Misrad Hachinuch (I)
Any blog about Israeli vs. American Jewish education would be incomplete without a few comments/ideas/complaints about the Misrad Hachinuch, the Ministry of Education. In the first 3 months that I've been here, the most glaring issue regarding this monolithic organization is that of salaries. For now, I'm not even discussing the amount of our salaries (which will be a future post). I'm simply discussing getting a salary in the first place.
I have become a government employee. At least somewhat. Our school is partially funded by the Ministry of Education so I need to become part of that system. How much I am paid is dependent on a lot of things: 1) How much I work, 2) Where I work, 3) My experience, 4) My education. The first two components are site-dependent. What is their budget? What are their needs, etc. Simply put, as I understand it, the school receives a total number of hours from the Misrad Hachinuch and then it hires each teacher "by the hour" per week. A full-time teacher may be budgeted for 24 hours, 28 hours, 30 hours, whatever. Some of those hours may be in the classroom, some for meeting with students, some for meetings, however the school decides to "spend" its hours.
How much money each teacher receives for those hours is a wholly different matter....
A teacher's salary is computed after s/he is given a certain number of hours and is dependent on the person's education and experience. The simple formula: the more experience and the more education, the higher the salary.
As an American coming to Israel, proving my experience and my education in a way that the bureaucracy at the Misrad Hachinuch accepts has been, at times, a hassle and, at other times, a nightmare. I am now being paid in a way and in an amount that I do not understand. In other words, I do not know why, when, and how much I get paid. That's hard to swallow.
[Advice to future olim: while still in chutz la'aretz get all of your education and experience paperwork in order. For example, get letters from every place that you ever worked, on letterhead, describing exactly what you did, when you did it and for how long you did it.
For example, if you wrote sessions for NCSY, get a letter from NCSY on letterhead stating that you wrote sessions. If you worked in a school in a semi-administrative capacity, get a letter, on letterhead. etc. etc. etc. Another example: if you presented at a BJE conference get a letter. If you gave an in-service at your school, get a letter. If you have a Masters degree, bring the original diploma to Israel. If you have a Doctorate, bring the diploma. If you can, bring transcripts and even course syllabi.
I would recommend this even to people who think they are working in a post-high school institution. The long-arm of the Misrad Hachinuch is longer than you think!
I cannot tell you how hard it has been to get these letters almost 20 years after I worked at some places or went to school at others. Save yourself the hassle and do it now. There will still be hassles, but you can cut them down tremendously if you get these letters and diplomas now.
I certainly do not mean to scare you off. I really believe that your experience does not have to be a nightmare. My experience with the Misrad Hachinuch has been - at times - due in large measure to my lack of preparation.]
I have become a government employee. At least somewhat. Our school is partially funded by the Ministry of Education so I need to become part of that system. How much I am paid is dependent on a lot of things: 1) How much I work, 2) Where I work, 3) My experience, 4) My education. The first two components are site-dependent. What is their budget? What are their needs, etc. Simply put, as I understand it, the school receives a total number of hours from the Misrad Hachinuch and then it hires each teacher "by the hour" per week. A full-time teacher may be budgeted for 24 hours, 28 hours, 30 hours, whatever. Some of those hours may be in the classroom, some for meeting with students, some for meetings, however the school decides to "spend" its hours.
How much money each teacher receives for those hours is a wholly different matter....
A teacher's salary is computed after s/he is given a certain number of hours and is dependent on the person's education and experience. The simple formula: the more experience and the more education, the higher the salary.
As an American coming to Israel, proving my experience and my education in a way that the bureaucracy at the Misrad Hachinuch accepts has been, at times, a hassle and, at other times, a nightmare. I am now being paid in a way and in an amount that I do not understand. In other words, I do not know why, when, and how much I get paid. That's hard to swallow.
[Advice to future olim: while still in chutz la'aretz get all of your education and experience paperwork in order. For example, get letters from every place that you ever worked, on letterhead, describing exactly what you did, when you did it and for how long you did it.
For example, if you wrote sessions for NCSY, get a letter from NCSY on letterhead stating that you wrote sessions. If you worked in a school in a semi-administrative capacity, get a letter, on letterhead. etc. etc. etc. Another example: if you presented at a BJE conference get a letter. If you gave an in-service at your school, get a letter. If you have a Masters degree, bring the original diploma to Israel. If you have a Doctorate, bring the diploma. If you can, bring transcripts and even course syllabi.
I would recommend this even to people who think they are working in a post-high school institution. The long-arm of the Misrad Hachinuch is longer than you think!
I cannot tell you how hard it has been to get these letters almost 20 years after I worked at some places or went to school at others. Save yourself the hassle and do it now. There will still be hassles, but you can cut them down tremendously if you get these letters and diplomas now.
I certainly do not mean to scare you off. I really believe that your experience does not have to be a nightmare. My experience with the Misrad Hachinuch has been - at times - due in large measure to my lack of preparation.]
posted by T.Y.I.I. at
Tuesday, December 06, 2005
1 Comments:
Hi. I resorted to conducting a google search for "hours" and "misrad hachinuch" because I cannot get anyone to tell me what day/hours I can turn in my paperwork from the States. Reading what you wrote in your blog was not surprising. They obviously don't want good teachers here. I can be reached at jordandov@yahoo.com if you wish to communicate.
Jordan NBN oleh '05
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