Bennett: Next gov't will declare national education emergency, address teacher shortage
Bennett has said that a government led by him would cut state funding to haredi educational institutions that do not teach core curriculum studies and halt funding to haredim who evade service.
Former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, now leading the B’Yachad Party, announced on Monday that his future government would declare a national state of emergency in Israel’s education system. He plans to tackle the significant shortage of over 30,000 teachers. The remarks came at TheMarker’s education conference where Bennett criticized the current government for neglecting both security and the country’s children.
If he were prime minister, Bennett vowed to introduce a single state education system for all Israeli children. This system would mandate a shared national core curriculum encompassing Hebrew, English, mathematics, civics, Bible studies, and Zionism. Non-compliance with this curriculum would result in no state funding for the offending students.
Bennett emphasized that there would be one unified education system for one people. His previous plans aimed to establish a comprehensive national foundation, differing from the current fragmented system. All students would dedicate 60% of their studies to this core curriculum, while individual communities and schools would determine the remaining 40%.
Bennett stated that the B’Yachad Party would cut funding for haredi (ultra-Orthodox) educational institutions not adhering to the core curriculum and would no longer fund those who avoid military service. He also pledged to establish an inquiry commission into the failures leading up to the Hamas attack on October 7. In April, Bennett formed a coalition with opposition leader Yair Lapid’s Yesh Atid Party.
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