HU Credits: 4

Degree/Cycle: 2nd degree (Master)

Responsible Department: Education

Semester: Yearly

Teaching Languages: Hebrew

Campus: Mt. Scopus

Course/Module Coordinator: Dr. Maya Choshen

Coordinator Email: mschos@mscc.huji.ac.il

Coordinator Office Hours: Monday 14:00

Teaching Staff:
Dr. Maya Choshen

Course/Module description:
This course addresses the issue of education within the urban arena in light of changes taking place in the traditional division of duties between the central and local governing bodies. These changes have transformed the local authority from a junior partner to a senior partner. Simultaneously, the power of residents – as individuals, groups, and communities – has increased, and they too have become an influential actor in the urban educational arena. The course will address these and other issues.

Classes will focus on the design, planning, and establishment of policy as well as its implementation and influence on educational activities within the city, while also highlighting the educational function and functioning of the local authority within the urban space.

The course will adopt a broad view of education within the city as well as its modes of development. It will also explore and analyze examples of reform of the urban education system as well as targeted programs that were initiated, adopted, and implemented by local authorities within Israel and throughout the world. It will examine various components of education within the city, including formal and informal education and the connection between and context of education and community as these relate to the governing authority and its residents, on the one hand, and the authority and central government, on the other hand. The course will also cover the various levels of education, from nursery school through secondary as well as higher education within the city and the community. In addition to the vertical levels of education, the course will address cross-cutting aspects such as withdrawal, (“dropping out”), perseverance, and high achievement. It will examine geographic and demographic influences on the local education system as well as reciprocal relations between various areas of life and urban-communal education, including welfare, culture, physical planning, the environment, and quality of life.

Course/Module aims:
1. Developing an awareness of the importance of the local authority in shaping the city’s education system.
2. Achieving familiarity with the education system within the city, community, and neighborhood.
3. Gaining knowledge about the governing, administrative, and organizational structure of the local authority in general and the municipal educational authority in particular.
4. Understanding the centralization and decentralization processes in relation to the central, local, communal, and neighborhood governing bodies.
5. Learning about approaches and tools for the development and promotion of education among local authorities – policy, planning, budgeting, and administration.
6. Understanding the system of social and physical services of local authorities by addressing demographic and geographic aspects of this system of services.
7. Achieving familiarity with approaches and tools for educational planning for various population groups, for geographical communities, and for communities of interest.
8. Discussing and studying the place of the community in the urban education system,
strategic planning within local authorities and master plans for education.
9. Studying spatial planning within local authorities, with emphasis on the integration of social considerations into this planning.
10.Focussing on implementation of educational policy and actualization of plans on the part of local authorities, with emphasis on changes in the management and structure of the education system.
11. Promoting the study of models for reform of the education system among local authorities.

Learning outcomes - On successful completion of this module, students should be able to:
Learning Outcomes: On successful completion of this course, students should be able to:

- Understand the function and functioning of the education system within the municipal system.
- Understand that education is part of the urban social fabric, which both influences and is influenced by it.
- Understand that school is not an isolated island but part of a community, neighborhood, city, and geographical space.
- Develop planning and policymaking skills in all areas of education (from nursery school through higher education, within formal as well as informal education, and so on), taking into consideration social and communal aspects in conjunction with demographic and geographic processes as an important and inseparable part of education systems.

Attendance requirements(%):
80

Teaching arrangement and method of instruction: The course will combine frontal instruction with class discussions based on the instructional material, required reading, and student presentations. The participation and engagement of students in the classes is an important aspect of the course.

Course/Module Content:
1. The local government – definition.
2. Local government – governing, administrative, and organizational structure of the local authority.
3 Centralization and decentralization processes of the local government.
4. Local democracy – Local authority elections and public participation.
5. Financing of local authorities
6. Models of local government and the development of the local government in Israel.

City, community, and neighborhood
7. The social network of the city’s population groups – city, community, and neighborhood as well as their interaction. Familiarity with the education system of the city, community, and neighborhood.
8. The system of social and physical services in the city, with attention to demographic and geographic aspects of this system of services.
9. The resident – passive recipient of services or influential participant and partner?

The education system within local authorities
10. The governing, administrative, and organizational structure of the municipal education system – division of authority and responsibility in education among the central, local, communal, and neighborhood governing bodies.
11. The education system in the city, community, and neighborhood.
12. Financial and budgeting of the education system in the city.
13. Approaches and tools for the development and promotion of education among local authorities – policy, planning, budgeting, and administration.
14. Strategic planning within local authorities and master plans for education
15. Spatial planning within local authorities, with emphasis on the integration of social considerations in planning related to the education system (welfare, culture, the environment, equality, and so on).
16. Approaches and tools for educational planning for various population groups, for geographical communities, and for communities of interest.
17. Implementation of educational policy and actualization of plans on the part of local authorities, with emphasis on changes in the management and structure of the education system.
18. Cooperation among local authorities.
19. Case studies of local authorities in Israel that are taking the lead in implementing multi-system processes for change and improvement of the education system in their cities, authorities that view improvement in education as a driving force for the growth, branding, and strengthening of the city.
A. Who initiated the change within these authorities and why?
B. Who is leading the change within these authorities and how?
C. What changes have been planned and implemented in the education systems of these authorities?
D. How do planning and development of education systems fit into overall urban planning and development?

Required Reading:
Ammons, D.N. (2012) Municipal Benchmarks, Third edition, Armonk, NY: M.E.Sharpe.

Benson, P. L., 1997. All Kids: What Communities must do to Raise Caring and Responsibility Children and
Adolescents, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Brender, A., 2005. Ethnic Segregation and the Quality of Local, Government in the Minorities’ Localities: Local Tax Collection in the Israeli-Arab Municipalities as a Case Study, Discussion Paper
No. 2005.01, Jerusalem: Bank of Israel Research Department.

Ben-Bassat A. and Dahan M. (Eds), 2009. The Political Economics of the Municipalities The Israel Demofracy Institute

בן בסט א. ודהן מ. (עורכים), 2009. הכלכלה הפוליטית של הרשויות המקומיות. המכון הישראלי לדמוקרטיה.

Eden, B., Klinov, R. (1995). The effects of different financial methods on the extent of school integration. In: Kahane, R. (ed.). Educational Advancement and Distributive Justice: Between Equality and Equity (pp. 358-374). Jerusalem: Magnes Press.

Epstein, J. L. et al. 1997. School, Family and Community Partnerships: Your Handbook
for Action, California: Corwin.

גבתון ד', 2003, אוטונומיה, אנומיה, אינטגרציה ואנרכיה: חקיקה ופסיקה כמכשירים להפעלת רפורמות חינוכיות ויישום מדיניות החינוך בישראל, בתוך: דרור, י', שפירא ר', נבו ד' (עורכים), מדיניות החינוך בישראל רמות – אוניברסיטת תל-אביב 407-454. Gibton D., Goldring, E.B., & Sabar, N. (2003). A Comparative and Empirical View of Decentralization Policy, Legislation and Autonomy in Israel’s School System (H)

Gibton D., Goldring E. (2002). The role of legislation in educational decentralization: The case of Israel and The United Kingdom. , Peabody journal of Education vol. 76, no. 3 + 4, pp. 81-101.

Israel, CBS (2013). http://www.cbs.gov.il/publications13/1530/pdf/h_print.pdf
אפיון יחידות גאוגרפיות וסיווגן לפי הרמה החברתית-כלכלית של האוכלוסייה בשנת 2008

Additional Reading Material:
Brender, A., 2005. Ethnic Segregation and the Quality of Local, Government in the Minorities’ Localities: Local Tax Collection in the Israeli-Arab Municipalities as a Case Study, Discussion Paper
No. 2005.01, Jerusalem: Bank of Israel Research Department.

Razin, E. (2000) The impact of local government organization on development and disparities - a comparative perspective, Environment and Planning C: Government and Policy 18: 17-31.

Razin, E. (2004) Needs and impediments for local government reform: lessons from Israel, Journal of Urban Affairs 26: 623-640.

Razin, E. and Hazan, A. (2013) Attitudes of European local councilors towards local governance reforms: a North-South divide? Local Government Studies.

United Cities and Local Governments (2009) Decentralization and Local Democracy in the World, First Global Report 2008, Barcelona: United Cities and Local Governments and The World Bank.

Course/Module evaluation:
End of year written/oral examination 0 %
Presentation 10 %
Participation in Tutorials 5 %
Project work 75 %
Assignments 10 %
Reports 0 %
Research project 0 %
Quizzes 0 %
Other 0 %

Additional information:
no