Slippery Slope

The Ministerial Committee for Legislative Affairs approved a bill proposed by Minister of Interior Gideon Sa’ar which would forbid African migrants from sending money abroad. (Haaretz)

(Hebrew – Haaretz)

Journalist Shalom Yerushalmi claims that Minister of Education, Gideon Sa’ar (Likud), received a complete “defensive shield” from publication of uncomplimentary items about him from former Ma’ariv editor, Nir Hefetz.

(Hebrew Audio – Seder Yom)

In a workbook on “Israeli tradition and culture” published by the Ministry of Education were included, alongside quotes from the bible, statements by Palmach commander Yigal Alon, and writer Alex Livan, also a quote from Minister of Education Gideon Saar (Halikud Beitenu). Following the quotations pupils were asked questions about Saar’s position.

(Hebrew)

Minister of Education, Gideon Sa’ar (Likud), said last week that the achievements of Israeli pupils in an international test in mathematics “reflect a transformation”, even though the ministry knew that a comparison between the results of the latest test and the previous ones is not possible.  At the bottom of pg 422 of the TIMSS 2011 report there is a note stating that “data [are] not comparable for measuring trends to 2011, primarily due to countries improving translations or increasing population coverage.” (Haaretz)

(Hebrew – Haaretz)

Tel-Aviv-Yafo Council member Shlomo Maslawi (Likud), wrote a letter of complaint to Minister of Education Gideon Sa’ar (Likud) about the appearance of Marak Levinsky soup kitchen activists in front of Tel-Aviv-Yafo high-school students, and demanded that he forbid their entrance to the city’s educational institutes.

(Hebrew – Mynet)

According to a plan by Minister of Education Gideon Sa’ar one of the items affecting school budgets and teacher bonuses will be the percentage of students who perform military or civilian national service. (Haaretz)

(Hebrew – Haaretz)

The Minister of Education, Gideon Saar, plans to set-up a special committee to determine whether to allow the opening of new Political Science departments in universities.

(Hebrew – nrg)

Responding to the refusal of 260 teachers to participate in tours of Hebron organized by the Ministry of Education, Education Minister Gideon Saar (Likud) stated that the tours are not political in nature.

In preparation for the next school year the Ministry of Education expanded a pilot program that takes students on field trips to the city of Hebron and the Cave of the Patriarchs, under the title “The Mountain as the Cradle of the Nation”. The program asks students to strengthen their connection to the heritage of the “mountain” aiming to create an awareness of “the land of the Patriarchs”. Program contents include the history of the area and its importance for the Jewish people. The program does not mention the Palestinian population of Hebron.

(Extended coverage in Hebrew)

Speaking at the Knesset plenum on Wednesday, Education Minister Gideon Sa’ar (Likud) announced that in light of the success of a pilot program of school trips to Hebron and the Cave of Patriarchs, it was his intention to expand the project to schools across the country.