MA Jewish Education

Summary & Key Features

Whether you are a school leader, school teacher, school governor, rabbi, youth leader or community educator, this degree programme aims to support you in rising to the challenge of educational leadership – offering new pedagogical insight, innovative teaching ideas and a network of like-minded colleague The MA Jewish Education offers you the chance to pursue advanced academic study and professional development.

The MA Jewish Education aims to equip students with a professional development qualification which assists them in their educational leadership careers, and which opens up to them new opportunities in teaching and research.

Successful completion of the course will lead to a MA Jewish Education from Middlesex University.
 

Why study at LSJS?

Steeped in history, LSJS (formaly known as Jews College was founded 1855 as a rabbinical school, and set up, in the words of Founder and President Chief Rabbi Nathan Marcus, ‘so that our schools and pulpits will be filled with well-trained teachers’, LSJS has a long history of academic study, and teacher and educator training. In 1904 the College entered into a partnership with the University of London that would last 94 years, offering its students an Honours degree in Hebrew and Aramaic alongside their ordination. In that period, the College trained many teachers and rabbis; graduates of the institution include Rabbi David Meyer, Executive Headteacher of Hasmonean High School, and Emeritus Chief Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks.

Jews College became known as LSJS in 1999, and since then has offered a range of degree programmes. In addition, since 2002 LSJS has provided high-level adult education programming, and continues to offer outstanding and varied learning opportunities to the wider Jewish community. In recent years LSJS has renewed its emphasis on its original goal of training rabbis and other educators. The ordination of rabbis was resumed in partnership with the Montefiore Foundation in 2012, and from 2011 LSJS became a centre for the training of up to 50 Jewish teachers a year, providing the community’s schools with proficient and qualified staff

LSJS is situated at the heart of Hendon, close to a range of kosher restaurants and shops. You will not need to travel into town and all yours lectures will be at our campus.  You will have access to our world famous Jewish Library (home to many rare and precious manuscripts) which is currently being renovated to provide a state of the art learning environment.

You will experience a warm, nurturing and friendly environment at LSJS in which you will be encouraged to grow and develop, both academically and professionally.
 

The LSJS Library

As a student on this degree programme, you will automatically become a full member of the LSJS library, one of the most extensive Judaica libraries in Europe, being home to over 70,000 volumes. You will have access to the library’s reading room, which is open five days a week, in addition to computer terminals and free internet WIFI. From the computer terminals you can use up-to-date Judaica software owned by the library, such as the Bar Ilan Responsa Project and the Otzar HaHochma Digital Mega Library.

You will also have access to two comprehensive collections of online databases:

1. Education Research Complete – a collection of over 2000 full-text publications covering a wide variety of areas related to Education
2. Jewish Studies Source – a collection of over 400 full-text publications covering a wide variety of areas related to Jewish Studies

Course Details

The MA Jewish education will provide you with a comprehensive understanding of the fundamentals of educational theory and practice, with particular focus on the specific challenges and questions that arise in the context of a Jewish environment.

The course is structured part-time over 2 years. Lectures take place at our Hendon campus. In 2017/18 the lectures are expected to take place on a Wednesday afternoon between 5:00-7:30 pm. However we will be considering running it in ‘block mode’ in which lectures are attended over the course of one week  3 times a year as opposed to on a weekly basis (during term time). We will consult the new cohort over the best option for them (weekly or block).

From January 2018, we are also offering this course as an online distance education programme. Further details are also on this website.
 

What will I learn?

The course is split over two years to allow you develop your knowledge and skills at an appropriate pace. In the first two terms you will focus on generic issues whilst from the third term you have the ability to specialise in one of four areas; Leadership and Management, Teaching and Learning, Community Education or Educational Research. Specialising will enable you to gain the knowledge and abilities directly relevant to their current position or future role in Jewish Education. Modules being studied will include:-

• Jewish Education: Traditional Sources and Contemporary Issues
• Teaching and Learning in Jewish Education
• Dissertation

Students will also have a choice from the following optional modules:-

• Leadership and Management in Jewish Education
• Advanced Leadership and Management in Jewish Education
• Pedagogy of Jewish Studies
• Adult Jewish Education
• Informal Jewish Education
• Models of Jewish Education: Schooling in a Historical and Global Context

Personal and Professional Development Planning

Alongside your studies, you will be able to engage in Personal and Professional Development Planning (PPDP). This will provide you with an opportunity to assess the value of the skills and knowledge you are developing, and identify your future learning and development needs. It offers a structured way to reflect on what you are good at and what you need to develop further. You will learn to review your own skill levels and what you have learned from different situations and environments, including your studies, part-time work, voluntary work and other activities. You will record your reflections and use them to help you think about and plan your future development. We have allowed time in the timetable for you to work on your PPDP.

We welcome applications with a wide variety of educational qualifications and experience from the UK and overseas. All applicants will need to demonstrate familiarity with the ethos of Jewish education, and the ability to read biblical Hebrew.

You will normally have completed a first degree with higher second class honours degree or above (i.e. 2:1 or above), or an equivalent qualification. In exceptional circumstances, applicants who do not have these qualifications, but have extensive experience working in Jewish education and/or a strong background in traditional Jewish text study (for example, rabbinic ordination or extensive period of study in a seminary or yeshiva) may be invited for interview and asked to submit written work as evidence of their potential to embark on Masters level studies in Jewish education. Students whose first language is not English will need to show proficiency through submission of written work and at interview.

Accreditation of Prior Learning

Student may be able to request Accreditation of Prior Learning for some of the credits required for a degree award. For further details, please contact LSJS.

Completion of the MA Jewish Education should  enhance your career prospects in ways which are specific to your particular field.  Whether you are a school leaders, teacher or school governors you  could be expected to progress to more challenging professional and lay leadership roles in Jewish schools. Rabbis, youth workers and other communal professionals may move to more senior roles in the community. This degree will also prepare you to enter doctoral programs.

As well as preparing students for furthering their teaching career, the MA Jewish Education helps to develop skills which are relevant to a wide variety of careers and transferable to many types of profession. These skills include:

• Group management and motivation
• Problem solving
• Teamwork
• Oral and written communication
• Independent research
• Familiarity with and application of information technology

The MA Jewish education is designed to provide graduates with a strong foundation of knowledge and skills that will allow them to progress their careers and/or pursue research in education, Jewish education or related fields.

Fees for 2017/18 are £2940 for the year. Fees may increase slightly each year. We aim to be competitive with other institutions.

Fees for the Distance Learning Degree, starting in January 2018, are £2940 for EU students and £3440 for non-EU students, for the year.

A small number of bursaries are available for this course for students in financial need. For more information please contact the academic and teacher training administrator Jane Clist by email (jane.clist@lsjs.ac.uk). We can also suggest other sources of financial support.

To apply, please download the MA application form and return to LSJS (FAO Jane Clist) or email jane.clist@lsjs.ac.uk

The Application Process

Applications for the Distance Learning MA starting in January 2018 are still being accepted.
Click here for details.

First round applications for the course starting at LSJS in September 2018 close at noon on Friday 4 May 2018. You may apply after this date but we cannot guarantee that there will be space on the course.

Once we receive your application, we will review it and if eligible we will invite you to interview. Part of the interview process will include a presentation of the structure and content of the degree course, and a chance for you to ask any questions that you may have. Details of the schedule for the interview day will be sent to applicants who are invited to interview.

For more information about the course, please contact the academic and teacher training administrator Jane Clist (jane.clist@lsjs.ac.uk). Alternatively, you may contact the course leader Dr. Tamra Wright by email (tamra.wright@lsjs.ac.uk).