these jerks are still floundering in pre-war soviet-style ideologies

have to be (re?) instilled. To be a mensh is such a tall order these days... Some do set a good example is manner of dress and speech but they are few and far between in our sloppy image infatuated generation.

Most of the leaders in the Israeli government are not from the West and they don't really know what democracy is. Unfortunately, there is no "We the People" rule in Israel. Most of the Mks in the Knesset are not elected by the people, but are appointed croonies who are paid off to form a coalition government. This corrupt political system offers no accountability to the people of Israel.

Send trouble makers to special schools run like a boot camp. Punish their parents if they come to school to start trouble. Give a nice three month prison sentence for trouble making parents and a heavy fine. Keep older children out of the grade schools areas. Have more cameras used to monitor the school grounds day and night. Make sure the school management and teachers do not interfere with the security guards. Make sure the school police patrolvisits each school twice a day. Also try to pick local security offices for each town and municipality with a normal intelligence and not a nut case.

Kicking out students for a couple of weeks after he/she insulted a teacher or disrupted the class repeatedly??? From school I mean, not just one class. How can a teacher teach 40 Arsim at one, with due respect? How can you compare the excellence of a teacher who gets up to 20 students as opposed to those getting 30 or more, when the latter can only finish calling names 15 min into class time in the best case scenario? In Israel kids come from any background, from the best educated families to the worst crime ridden ones. You are pushed to integrate your 12 years old into a system that integrates everyone, or its otherwise called separatist. A young kid cannot and should not be expected to healthily cope with hard kids!! Neither should teachers. Teachers at "integrating " schools hardly ever teach a quarter of the syllabus, guess why??

Israel isn't a U.S. state... like you apparently think Ontario is.

When will you finally realise that with out torah values you have no chance educating the kids. Just look at the difference between the religious schools and the irreligious schools. Sure I understand that you don't want to be narrow minded, but then why don't you ALSO teach about torah values. Why is it that the average Israelli boy has no inkling what Shma Yisroel is?

...and raising generations of Israeli Arabs who hate Jews and Israel and believe that they are more than the descendants of a people who raped, burned and occupied our lands for 1500 years! That's EXACTLY what the Israeli Arab Education System does. In other words, Ataf Muady only confirms what we've always known: that "Arab culture" is racist and anti-Israeli and until that changes, I don't realy want to hear ANY moans coming from these scum, demanding OBSCENELY MORE rights than the non-Arab citizens of Israel, including the "right" to seek our destruction.

As an educator with over 30 years experience in inner city schools in nYC this is a step in the right direction. to # 3--obviously you missed the lesson on Democracy when you were in school. In the US you are NOT forced to sing the national athem each morning if it is against your beliefs BUT you are forced to stand and be respectful while it is being sung! Discipline can be hard but to say that it can only be done with 20 kids is garbage. I've taught classes of 35 and they knew who was in charge. Teaching is hard work. You need to hire people who are willing to expand the needed energy and you need to have definite consequences for poor behavior. Tossing kids out is not the answwer--it only gives them the freedom they want and doesn't educate. In school suspension programs, reward and punishment ( not physical) these are what makes good sense. A curriculum that is meaningful and the nurturing of wanting to learn is what is needed. Also the accepted chutpadik level of behavior from students MUST end!

government institutions, civil servants and the state's symbols, an important among them is "ha-Tiqvah", Israel's anthem. These are the norms in all liberal democratic states of which Israel is one, and there is no reason why Israel should be an exception.

For many years American school children were forced to say the Pledge of Allegiance, and it didn't make America any less democratic, although I'm not sure the ACLU would agree. However, the thing I had a problem with was the "under God" that was inserted into the pledge by Pres. Eisenhower to prove to the Soviet Union that we were superior to the "godless Communists." So I just didn't say it.

I couldn't agree with you more. I had an experience several years ago when there was a possibility I would be moving to Israel. I interviewed for a teaching position in what was considered to be a good high school. I sat in on an advanced English class for seniors, many of whom were native-born Israelis who didn't necessarily come from English-speaking families, yet they had achieved a high degree of fluency. However, while it was obvious they were very bright, it was appalling to watch the way they behaved in class. There were two students sitting and looking at photos while the teacher was speaking, and several other students who were similarly disengaged. Not only that, it appears my experience was far from unique. In fact sadly, from what I've been reading since then, it's only gotten worse.

Singing Hatikvah by law can be especially beneficial in arab schools. Hopefully it help will stop the next generation growing up and identifying themselves as palestinians rather than Israelis and seeing Israel as an enemy the heroic martyrs are trying to destroy and liberate for the arabs. If we are going to get the hatred towards Israel out of the arab population then we must breed patriotism into them. Have the flag waving in all schools by law all the time arab ones as well and if they don't comply it can mean a punishment such as head teachers being officially disciplined. Make the kids sing Hatikvah every morning. They need to come home at the end of the day feeling like Israelis rather than palestinians.

Singing Hatikva....(even though I'm not nefesh yehudi). However, this does not erase the fact that my country have been and still is discriminated against ame and excluding me from the collective society just because of my ethnic background!.

1- Regardless of what you hear in the media, we Israeli-Arabs do not hate Israel.... on the contrary this is where we see our future, this is where we want to raise our kids living in peace with our jewish countrymen. This is a proven fact even the shabak can confirm it 2- The only reason many Israeli-Arabs don't feel 100% Israelis is because since the establishment of the country our fellow countrymen the jews EXCLUDED us from the collective Israeli society by discriminating against us in every walk of life. This can be changed by allowing us to integrate in the Israeli society by eliminating racial discrimination and segregation. Singing Hatikva, although a welcomed step, is not going to change this fact.! Integration is the answer to the radical in the Israeli-Arab street who preach hate. Israeli government needs to show arab public that these radicals are WRONG and should not be trusted or followed. -Peace

Love for each other! Am Yisrael Chai! Boo-birds quit yacking, start chirping!

does work both ways. The Arabs need, en masse, to pay taxes, to be fully accountable, to recognize israel as the eternal homeland for the jewish people and for the friends (you) of the jewish people. That said, you too need to have the same obligations (army/national service) and the same rights. However, do realize israel has many groups of jews who are not on the same footing yet. Today there are a hundred jewish kids in petach tikva who may have no school to go to. Thats just a relatively tiny example. so dont feel like others- Jews- are not facing challeneges and bias either. Like every country in the entire world (even the US, believe me) there are challneges, frustrations and yes bias too. This road travels both ways. may I suggest each side fix their lane?

Go Israel! With loyalty to the Jewish country will come trust.

Singing the national anthem is a great idea. I was required to pledge allegiance to my country (US) at the start of each school day. Didn't harm my generation of students. I think this helps establish a sense of respect for your country. Now the pledge is optional, but students are required to show respect & stand quietly if they opt-out of the pledge. However, I think more is needed in this situation. Students must be taught to show respect in many ways while in school. If they don't they should *know* there will be consequences for bad behavior. I was a teacher for many years and I observed that if the principal demanded students show respect to teachers, and each other, there was less of a discipline problem. The schools that did NOT demand respect from the students had more problems with unruly behavior - very hard to teach in this sort of environment. So, what is included in respect? I would say, for a start: calling adults Mr/Ms 'name'; no name calling to anyone; paying attention in class; and no disruptive behavior, just to name a few. Students should know what the rules are and be expected to follow them. A 'zero-tolerance' policy on disrespectful behavior that includes consequences for bad behavior is a MUST. Consequences don't have to be harsh or draconian. Could be something as simple as being denied something they enjoy. Also rewarding, openly, students who were on best behavior during class also works. Kids don't like seeing someone get a privilege that's denied them. You have to get creative using a 'carrot and stick' approach. Whenever I started with a new class, the FIRST thing I had to do was to establish my authority over my class. If I didn't do that, teaching was almost impossible. It was easiest when the school principal lead the way in establishing rules and in enforcing consequences for breaking these rules. I would never have continued with a lesson if students were talking or being otherwise disruptive or inattentive in class. I would have dealt with the disruptive behavior before continuing on.

a solution must be found to recognise the fact that arabs in israel will never be loyal to israel. HOnest analysis without dogma must be done. When people cannot get along they searate. Israel cannot live with a fifth column.