concluded that the level of teaching and learning in middle school is not sufficient and is a key factor explaining this drop down.

To address this issue, Kfar Kana is planning a three-year program to build a stronger foundation of excellence in middle schools to prepare students towards high school, to restructure the content of the excellence tracks and to improve the quality of teaching in middle schools. In addition, they wish to offer more students an opportunity to study at high-level mathematics. Therefore, the program will strive to elevate the level in the existing excellence classes, while opening three additional excellence classes.

In order to improve the quality of teaching, the city will approach an academic organization, which will provide ongoing professional development for its 20 mathematics and 20 science teachers. The teachers will be trained by this organization to teach high-level mathematical thinking and its applications in science. In addition, the 9^th and 10^th grade teachers will participate in two seminars to jointly work on a smoother transition from middle to high school. The middle school students will receive additional teaching hours, as well as after school assistance with homework.

The city will appoint a program manager who will be responsible for operating all elements of the program and recruit an organizational consultant, who will advise and support the program manager in planning and executing the program. In order to harness the school principals for the program, the program manager will organize individual and group meetings with them, to address challenges and improve performance. In addition, the middle and high school teachers will periodically meet for joint workshops.

By 2022, the municipality aims that 40% of its 9^th grade students will graduate excellence classes. They will measure quality by using a diagnostic test that will assess performance, with a goal for at least 70% of the students to successfully meet the 5-6 PISA levels in mathematics.

* The text presented above shows the grant as approved by the Foundation Board / Grant 364