The professional identity of elementary school rabbis in the national-religious education system in Israel

ABSTRACT

The current study delves into the professional identity of elementary school rabbis within the national-religious education system in Israel, focusing on the perspectives of the rabbis themselves and examining how their professional identity impacts their work. In-depth interviews were conducted with 15 rabbis who were selected using a convenience sampling method. The findings reveal that their professional identity is influenced by role ambiguity and conflicts within the school’s work environment. Moreover, the study highlights the rabbis’ direct engagement with students, parents, and staff in various educational activities, providing assistance and support. These findings have significant implications for religious education, offering insights to enhance the work of rabbis in this context.

KEYWORDS:

• Professional identity
• perception of role
• school rabbi
• qualitative research

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank Herzog Academic College for its support with publishing this article.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Ethical approval

The Ethics Committee of the Herzog Academic College (Project ID: 5.3.23) granted the project ethical approval.

Informed consent

Informed consent was obtained from all the participants involved in the study.

Additional information

Funding

No funding was received for conducting this study.

Notes on contributors

Ariel Levin

Ariel Levin is a lecturer at the Department of Education, Herzog Academic College, Israel. He is also a lecturer at the Faculty of Education, Bar Ilan University. His research focuses on religious education, professional identity in teaching and Jewish Thought Curricula.

Daniel Dashevsky

Daniel Dashevsky is the rabbi of the ”Lavi” elementary school in Zur Hadassah, Israel. The school belongs to the national religious education system. He is also a mentor in the ”Lev Lada’at”, a community of school rabbis, Israel.

Eli Kohn

Eli Kohn is a lecturer at the Faculty of Education, Bar Ilan University, Israel. He is also senior lecturer at the Orot Israel College. He does research in Religious Education, Educational Assessment, Curriculum Theory and Implementation. His current projects focus on developing spiritual values in schools with particular reference to prayer education.