The Answer to Strengthening Spoken English in Israel

a unique program at Oranim college

Oranim College and the Haifa-Boston Connection have developed a program that will improve spoken English skills fo future life skills.

QIRYAT TIV ON, ISRAEL, May 1, 2023/EINPresswire.com/ -- Oranim College and the Haifa Boston Connection launched a unique mentoring program that aims to improve the English-speaking skills of high school students in Israel. The program is designed to help students pass the matriculation exam in English, which in recent years has become a major concern for the Israeli Ministry of Education due to disappointing data and findings in the field.

The lack of English-speaking skills among Israeli high school students has been a disturbing trend for some time. Despite having several years of English language study, many students are still unable to speak English fluently. The grades of the Israeli students in the subject of English often do not reflect their real skill level, and many graduates admit that they are not able to speak English and conduct a conversation even though they studied it in school.

This is where the mentoring program of Oranim College and Haifa Boston Connection comes into the picture, which discovered the solution to the problem and developed a program that gives Haifa high school students the opportunity to practice their oral communication skills in English with native English speakers through a significant personal mentoring relationship. This unique approach is an interesting solution for high school students who wish to improve their English-speaking skills and succeed in the matriculation exam.

Volunteers from the Jewish community in Boston are recruited to act as mentors for Haifa high school students and meet once a week for an hour for a video call in English. The mentors undergo professional training by Oranim College to teach and communicate effectively with the students they meet online. The training program focuses on oral proficiency, one of the four existing modules in the matriculation exam that tests the students' ability to express themselves verbally through a computerized format that includes various topics. The other three modules include reading comprehension, listening comprehension tasks, and essay writing.

The program has two main goals: The first is to help students improve their English-speaking skills and pass the matriculation exam. The second is to deepen the connection between US Jews and Israeli high school students through weekly conversations about oneself, one's family, and community issues in Israel and the US.

The evaluation process conducted shows that the students felt that their spoken English did improve as a result of their weekly meetings with the mentors. They noted that the mentors created a safe environment and a meaningful relationship that resulted in increased self-confidence. One of the students explained, "I participated in this program for several months and really enjoyed it. During the lessons, I learned a lot of new words and improved my speaking skills, I had a wonderful mentor who inspired me and expanded my knowledge." The teachers were also satisfied with the progress of their students. The mentors enjoyed the contact with the youth and suggested a few ways to improve the program in the future.

"This is a unique program that expands over the years and combines an opportunity to practice speaking English with native English speakers while building relationships between Israel and the Jewish community in Boston, building a bridge between older community members and the younger generation, and fostering a sense of inter-generational and inter-communal connection", shares Jackie Levy-Atias, Director of Oranim International at Oranim College.

Tali Laufer
Oranim College
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¹ http://en.oranim.ac.il/
² https://www.facebook.com/oraniminternational