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We report on a large-scale, log-based study of the associations between persistence and success in an online game-based learning environment for elementary school mathematics. While working with applets, learners can rerun a task after completing it or can halt before completing and rerun it again; both of these mechanisms may improve the score. We analyzed about 3.1 million applet runs by N=44,323 1st-6th-grade students to have a nuanced understanding of persistence patterns, by identifying sequences of consecutive single applet runs (SoCSARs). Overall, we analyzed 2,249,647 SoCSARs and identified six patterns, based on halting and rerunning tasks, and their completion: 1) Single Complete, 2) Single Incomplete, 3) Some Incomplete and Single Complete, 4) Multiple Incomplete and No Complete, 5) Multiple Complete and No Incomplete, and 6) Multiple Complete and Some Incomplete. Expectedly, we found a positive correlation between SoCSAR length and success. Some patterns demonstrate low to medium positive associations with success, while others demonstrate low to medium negative associations. Furthermore, the associations between the type of persistence and success vary by grade level. We discuss these complex relationships and suggest metacognitive and motivational factors that may explain why some patterns are productive and others are not.

This article presents a study of a full-day, university-organized, online hackathon that aimed at designing solutions to problems raised in remote learning and teaching. The event, with about 80 participants, was carried out during the COVID-19 pandemic when many schools were closed and shifted to emergency remote teaching. The hackathon participants were challenged to design innovative solutions to authentic problems that have been raised during this situation. Using an online questionnaire, to which 28 of the hackathon participants responded, we quantitatively and qualitatively examined how the event had affected them. Findings suggest that participating in the hackathon mostly contributed to the participants' recognition of the importance of collaboration, and their thinking about academy-society relations. These contributions were driven by the way the hackathon was designed and handled, and the fact that it was held online enabled some of its unique contributions. We also show that online, shorter-than-usual hackathon still has a meaningful, multi-faceted contribution to their participants, and conclude with recommendations for planning such events.

Using a mixed method approach, the study examined the emotional and academic adjustment to higher education amongst undergraduate students, in light of the Spring, 2020 COVID-19 pandemic outbreak. The undergraduate students' social, emotional, institutional and academic adjustment, during the COVID-19 outbreak pandemic was compared with a database of undergraduates examined before the pandemic, which served as a control group. Four hundred and twenty-three undergraduates from 30 academic institutions in Israel participated in the study: 226 before COVID-19 and 197 undergraduates examined during the Spring, 2020 COVID-19 outbreak. The results indicated that undergraduate students during the Spring, 2020 pandemic had significantly lower academic, social, emotional and institutional adjustment compared with controls tested before the pandemic. In the COVID-19 sample, higher self-perception of satisfaction with life predicted better adjustment. Emotional stress as well as financial burden reported by undergraduates were associated with lower adjustment. Qualitative analysis revealed that social isolation was considered the most disturbing factor. Findings showed that there is a need to support students' social, emotional and academic concerns during COVID-19 and also highlighted the role of instructors' and support staff in particular.

The present study examined the academic self-efficacy (ASE) of undergraduate students with self-reported learning disabilities (LD), attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and comorbid LD + ADHD compared with non-LD/ADHD students at two time points, before the emergence of COVID-19 (pre-COVID) and during the pandemic (COVID-19). It also examined the relationship between ASE and engagement in remote learning (RL) classes during COVID-19. Participants were 621 undergraduate students with self-reported LD/ADHD (198) and without LD/ADHD (423) who were examined before (291) and during (330) the COVID-19 outbreak. First, we compared the ASE of the pre-COVID group vs. the COVID-19 group. This comparison revealed that ASE of all students (self-defined LD/ADHD and non-LD/ADHD) who studied during COVID-19 by RL was lower than that of students before COVID-19. Next, in-depth analyses among COVID-19 four subgroups (i.e., LD, ADHD, LD + ADHD, and students without disabilities) showed that both subgroups of students with ADHD reported lower ASE to cognitive operations than did students without LD/ADHD. In addition, the subgroup of students with ADHD were less engaged in RL classes than were students without LD/ADHD. Higher ASE to cognitive operations and social interactions was related to higher engagement in RL for all students. The results call for postsecondary institutions to increase their academic support of undergraduates with LD, ADHD, or both and to provide guidance in RL.

This study examines the role of age of arrival (AoA) in immigrant students' perceived multilingual proficiency. Additionally, the study investigates the demographic, linguistic and social-psychological variables distinguishing young-arriving immigrants from their middle and older-arriving peers. The sample included 274 eleventh grade Russian (L1) speaking immigrants acquiring Hebrew as a second language (L2) and English as a third language (L3), divided into three groups according to arrival ages in Israel: 0-6; 7-9 and 10-12 years. The instruments included a 'can-do' questionnaire measuring multilingual self-assessment, (SA) and a background questionnaire. The results indicated a strong relationship between AoA and students' SA in L2 and L3 extending research, based primarily on language tests, demonstrating that AoA is an important factor explaining multilingual proficiency. Further, the findings revealed that students' self-assessed listening in L2 and L3 distinguished the young-arriving immigrants from their middle and older-arriving peers. Current use of L3, parental encouragement to study L2 and an inverse integrative orientation to study L3 distinguished the older-arriving group from the other two groups. These results highlight the role of the sociolinguistic context and the specificity of each language as a source of variation in L2 and L3 acquisition besides individual characteristics.

Learning analytics have the potential to improve teaching and learning in K-12 education, but as student data is increasingly being collected and transferred for the purpose of analysis, it is important to take measures that will protect student privacy. A common approach to achieve this goal is the de-identification of the data, meaning the removal of personal details that can reveal student identity. However, as we demonstrate, de-identification alone is not a complete solution. We show how we can discover sensitive information about students by linking de-identified datasets with publicly available school data, using unsupervised machine learning techniques. This underlines that de-identification alone is insufficient if we wish to further learning analytics in K-12 without compromising student privacy.

The purpose of the study is to examine the ethical dilemmas among mid-level school leaders in the social-ecological context through role-play simulations. We examined simulations involving role-played ethical scenarios and group debriefings among 30 mid-level school leaders from different Israeli high schools and districts during the MA course in the educational leadership program. A qualitative analysis generated an expanded social-ecological model for mid-level school leaders. The model consists of six main layers: individual, interpersonal, organizational, community, public policy, and technology. Each of the layers is divided into sub-categories. The study's findings reveal the concurrent appearance of the different layers. These findings emphasize the complexity of the role of mid-level school leaders, as they cope simultaneously with a variety of ethical dilemmas characterized by multiple conflicting values. Moreover, the study findings indicated the interpersonal layer to be the most dominant layer, demonstrating mid-level leaders' dual role as both classroom teachers and as team leaders. This study may contribute toward the development and modification of professional training programs for mid-level school leaders. It may also be helpful when designing strategies to deal with ethical challenges and to strengthen the school's ethical leadership.

Disability disclosure is an issue that concerns people with invisible disabilities. To date, studies have not examined this issue among teachers with invisible physical disabilities, their colleagues, and school principals, simultaneously. The goal of the current study was to shed light on this phenomenon from various perspectives. The study was conducted in Israel and included 13 teachers with invisible physical disabilities, 10 school principals, and 10 professional colleagues of a teacher with an invisible disability. It was found that while principals and colleagues focused solely on how to avoid additional workload or any discomfort, the teachers with a disability aimed to leave a positive mark on their students. Notably, while the principals' concerns regarding the teacher with disability focused on professional issues, the colleagues' concerns focused on the personal interaction between them and the teacher. These findings revealed specific barriers that teachers with disabilities faced and allowed us to address how they could be removed in favor of the growing trends of inclusion of teachers with disabilities.

This cross-national study investigates the role of the plurilingual identity and the psychological landscape, i.e. the psychological disposition of pre-service language teachers in their learning-to-teach process. Thirty multilingual pre-service teachers from Israel and Austria participated in the study (15 from each country). Data sources included language portraits and in-depth semi-structured interviews. Drawing on ecological perspectives, data were analysed qualitatively utilising content analysis. Predominant themes were identified suggesting that pre-service teachers' plurilingual identity is closely intertwined with their psychological landscape, influencing a wide array of professional development dimensions of their learning-to-teach process.

The current study examined the adjustment to higher education among students with mental health disorders, focusing on adjustment to post-secondary education, emotional and metacognitive variables. The participants were 123 students who had already completed at least one year at an institution of higher education: 63 students who self-identified themselves with mental health disorders and 60 students who did not identify with any mental health disorders or disability. Students with mental health disorders reported on lower levels of adjustment (social, emotional, institutional, and academic) to post-secondary education than students with no mental health disorders. In addition, students with mental health disorders reported lower satisfaction with life, academic self-efficacy, and higher levels of test anxiety than students without mental health disorders. Furthermore, significant between-group differences were found in three meta-cognition subscales. Lastly, satisfaction with life, test anxiety, academic self-efficacy, and disability status and five metacognition subscales predicted 75% of the variability in adjustment to higher education in the entire sample. These findings suggest that following their first year in higher education, students with mental health disorders continue to experience difficulties in social, emotional, institutional, and academic adjustment. Implications of the results are discussed.

Purpose: The study's main goal is to investigate different leadership styles that characterize middle-level leaders, the intermediate leadership tier of role holders in school, as they practice leadership scenarios through active participation in a professional learning process of role-play simulation, using a social-ecological approach. Design/methodology/approach: Thirty middle-level leaders from different Israeli high schools and districts participated in the study during an M.A. course in an educational leadership program. The authors used qualitative analysis to examine role-play simulations of leadership scenarios based on group debriefings. This content analysis was conducted within a two-dimensional theoretical framework composed of leadership style theory and a social-ecological model. Findings: The study findings address four main leadership styles: authentic, transformational, participative and transactional. Regarding their appearance within different social-ecological layers, the interpersonal layer was the most salient one with a prominent appearance of transformational and authentic leadership styles. On the organizational and communal layers, authentic leadership was more prominent. The study findings demonstrate multidimensionality in both the leadership styles and social-ecological layers, as different styles appeared in different layers concurrently. Practical implications: The findings may help articulate the nature and characteristics of middle-level school leadership. They may also provide relevant theoretical content and instructional strategy to develop simulation-based preparation programs for middle-level leaders. Originality/value: The study findings highlight unique leadership characteristics of middle-level school leaders and suggest a contextual perception of their leadership styles within a social-ecological framework.

The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between school ethical climate, organizational citizenship behavior and social loafing. The study participants included 878 teachers, 50 principals and 50 school counselors from 50 primary schools. The data analysis was based on multilevel SEM. The findings indicate different behavioral mechanisms between the individual and the group levels among teachers. A positive relation was found between personal organizational citizenship behavior and group organizational citizenship behavior, as well as a negative relation between group organizational citizenship behavior and social loafing. In practice, school leaders should encourage workgroups for maximizing school effectiveness.

This research probed the acculturation model of migration of Druze in Israel from their villages to cities. Little research has been published to date on the migration of Druze. The Druze migration experience from and within Israel can add knowledge about a unique cultural group in Israel. The present findings indicate a process in which Druze men and women moved from villages to cities in Israel for short and long periods, in pursuit of academic education and professional training. Berry's typology of acculturation partly explained the results. Accordingly, we suggest modification of the theory.

The purpose of the study was to characterize the relationships between behavior problems, academic achievement, and loneliness of students in the upper and lower thirds of a social skills classification. Participants were 733 students (359 boys and 374 girls) ages 9 to 14 years, 642 without learning disabilities (LDs) and 91 with LDs. Their homeroom teacher rated their social skills, and accordingly the upper and lower thirds of social skills scores were determined. Results showed differences in behavior problems between the low and high social skills groups. Boys displayed higher rates of behavior problems. Students with LDs achieved lower scores than their peers in academic achievements and higher scores in loneliness. The final model of the binary stepwise logistic regression showed that loneliness, behavior problems, and academic achievements were related to social skills, explaining 60% of the pseudo-variance (Cox & Snell R[superscript 2] = 0.60). The findings help target individual variables that can promote school adjustment.

This study explored the contribution of simulation-based learning (SBL) to the developing of interpersonal communication skills. For this purpose, 10 Israeli preservice teachers were interviewed after participating in SBL. In addition, quantitative questionnaires were administered to 30 preservice teachers pre- and post-simulation. The interviewees described SBL as a deep-water experience, providing a glimpse of the day after they graduate. Importantly, some of them reported that they had been able to draw insights from SBL when facing challenges in their practical work.

The current study aimed to examine the perceptions of principals on aspects of the ecological school culture that contribute to novice teachers' retention. Narratives of 16 Israeli middle-schools and high schools principals were analyzed based on the social-ecological model. This model considers the different environments related to the professional performance of novice teachers. The findings highlight several key factors that encourage retention such as processes of training, support and supervision, and socialization amongst teachers. Principals and decision-makers can implement the proposed model to increase novice teachers' retention in their schools.

Emotional availability in parent-child interactions fosters children's socioemotional development. Little is known about the emotional availability of parents and children with profound motor disabilities and complex communication needs or the contributions of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) to emotional availability. To begin addressing these gaps, this pilot study focused on three mothers and their children with spinal muscular atrophy Type 1 who could not speak and required AAC. The study used a mixed-methods design. Mother-child interactions were rated using the Emotional Availability Scales. Semi-structured in-depth interviews with the mothers were qualitatively analyzed. Emotional availability in mother-child dyads was adequate. In the interviews, mothers addressed significant challenges but described mainly typical parent-child relationships and adaptive child and mother coping attributable to the use of AAC. Results suggest that emotional availability is possible and can be facilitated by AAC, even with children with profound motor disabilities and limited ability to communicate needs and desires. The findings highlight the importance of targeting children's socioemotional needs and parent-child emotional availability in AAC interventions with families of children with profound motor disabilities.

Teachers' beliefs, conceptualised as heuristics encompassing perceptions and ideologies regarding aspects of their profession, strongly influence their practices. Grounded in this perspective, this study investigated teachers' beliefs and perceived practices in the context of teaching English as foreign language (EFL) to immigrant students in Israeli schools. Utilising a mixed-methods approach, data were collected from 153 teachers via questionnaires and semi-structured interviews. Two major sets of beliefs emerged in the data, aligning conceptually with two of Ruíz's orientations to language planning and multilingual societies: "multilingualism as a resource," and "multilingualism as a right," reflected in supporting special accommodations for immigrant students. These beliefs were found to be significantly related to teachers' reported practices. Certain factors, especially teachers' personal biography as immigrants and the particular school contexts, have been identified as predictors of teachers' beliefs about teaching immigrant students in the EFL classroom. Results further indicate insufficient professional knowledge about the unique conditions and challenges confronted by immigrant students while acquiring an additional language. Recommendations are made regarding professional development programmes for teachers within the framework of 'language as resource'.

Researchers have identified accommodations as important determinants of academic performance among students with learning disabilities (LD) in post-secondary education. The purpose of the current study was to examine the willingness of university faculty members in one northern university in Israel to provide accommodations for students with LD, using quantitative and qualitative measures. The 56 faculty members who participated in the study generally had positive attitudes towards accommodations for students with LD. Differences in willingness to provide technological accommodations were found between the Arabic- and Hebrew-speaking faculty members. When asked how they could support students with LD, faculty members mentioned outside sources of support, such as accommodations and referral to other assistance providers, but also saw themselves as agents of support through personal assistance and modified teaching methods. Interestingly, faculty members did not refer solely to academic support, but also to emotional support and empathy. Practical and theoretical implications are discussed.

This study investigates the role EFL teachers attribute to their linguistic and cultural repertoire in the professional learning process during induction. The study draws on the understanding that teacher learning occurs at the interplay between teachers' language and cultural background and teachers' experiences within the sociocultural context of their workplace. Thirty novice bilingual and multilingual EFL teachers teaching in Hebrew- and Arabic-speaking schools were interviewed to obtain information about their sociocultural and plurilingual background, learning processes and practices. Teachers' instructional materials were used for data triangulation. Inductive content analysis surfaces predominant themes related to teachers' plurilingual and cultural background as interwoven with cognitive, practical and personal dimensions of their professional role and identity construction. Teachers' learning processes and practices have been found to be linked to teachers' perceived sense of linguistic hierarchy, whereby English is granted a primary role, and other languages at the teachers' disposal, a secondary yet fundamental one, contributing to the agency exercised in teachers' practices. Given their multiple language learning experiences, multilingual teachers exhibit stances towards teaching reflective of more 'experienced' than 'novice' teachers, particularly broader representations of language acquisition issues. The findings call for the recognition of EFL teachers' plurilingual multicompetencies in their practices.

The aim of this study was to identify the ethical dilemmas of school principals who employ teachers with different physical disabilities. By conducting 18 in-depth interviews with principals from different school levels and different sectors in Israel, we identified the ethical dilemmas that emerged and their causes. The findings reveal that principals who employ teachers with disabilities struggle with multifaceted ethical dilemmas. These dilemmas reflect the tension between the educational ideology that was demonstrated by the principals' inclination for integration and inclusion versus the three different elements of the principals' professional responsibilities, namely commitment to the educational system, commitment to the wellbeing of the school staff, and commitment to the wellbeing of the students. Comprehending these dilemmas and understanding the ways in which these values contradict each other is a critical step on the way to building a more inclusive school.

MOOC courses in the fields of new media, entrepreneurship and innovation require pedagogical developers to create a clear and measureable peer assessment process of the innovative plans and projects developed by students. The objectives of our action research are to improve evaluations of students' plans and their innovativeness in a MOOC based on project-based learning (PBL). We analyzed 789 written peer assessments and grades of 89 PBL plans, which were submitted as part of the requirements in a new MOOC course 'New Media in Education' targeting student teachers. Correlations between final peer project grades and other assessment categories were calculated. A regression analysis model indicates that innovativeness and compatibility of student plans to educational needs are the strongest predictors final peer grades. Based on the research findings, we propose potential improvements in the peer assessment process, including additional guidelines for the assessment of innovativeness and other categories of PBL plans based on new media and digital pedagogy.

The currently proposed meanings of paid work among adolescent girls who attend school neglect their negotiation of their belonging to their communities, calling for additional exploration of the field while focusing on belonging as achieved through respectability production. We investigate the meaning of adolescents' paid work by examining it in terms of prevalent paths of respectability production. Based on 20 interviews with adolescent Palestinian girls living in Israel whose families live in poverty and who are employed while attending school, we show that girls who live in a community that touts education as a 'weapon' and expects girls to aim high are in fact shamed by such an expectation. To restore their self-worth facing educational barriers, girls use paid work to enable three paths to respectability: parentification, market citizenship, and belonging. Our findings suggest that girls unable to produce respectability through education, turn to produce it through paid work.

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explore the mediating effect authentic leadership (AL) has on professional identity (PI), ethical climate (EC) and organizational citizenship behaviors (OCB) and political behavior (PB) among elementary school principals in Israel. Design/methodology/approach: Four hundred and ten elementary principals from various Israeli districts participated in the study. The research is based on principals' self-report questionnaires. The analysis focused on SEM using AMOS software. Findings: Results indicated that AL fully mediates the relationships between PI and OCB and PB while partially mediates the relationships between EC and OCB and PB. Research limitations/implications: This study could contribute to the design of an integrative model not previously researched, while exploring relationships between behaviors perceived as mutually opposite. This study suggested that to increase OCB and decrease PB, authentic leadership among elementary school principals should be enhanced by educational leaders. Originality/value: The new model is likely to help school principals to deal with political behaviors while fostering citizenship behaviors during their work. Educational leaders may design professional training for principals in order to encourage the development of the positive aspects of OCB and PB.

One of the most controversial problems regarding educational inclusion is the inherent contradiction between high demands and special needs. Faced with this challenge, many general education teachers turn to training programmes to compensate for special education knowledge they lack and to acquire special education teaching techniques. In this study conducted in Israel, 10 teachers who recently participated in a special education training programme were interviewed. The interviews revealed their frustration, in view of the absence of any preparation that would enable teachers in mainstream classes to accommodate students with learning disabilities. Importantly, the interviewees reported that after completing their coursework in special education, they experienced a change in their attitudes as well as in their ability to effectively implement inclusion in their classrooms. These findings add to the growing body of research [(Sokal and Sharma 2014. "In-service Teachers' Concerns, Efficacy, and Attitudes About Inclusive Teaching and its Relationship with Teacher Training." "Exceptionality Education International" 23 (1): 59-71; 2017. "Do I Really Need a Course to Learn to Teach Students with Disabilities? I've Been Doing It for Years." "Canadian Journal of Education/Revue Ccanadienne de Ll'éducation" 40 (4): 739-760; Van Mieghem, Verschueren, Petry and Struyf, 2018. "An Analysis of Research on Inclusive Education: A Systematic Search and Meta Review." "International Journal of Inclusive Education," 1-15] that emphasises the importance of training teachers in mainstream frameworks to effectively address the special needs of their students. Thus, the current study concludes that not only special-education teachers should be privy to this knowledge, as is the current practice; rather, all teacher-education programmes should incorporate courses aimed at facilitating inclusive education.

Gendered moral rationalities (GMRs) have been proposed as a means of grounding mothers' employment-related choices in the structural, policy, and social support contexts of their maternal routines. This article analyzes a form of GMR that is anchored in the class-ethno-national position of mothers and comprises a manifestation of their maternal responsibility toward their daughters' futures. By focusing on this form of parenting among working-class parents, we are bridging a gap in the scholarship, which has overlooked the salience of the intergenerational transmission of GMRs. Based on the analysis of semistructured interviews with 20 working-class Palestinian mothers living in poverty in Israel, we found that their responsibility for their daughters' future reflects both the struggle to resist early marriage and prioritize education and the struggle to encourage a model of market citizenship. These struggles reshape mothers' own GMRs and their attempts to transmit these values to their daughters.

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to explore the mediating role of workplace attitudes--professional identity and career aspirations between perceptions of principals' authentic leadership and teacher behaviors: intent to leave, organizational citizenship behavior, counterproductive work behavior, lateness and intention to leave among teachers. Design/methodology/approach: The sample was composed of 605 teachers, randomly selected, nested in 41 Israeli elementary, junior high and high schools. Data analysis was based on multi-level structural equations. Findings: The findings indicated that the more the school was perceived by the teachers as having an authentic leader, the professional identity of the teachers was higher and was negatively associated with counterproductive work behavior toward colleagues in the school, while the teachers' career aspirations were higher and negatively associated with counterproductive work behavior toward the organization. Originality/value: This study shows the importance of teachers' individual and collective perceptions and their impacts on teacher behaviors. The practical contribution may include encouraging principals to promote high standards of authentic leadership, to raise teachers' professional identity and their career aspirations and reduce teachers' counterproductive work behavior and intention to leave.

Systematic screening of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) can improve early diagnosis of ASD. We compared the efficacy of two ASD screening methods, the Global Developmental Screening (GDS), and the Modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers-Revised, with Follow-Up (M-CHAT/F) in 1591 toddlers of ages 18-36 months from 35 government-funded clinics in south Israel. The M-CHAT/F performed better than the GDS in detecting toddlers with ASD (sensitivity: 70.0% vs. 50.0%, and specificity: 98.2% vs. 96.6% respectively). Both methods had an equivalent performance in detecting other forms of developmental delays (sensitivity = 63%; and specificity ~ 98%). In addition, remarkable inter-nurse variation was observed in the GDS referral decisions. Thus, employment of the M-CHAT/F in the Israeli health system may improve early detection of ASD among toddlers.

The study aimed to elicit a universally accepted meaning of "ethical practice in school" from teachers' codes of ethics formulated by educational leaders including school principals, the nation's government, and teachers' union representatives. Analysis was based on a random sample of 30 codes of ethics in various countries using a qualitative methodology. The findings generated a multidimensional model. School principals' access to this model may advance making decisions that foster an ethical school environment worldwide.

Nations throughout the world continue to examine how to improve their system of education in terms of improving student achievement, so that each student has the opportunity to be a productive and successful member of the global society. For this to occur, each school must be successful in the development of high quality teaching and learning. School leadership is a critical component, since the principal has tremendous influence in transforming the culture by influencing, inspiring, challenging, and motivating teachers to continuously grow and improve. The goal of this study was to examine the teacher perceptions of the transformational leadership skills of school principals, according to the teachers' school level and setting, in both Israel and the United States. The study includes 615 Israeli teachers and 514 American teachers (n= 1,129). Results indicate that Israel teachers perceive transformational leadership of their principals significantly higher than teachers in the United States, particularly with the relationship between the level of the school and the transformational abilities of the principal. The findings may be explained by different culture perceptions of power distance, individualism, and masculinity. The results may help to plan policy in support of transformational leadership in terms comparative studies need to take into consideration the differences in culture as well as current policy regarding the degree of standardized testing, and its impact on how a principal leads the school.

Implementing inclusive education is one of the major challenges facing the educational system. One of the main difficulties in implementing inclusive education is that general education teachers receive insufficient training to work in complex teaching contexts and to respond to the unique needs of all the pupils in their classroom. The objective of this research was to assess the components of an innovative integrative training program, developed in a teacher education college in Israel, that integrates special education studies with elementary/secondary general school studies (curriculum and field experience), thus contributing to graduates' sense of self-efficacy in integrating and including pupils with special educational needs and disabilities and helping them develop teaching methods that promote inclusive education. On the practical level, the findings can help training program designers adapt and/or improve existing training programs. On the conceptual level, this study can contribute to research in the field of inclusive education from the perspective of teacher education.

The aim of the study is to investigate whether there are discrepancies between teachers' perceptions of the "official policies" and their "tendency to act," based on their ethical decision-making. A qualitative analysis of 60 Israeli teachers' questionnaires consisting of critical ethical incidents revealed multifaceted ethical dilemmas nested in categories of "discrepancies between official policies and teachers'" tendency to act: "Harm (to people, property)," "parental involvement/interference" and "academic process." The discrepancies noted between official policy and teachers' tendency to act may encourage educational policy to design teachers' training and professional development programs that include dealing with critical ethical incidents, through team-based simulations and formulating ethical guidelines based on their ethical decision-making process.

The purpose of this study was to explore the attitudes and experiences of seven online instructors in Teacher Education (three from the United States, four from Israel) pertaining to the deliberate efforts they make to build interaction into their web-based classes to support learning. In the tradition of cooperative inquiry, the use of purposive sampling and a semi-structured interview protocol provided the best opportunity to describe, rather than explain, the perspectives of these instructors who are currently teaching online and developing within this medium. Participants expressed the need to establish quality interactions throughout their distance courses, yet acknowledged barriers they perceive in attaining desired levels of human relationship. They also discussed the importance of collaboration, caring, and context when creating and teaching courses in an online environment.

This study aims to explore the different appearances of parental interactions based on principal, teacher, and student reports of the 8th grade Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study 2011 assessments in Israel and how the appearances of parental interactions relate to math achievements. We conducted a multilevel SEM on 147 principals, 147 teachers, and 4304 students nested in 147 schools. Different appearances of parental interactions emerged such as "parental involvement in student learning," "direct communication on student progress," and "providing general information of school principles and activities" based on student, teacher, and principal reports respectively. Significant negative relationships were found between these appearances that can be explained by compensation relationships. We found a positive relationship between student reports of parental involvement and student achievements. The negative relationships we found between teacher and principal reports of parental interactions and student achievements may reflect situations where teachers and principals interact with parents mostly in problematic cases. We also found that girls perceive their parents' involvement higher than boys, immigrant students had lower achievements than native-born students, and children whose parents have higher educational levels had higher achievements. While most studies examined parental interactions from the teacher's, student's, or principal's perspectives, this study is unique in that it applies an integrative approach that considers all the appearances simultaneously. Thus, this study leads to a broader view of parental interactions and can contribute to developing programs for encouraging parental interactions in school routines.

Adults with learning disabilities (LD) constitute one of the fastest growing populations of students attending institutions of higher education. Faculty members play an important role in the adjustment and success of these students. The current study investigated the perceptions towards LD of faculty members at a public university in Israel. Specifically, the study examined the level of contact, attitudes, knowledge, and training of faculty members with respect to students with LD. The results demonstrated that faculty members overall had a significant amount of contact with and held positive attitudes towards students with LD. However, it appeared that faculty members would benefit from information regarding the current definition of LD, related legislation about LD and other disabilities, and training and support services for LD. Implications for practice and further research are discussed.

The goal of this study was to explore the shared meaning of 'ethics in school practice' based on educators' attitudes. Our analysis focused on a random sample of 30 codes of ethics for educators that were developed by educational leaders in various countries. The data analysis was based on qualitative analysis. The findings generated a multidimensional model of 'ethics in school practice' that included six dimensions: 'caring about students,' 'teachers' professionalism,' 'collegial relationships,' 'parental involvement,' 'community involvement' and 'respecting the law and regulations.' The findings may promote lifelong learning programs toward understanding the multidimensional structure of 'ethics in school practice.'

The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study is to achieve an understanding of the perceptions and experiences of Israeli parents of students with severe disabilities about their involvement in the Individual Education Program (IEP) process. Data collection in this study involved interviewing 20 parents whose children study in special education schools in the Tel Aviv area in Israel. Through analysis of parents' responses, two main themes related to the involvement of parents in the IEP process become apparent: A child-centered focus and parents' self-efficacy. Positive parent teacher collaboration enhanced the sense of parents' efficacy with respect to the IEP process and resulted in plans that were individualized to students' needs. The main conclusion of the research is parental involvement and the collaboration of parents with teachers is a process that teachers and parents must nourish daily. Parental involvement and effective parent-teacher collaboration in the IEPs of students with severe disabilities is founded on relationships of trust and positive communication between families and schools

Students in a teacher training college in Israel have developed and taught curricula on the intelligent use of the Web. The educational programs were based on activities thematically related to the world of digital citizenship, such as the rights of the child and the Internet, identity theft, copyrights, freedom of expression and its limitations, etc. This study examines the characteristics, advantages and shortcomings of the educational approaches used by 180 students. Most of the students chose balanced approaches for developing and teaching curricula on the subject, relating both to the benefits and dangers of using the Web. Quite a few chose a negative critical approach focusing on the dangers and harmful effects of the Internet. A marginal minority chose a positive approach stressing only on the beneficial uses of the Web. In light of the analysis of the students' reflection questionnaires, it is able to identify those factors that assist and those that inhibit the teaching of the subject based on each of the approaches. In addition, recommendations were made for optimally adapting an approach for developing and teaching sub-topics of the curricula, which enhance the advantages and reduce the disadvantages of using web.

In this study on long-term educational programs (LTP) in nature, facilitated by an environmental agency we followed two distinct programs enacted in schools and in nature parks as case studies. Data were collected through observations of activities in schools and in the outdoors and through interviews with students, teachers and facilitators. In one program there were more student-centered and hands on activities and substantial environmental action. In the other program it was the students' first experience with outdoor and environmental education, and the teachers were more active in the outdoors as "story tellers" and role models. In this program, the students brought up their own concern of littering rather than following the environmental agency's concern of illegal herb harvesting. In general, in both programs the participant students expressed high satisfaction, and indicated learning about the environment. We found as well limited collaboration between the operating environmental organization and the schools and no connection to the school curriculum. Post priori, teachers as well as the environmental educators acknowledged the need to address the school curriculum and to better involve the teachers.

Recently, there has been a significant increase in the number of students with specific learning disabilities (SLD) in postsecondary institutions. The current study investigated attitudes toward and knowledge about SLD among students from different cultural and educational backgrounds. The study included 113 students (63 Arabic speakers and 50 Hebrew speakers) working toward bachelor's degrees in different faculties and departments at a university in northern Israel. Findings indicated that both Arabic- and Hebrew-speaking students had some knowledge regarding SLD and agreed with positive statements about SLD. However, Arabic-speaking students reported having less contact with individuals with SLD than did Hebrew-speaking students. Additionally, Arabic-speaking students reported less knowledge regarding the competence of students with SLD and were more willing to support and provide assistance to these students. Both groups revealed insufficient understanding of the essence of SLD. Implications for research and practice are discussed.

While post-secondary school students with learning difficulties confront many challenges, there is little research on methods of support. In the current study, the 'adapted course' model was qualitatively examined from the perspective of both students and instructors. The main goal was to explore how students and instructors perceived the instruction in adapted courses. Five pre-service students with learning disabilities (LD) and/or attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder and three instructors were interviewed. Responses were analysed using subjective analysis, with central content categories identified based on student and instructor statements. Six main themes emerged: (1) small class size; (2) emotional support; (3) adjusted teaching methods; (4) independent practice exercises; (5) instruction by modelling; and (6) instructor characteristics. The current study can inform pedagogical principles on which a support model for post-secondary students with LD can be based. It provides analyses of the effectiveness of one support model and presents the perceptions of both faculty and students. Moreover, the study provides an opportunity to learn about potential components of effective teaching-learning, not only in the specific context of adapted courses, but in any supportive learning situation (e.g. tutoring) or course.

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explore an integrative model which includes specific intentions that may explain the contradictory citizenship behaviors and misbehaviors among superintendents in Israel. Design/methodology/approach: In total, 518 superintendents from seven Israeli Ministry of Education district offices were randomly selected. Based on sequence theory, the study examined motivational perceptions of authentic leadership, psychological empowerment and collective efficacy, and their relationships toward intentions to engage in organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) and organizational misbehavior (OMB) which may lead to OCB and OMB. The research combined self-reports and computer records. The model was analyzed using Mplus statistical packages. Findings: The authors found that intentions to be late positively predicted lateness, while intentions to leave predicted OMB. In addition, the study indicates several mediating relationships. For example, intentions to engage in OCB-organization and OCB-individual fully mediated the relationship between "self-determination" of psychological empowerment and OCB. In addition, intention to leave mediated the relationship between authentic leadership and lateness. Originality/value: Across nationalities, superintendents greatly impact the educational processes in their districts. Their high status in the educational system makes them role models. Therefore, it is important to investigate their behaviors and motivations. The findings may contribute toward developing an integrative approach that can predict the superintendents' behaviors by suggesting specific intentions that can explain corresponding behaviors. This model may also help in developing educational policies for reducing the superintendents' OMB and increasing their OCB.

This study explored how 60 trilingual immigrant youth interpret and make sense of their educational experiences in Israeli schools. Conceptualizing the language knowledge of multilingual individuals as one unitary system, the study is based on the assumption that a fuller understanding of students' educational experiences can be obtained by examining their written expression about school experiences in the three languages at their disposal: Russian (L1), Hebrew (L2) and English (L3), which were elicited via letter writing tasks. A total of 180 letters (60 letters in each language) were analysed through qualitative content analyses revealing five interrelated themes depicting immigrant youths' scholastic studies as a complex multifaceted experience intertwined with issues of language, culture, identity, and social struggles. The findings provide insights into how the language repertoire of immigrant youth is powerfully linked to their sense of self, educational circumstances, and acculturation.

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explore the meaning of the concept "school identity" as reflected in principals' perceptions of their school logo, vision and practice. Design/methodology/approach: In-depth interviews were conducted with 24 principals from Israeli elementary, junior high and high schools. The content analysis of principals' interviews, including open, axial and selective coding and confirmatory qualitative analysis was used to examine the principals' perceptions regarding the school's logo, vision and practice. Findings: The principals' perceptions of the logo, vision and practice comprised five main features: academic, traditional, national, organizational and social-ethical. Different types of relationships were found between these features: correspondence by appearance, correspondence by non-appearance and incongruence. Research limitations/implications: The study suggests a new theoretical model for generating the concept of school identity. The study demonstrates that incongruent findings may be viewed as complementary rather than conflicting when establishing a school's identity. Practical implications: The findings can promote an understanding of the function of school logos and vision statements in school practice, and help develop and maintain school identity. All these may affect the surroundings that come in contact with the school principal, such as parental decision on school choice and governmental activities. Originality/value: To date, no study has investigated the meaning of school identity based on the principals' perceptions regarding the school logo, vision and practice. The findings can facilitate the development of an ecological approach, which can help in understanding the meaning of school identity and its effect on students, staff, parents, wider community and national policy.

The goal of this study was to explore the mediating role of 'absenteeism acceptance' between different leadership styles and school ethical climate (SEC) on organizational citizenship behaviors (OCB) and voluntary absence among Israeli teachers. 304 teachers were randomly selected from 304 different mainstream and special-education schools. The model was analyzed using AMOS 18.0 software. We found that 'absenteeism acceptance' partially mediated the relationship between transactional leadership, SEC and OCB, and also found that SEC and transactional leadership positively predict OCB. The theoretical contribution of this study is rooted in its integrative approach. While most previous studies focused on a single leadership style, this study focused on the role of 'absenteeism acceptance' as a mediator between ethical aspects such as: SEC; leadership styles; and teachers' behaviors like voluntary absence and OCB. The practical contribution may include developing school principals' training programs, focusing on transactional leadership and SEC in order to increase teachers' OCB in schools.

Background: Congenital neutropenias are characterized by severe infections and a high risk of myeloid transformation; the causative genes vary across ethnicities. The Israeli population is characterized by an ethnically diverse population with a high rate of consanguinity. Objective: To evaluate the clinical and genetic spectrum of congenital neutropenias in Israel. Methods: We included individuals with congenital neutropenias listed in the Israeli Inherited Bone Marrow Failure Registry. Sanger sequencing was performed for ELANE or G6PC3, and patients with wild‐type ELANE/G6PC3 were referred for next‐generation sequencing. Results: Sixty‐five patients with neutropenia were included. Of 51 patients with severe congenital neutropenia, 34 were genetically diagnosed, most commonly with variants in ELANE (15 patients). Nine patients had biallelic variants in G6PC3, all of consanguineous Muslim Arab origin. Other genes involved were SRP54, JAGN1, TAZ, and SLC37A4. Seven patients had cyclic neutropenia, all with pathogenic variants in ELANE, and seven had Shwachman–Diamond syndrome caused by biallelic SBDS variants. Eight patients (12%) developed myeloid transformation, including six patients with an unknown underlying genetic cause. Nineteen (29%) patients underwent hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, mostly due to insufficient response to treatment with granulocyte‐colony stimulating factor or due to myeloid transformation. Conclusions: The genetic spectrum of congenital neutropenias in Israel is characterized by a high prevalence of G6PC3 variants and an absence of HAX1 mutations. Similar to other registries, for 26% of the patients, a molecular diagnosis was not achieved. However, myeloid transformation was common in this group, emphasizing the need for close follow‐up. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The October 7, 2023 terrorist attacks on Israel, subsequent war and resultant humanitarian crisis remind all of the destructive potential we humans share. In this introduction to articles written by six Israeli psychoanalysts and candidates, we highlight the ways that their grounding in Psychoanalytic Self Psychology informed their work and supported the survivors' efforts to restore their sense of connection to an empathic community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Israel is regarded as a country with a developed economy and a moderate income inequality index. In this population-based study, we aimed to measure the inequalities in colorectal cancer screening within Clalit Health, an organization with universal insurance, before and during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic. Setting: Retrospective analysis within Clalit Health Services, Israel. Methods: We evaluated the rate of being up to date with screening (having a colonoscopy within 10 years or a fecal occult blood test within 1 year) and the colonoscopy completion rate (having a colonoscopy within 6 months of a positive fecal occult blood test) among subjects aged 50–75 in 2019–2021. Results: In 2019, out of 918,135 subjects, 61.3% were up to date with screening; high socioeconomic status: 65.9% (referent), medium-socioeconomic status: 60.1% (odds ratio 0.81, 95% confidence interval 0.80–0.82), low-socioeconomic status: 59.0% (odds ratio 0.75, 95% confidence interval 0.74–0.75); Jews: 61.9% (referent), Arabs: 59.7% (odds ratio 0.91, 95% confidence interval 0.90–0.92), Ultraorthodox-Jews: 51.7% (odds ratio 0.77, 95% confidence interval 0.75–0.78). Out of 21,308 with a positive fecal occult blood test, the colonoscopy completion rate was 51.8%; high-socioeconomic status: 59.8% (referent), medium-socioeconomic status: 54.1% (odds ratio 0.79, 95% confidence interval 0.73–0.86), low-socioeconomic status: 45.5% (odds ratio 0.60, 95% confidence interval 0.56–0.65); Jews: 54.7% (referent), Ultraorthodox-Jews: 51.4% (odds ratio 0.91, 95% confidence interval 0.90–0.92), Arabs: 44.7% (odds ratio 0.77, 95% confidence interval 0.75–0.78). In 2020–2021, there was a slight drop in the rate of being up to date with screening, while most of the discrepancies were kept or slightly increased with time. Conclusions: We report significant inequalities in colorectal cancer screening before and during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic in Israel, despite a declared policy of equality and universal insurance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated the role of school-related variables in explaining academic proficiency (AP) performance in Hebrew (L2) and English (L3) among immigrant youth. The following sets of variables were examined: (1) school background (2) academic, linguistic and social-psychological support, and (3) professional staff and school resources allocated for immigrant students. The sample included 267 Russian (L1) speaking students drawn from 18 Israeli high schools. Students' AP level was assessed via AP tests in L2 and L3. Data about the schools were collected through interviews with the school principals. Multivariate analysis of covariance, controlling for socioeconomic status (SES), arrival age and gender indicated that students' performance significantly varied as a function of the school-related variables although the effect of these variables on students' AP scores in L2 and L3 was not to the same extent. The variables educational track (comprehensive schools), upper SES, social-psychological support, teacher training, parental involvement, and provision of an immigrants' class were associated with higher grades in the respective languages whereas provision of academic and linguistic support were related to lower scores. These results highlight the role of the particular learning environment and context as a source of variation in L2 and L3 performance.