Deep Rich Jewish Content: Creating a Relationship-Centered Pedagogy
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ShareExplore the principles of "Relationship-Centered Pedagogy" through different texts. This is part of The Jewish Education Project's "Deep Rich Jewish Content" Toolkit.
Jewish texts are full of statements and stories that point us to three central ideas about Relationship-Centered pedagogy:
1) Every student is different, so knowing the child that you are working with and teaching to their strengths is deeply valued. Relationships are critical in getting to know each child you encounter.
2) Jewish text is best studied in the context of relationships – whether that be the parent/child relationship, the student/teacher relationship, or the student/student relationship.
3) Since everyone has wisdom to offer, centering relationships allows us to learn deeply from one another.
Let's explore these principles through some deep rich Jewish text study. In the sections below, you'll learn different texts, considering their meaning and application to your life and your work. When unpacking each text, we'll use a strategy we call "What? So What? Now What?" that will prompt you through three layers of exploration. The first "what" asks questions toward the plain meaning of the text, giving you opportunities to notice and wonder. The second "so what" invites you to begin to make meaning of the text through deeper understanding. The final "now what" encourages you to make applications from your understanding. You're encouraged to use a journal to make notes and capture your thoughts during this text learning experience!
Principle #1 - Knowing the Child
Background context: This text is from the Mishnah, the first code of Jewish Oral Law that was codified after the Bible. This specific teaching is found in the section of the Mishnah that deals with the Passover seder, and how a parent should educate their child. We can extrapolate from "parent" to include anyone responsible for educating a child.
(ד) מָזְגוּ לוֹ כוֹס שֵׁנִי, וְכָאן הַבֵּן שׁוֹאֵל אָבִיו, וְאִם אֵין דַּעַת בַּבֵּן, אָבִיו מְלַמְּדוֹ, מַה נִּשְׁתַּנָּה הַלַּיְלָה הַזֶּה מִכָּל הַלֵּילוֹת...
וּלְפִי דַעְתּוֹ שֶׁל בֵּן, אָבִיו מְלַמְּדוֹ.
They pour the second cup of wine (at the Seder)
And here the child asks their parent, and if the child does not have the ability – their parent teaches them,
Why is this night different from all other nights?...
According to the understanding of the child, that is how the parent teaches them…
WHAT - How do you understand the simple meaning of this text? What is it saying about the role and responsibility of a child? About the role and responsibility of a parent?
SO WHAT - If we extrapolate from "parent" to "educator," what might this text be teaching about the best ways to engage with children?
NOW WHAT - How might you apply these lessons to your own learning environments? What is part of your current practice that you want to deepen? What new insight might prompt you to evolve or change your practice?
Principle #2 - It takes two...at least!
Background context: Chavruta study is an ancient technology where two students are paired together to read a text, or texts, and share their ideas and thoughts on that text with one another. It is fundamentally a space where both partners are equals, and where the text itself becomes a partner in the learning process.
Dr. Orit Kent and Allison Cook have researched the process of chavruta learning, and the positive effect it has on students, and on the classroom as a whole. The full article from which this is excerpted can be found here.
Dr. Orit Kent and Allison Cook have researched the process of chavruta learning, and the positive effect it has on students, and on the classroom as a whole. The full article from which this is excerpted can be found here.
WHAT - How can a text serve as a study partner? How might this contribute to creating a relationship-centered pedagogy?
SO WHAT - What can you imagine being different in chavruta learning when the text is taken seriously as one of three partners?
NOW WHAT - What is necessary in order to help learners cultivate a relationship with a learning partner as well as with the text they are studying? How can you build towards mastery of those necessary skills and habits in your learning environment?
Background context: The Talmud was compiled between the 3rd and 8th centuries and serves as the textual record of generations of rabbinic debate about law, philosophy, and biblical interpretation. It is structured as commentary on the Mishnah with stories interwoven. Taanit is a tractate that primarily deals with laws and themes connected to fast days, both the fasts that are fixed (like Yom Kippur) as well as those that might be situationally introduced (like when praying for rainfall). This particular text comes amidst an interwoven discussion about Torah study.
אָמַר רַבִּי חָמָא בְּרַבִּי חֲנִינָא, מַאי דִּכְתִיב: ״בַּרְזֶל בְּבַרְזֶל יָחַד״, לוֹמַר לָךְ: מָה בַּרְזֶל זֶה — אֶחָד מְחַדֵּד אֶת חֲבֵירוֹ, אַף שְׁנֵי תַּלְמִידֵי חֲכָמִים — מְחַדְּדִין זֶה אֶת זֶה בַּהֲלָכָה.
Rabbi Ḥama, son of Rabbi Ḥanina, said: What is the meaning of that which is written: “Iron sharpens iron, so a man sharpens the countenance of his friend” (Proverbs 27:17)?
It means that just iron tools sharpen one another, so too, when students of Torah study Jewish law together, they cause one another’s ideas to become sharper (i.e., clearer, and more precise)
WHAT - How do you understand the comparison of iron tools to people studying? What is necessary in order to make an idea sharper?
SO WHAT - When have you experienced this in your life, or in your teaching? What did it feel like to have a partner function as iron on iron? What were some of the challenges along the way and how did you navigate those?
NOW WHAT - Who are the people you can look to as partners to help to sharpen or refine your ideas? What can you do to more regularly seek this out?
Principle #3 - Learn from Everyone
Background context: This source is from the Mishnah’s “Ethics of our Ancestors,” a collection of statements by our most important ancient Rabbis where they share their ethical wisdom and core beliefs. This text asks the question of what it means to be truly wise.
(א)בֶּן זוֹמָא אוֹמֵר, אֵיזֶהוּ חָכָם, הַלּוֹמֵד מִכָּל אָדָם, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (תהלים קיט) מִכָּל מְלַמְּדַי הִשְׂכַּלְתִּי כִּי עֵדְוֹתֶיךָ שִׂיחָה לִּי.
(1) Ben Zoma said: Who is wise? One who learns from every person, as it is said: “From all who taught me have I gained understanding” (Psalms 119:99).
WHAT - How does this text understand where wisdom comes from? Is that surprising? How does this compare with other ways of defining wisdom? What values are at the foundation of this approach that are similar to and/or different from other approaches?
SO WHAT - Think of a specific time when you gained wisdom because you learned from another person. How did you maintain humility and openness? How did you navigate differences in opinion or disagreements? Why does this matter in a learning environment?
NOW WHAT - What would it take to adopt (and have your students also adopt!) this stance toward wisdom? What would your classroom look like? What could lesson plans include? How will you know if your students are operating with this stance? How does this contribute to a pedagogy that centers relationships?
