Ya Salam - Elementary School

One of the major obstacles to building a shared society in Israel is the language divide between Jewish and Arab citizens. While Arab citizens learn Hebrew throughout their schooling, Arabic is only taught for two years in Jewish schools, and in the literary, not spoken, form. In 2007, the Abraham Initiatives began implementing a Spoken Arabic syllabus, taught by Arab teachers, for 5th & 6th Grade classes in Jewish schools. The program grew quickly and in 2016 the Ministry of Education adopted our recommendations and is in the process of developing Spoken Arabic as a mandatory subject for 5th & 6th grades in the Jewish school system.