HU Credits: 2

Degree/Cycle: 1st degree (Bachelor)

Responsible Department: sociology & soc. anthropology

Semester: 1st Semester

Teaching Languages: Hebrew

Campus: Mt. Scopus

Course/Module Coordinator: Eliahu Ben-Moshe

Coordinator Email: eliahu.ben-moshe@mail.huji.ac.il

Coordinator Office Hours:

Teaching Staff:
Dr. Eliahu Ben-Moshe

Course/Module description:
Introduction to the demographic processes that changed Israeli population and sub-groups (by religion, nationality, ethnicity and religiosity) in comparison to similar processes in other countries: population growth and its components; immigration to and from Israel (aliyah and yeridah); population distribution / immigrants distribution; the dynamics of demographic gaps among ethnic and religious groups; fertility trends and its consequences on population composition; Arabs and Jews; mortality decline; age structure and aging, population projections and future compositional changes .

Course/Module aims:
Acquisition of basic knowledge of the main demographic characteristics of the Israeli population, subdivided by its main subgroups - defined on the basis of religion, nationality, ethnic origin and religiosity, under an historical and international perspective. Identification and understanding of the main demographic processes that shaped the Israeli population in the past and their expected influence on its future structure and composition

Learning outcomes - On successful completion of this module, students should be able to:
1. Basic knowledge of the main demographic characteristics of the Israeli population, subdivided by its main subgroups
2. Identification and understanding of the main demographic processes that shaped the Israeli population in the past
3. Understanding the way main demographic processes are expected to influence the Israeli population future structure and composition

Attendance requirements(%):
75%

Teaching arrangement and method of instruction:

Course/Module Content:
Introduction: The Israeli population as a demographic mosaic – demographic actual situation compared to the situation following the foundation of the State (3 Chapters)
Chapter 1: Israel among the countries of the World (including presentation of the Demographic System and basic indicators)
Chapter 2: Arabs, Jews and what it is in between – demographic actual situation (Population size and composition by length of stay in the country, ethnic origin and religiosity)
Chapter 3: Population and demographic processes in Israel: Changes that occurred between the first and the last decade (Size and composition, fertility, mortality, age structure, geographic distribution)
Chapter 4: The Jewish State, an Immigrants State – Immigration waves: general description, Jews in the world since the 19th Century until today, immigration before and after the creation of the State, theoretical background – migration reasons, emigration from Israel
Chapter 5: Arabs in Israel – Population growth, fertility, mortality, structure and composition. The creation of the "Israeli Arabs" population and its development since then; growth and composition by religion; changes in the level of fertility; mortality developments, age structure, geographic distribution
Chapter 6: Jews fertility – from ethnic origin to religiosity. The development of Jews fertility compared to fertility in other developed countries; immigrants fertility – differences by ethnic origin, fertility decline since the creation of the State, fertility and red religiosity level – ultra-Orthodox, national religious, traditional and seculars, fertility increase in the last decade
Chapter 7: Mortality in Israel: mortality differentials. The continuous mortality decline, mortality at loder ages, mortality differentials – Jews and Arabs, main mortality causes, differences by sex, marital status and ethnic origin
Chapter 8: Future changes in the population structure and composition by nationality and religiosity level. Who are Jews and who are Arabs, development of population composition by nationality, religiosity level and religion, population projections to close and long range by nationality and religiosity level

Required Reading:
General introduction:
1. Okun B. S., 2013, Fertility and marriage behavior in Israel: Diversity, change, and stability, Demographic Research: Volume 28, Article 17, Ch. 2: The Israeli context, pp. 459-463
2. בן משה א., 2011, שינוי במבנה והרכב האוכלוסייה הישראלית לפי מגזר תרבותי דתי בעשרים השנים הבאות – והשלכותיו על שוק העבודה, מנהל מחקר וכלכלה, משרד התמ"ת, פרק 3: תהליכים דמוגרפיים עד 2010, עמ' 19-38.
3. Goldscheider C.,1992, (Editor), Population and Social Change in Israel, Westview Press, Ch. 1 (Demographic Transformations in Israel) pp 1-36

Migration, alyiah and yeridah
4. העלייה לישראל, 2010–2007, פרסום מס' 1483, למ"ס, 2012, עמ' 9-17
5. Cohen Y., 2009, Size and Selectivity Patterns among Israeli Born Immigrants in OECD Countries, CARIM Research Reports, 2009/12, pp. 1-21

Mortality and mortality gaps
6. Dena H. Jaffe, Orly Manor, Assessing changes in mortality inequalities in Israel using a period-specific measure of socio-economic position, 1983–92 and 1995–2004, European Journal of Public Health, Vol. 19, No. 2, 2009, pp. 175–177
7. Laura Staetsky, Andrew Hinde, Unusually small sex differentials in mortality of Israeli Jews: What does the structure of causes of death tell us? Demographic Research, Volume 20, Article 11, March 2009, pp. 208-213, 235-241

Fertility by religion and religiosity
8. Okun B. S., Fertility and marriage behavior in Israel: Diversity, change, and stability, Demographic Research: Volume 28, Article 17, Ch. 4: pp. 466-485 and Ch. 5: 492-494
9. Schellekens J. & Eisenbach Z., The predecline rise in Moslem Israeli fertility, Economic Development & Cultural Change, 2002, pp. 541-545 & 551-552
10. חליחל א., 2011, פריון של נשים יהודיות ומוסלמיות בישראל לפי מידת הדתיות שלהן בשנים 2009-1979, למ"ס, סדרת ניירות עבודה, מס' 60, עמ' 7-18.

Future prospects – population projections
11. בן משה א., 2011, שינוי במבנה והרכב האוכלוסייה הישראלית לפי מגזר תרבותי דתי בעשרים השנים הבאות – והשלכותיו על שוק העבודה, מנהל מחקר וכלכלה, משרד התמ"ת, פרקים 4-5, עמ' 39-65, ופרקים 7-8, 73-82.

Additional Reading Material:

Course/Module evaluation:
End of year written/oral examination 100 %
Presentation 0 %
Participation in Tutorials 0 %
Project work 0 %
Assignments 0 %
Reports 0 %
Research project 0 %
Quizzes 0 %
Other 0 %

Additional information: