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EEB ROAD, ANN ARBOR, Ml 48106 18 BEDFORD ROW, LONDON WC1R 4EJ, ENGLAND 8015862 C h o r o w s k y, J o s h u a GENERATING A THEORY OF THE CURRICULUM FOR THE JEWISH SCHOOL IN AMERICA The Ohio State University Ph.D. 1980 University Microfilms International300 N. Zeeb Road, Ann Arbor, MI 48106 18 Bedford Row, London WC1R 4EJ, England GENERATING A THEORY OF THE CURRICULUM FOR THE JEWISH SCHOOL IN AMERICA DISSERTATION Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University By Joshua Chorowsky, B.R.E., M.A. ***** The Ohio State University 1980 Reading Committee: Approved by Professor Philip L„ Smith, Adviser Professor Elsie J. Alberty Professor E. Ojo Arewa Professor Robert E. Jewett Adviser' Faculty of Educational Professor Paul R. Klohr Foundations and Research ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I wish to acknowledge my appreciation and gratitude to the fol­ lowing who have been instrumental and inspirational in completing this study: To Professor Philip L. Smith, my adviser, for his expert and attentive guidance, his accessibility and stimulating critique, and his invaluable assistance in resolving the problems which confronted me in writing this dissertation. To Professor Elsie J. Alberty, Professor E. Ojo Arewa and Pro­ fessor Robert E. Jewett for their consideration, interest, friendship and valued suggestions while serving as members of the Reading Commit­ tee. To Professor Emeritus Paul R. Klohr, who was also a member of the Reading Committee and who, before his retirement, served as my adviser— and is my ideal of a scholar and a "mensch"— for his con­ tinuous encouragement and support throughout the various phases of my doctoral program, and for his expert counsel in delineating the para­ meters of this study. To my wife, Esther, and to my sons, Jack and Ilan, who contri­ buted so much, endured so much and forgave so much. Without their personal sacrifice, understanding and encouragement this study would have never been undertaken, let alone completed. ii VITA July 28, 1931 ............... Born - Volpa, Poland 1962 ....................... B.R.E., Yeshiva University 1968 ....................... M.A., Teachers College, Columbia University 1979 ....................... M.A., New York University iii VITA July 28, 1931 .............. Born - Volpa, Poland 1962 ....................... B.R.E., Yeshiva University 1968 ....................... M.A., Teachers College, Columbia University 1979 ....................... M.A. , New York University TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ......................................... ii VITA .................................................... iii LIST OF TABLES.............................................. vi Chapter 1- A STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM OF THE JEWISH CURRICULUM . 1 Jewish Education in America From the Revolution to 1 8 8 1 ...................................... 1 Jewish Education in America Between 1881 and World War I I ................................ 2 Goals and Objectives of Supplementary Jewish Schooling in America ....................... 5 Post World War II Developments: The American­ ization of the Jewish School 8 A Summary Outline of the Jewish School Curri­ culum and an Appraisal of its Effectiveness . 20 A Statement of the Problem of the Jewish Cur­ riculum ...................................... 24 2. REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE.......................... 27 Influence of Progressive Educational Thought and Practice ................................ 27 American Democracy and Jewish Education .... 35 The Place of Israel in the Jewish Curriculum . 38 Major Trends in the Literature Reviewed .... 41 A Summary Outline of the New United Synagogue Curriculum................................... 48 A Critique of the United Synagogue Curriculum . 51 S u m m a r y ...................................... 54 3. THE NATURE OF KNOWLEDGE: EPISTEMOLOGICAL FOUNDATIONS OF THE CURRICULUM ................................ 56 Epistemological Assumptions in the Rationalist Tradition................................... 56 iv TABLE OF CONTENTS (cont.) Page Rationalist Epistemology and the Educative Process........................................... 59 Epistemological Assumptions in the Empiricist Tradition .........................................65 Empiricist Epistemology and the Educative Process............................................67 Rational Curriculum Theorizing .................... 73 Scientific Curriculum-Making .................... 77 Summary and Review................................... 81 4. ANTHROPOLOGICAL FOUNDATIONS OF JEWISH EDUCATION . 86 Jewish Culture and Education in Ancient Israel . 86 Jewish Schooling as an Instrument for Minority- Group S u r v i v a l ................................... 88 European Enlightenment and Jewish Education . 91 Jewish Education and Accomodation to America . 92 The Rise of Ethnic Identity Within Jewish Group Life in A m e r i c a ................................... 96 Schooling and Minority-Group Membership ........... 99 The Meaning of Jewish Identity .................... 101 The Concept of Cultural Pluralism ................ 103 The Concept of Normative Culture... ................ 105 A Framework for Synthesizing Jewish Schooling with the Normative Ideals of American Culture . 107 Summary............................................. 109 5. A PROPOSED THEORY OF THE JEWISH CURRICULUM.............. 112 The Democratic Ideal as a Value-Base in Curricu­ lum Theorizing .................................. 112 A Conception of the A Priori Within the Democratic I d e a l . ...........................................114 Curriculum Conceptions of the Democratic Ideal . 118 The Basic Affinity Between the Jewish Cultural Heritage and the Democratic Ideal................. 120 A Summary Outline of the Rationalist and Empiri­ cist Traditions and Their Review in Light of the Democratic Ideal............................... 121 A Proposed Theory of the Jewish Curriculum .... 130 6. AN EXAMPLE OF CURRICULUM DESIGN......................... 138 The Thematic D e s i g n ............................... 138 A Broad Outline of the Three Themes................. 141 Illustrative Conceptual Development of Theme III . 142 BIBLIOGRAPHY................................................... 149 v LIST OF TABLES Table Page 1. Objectives of Jewish Education ..................... 11 2. Subject Areas in the Jewish School........... ... 13 3. Course of Studies for the 7th Grade as Outlined in Denominational and Communal Curricula ...... 15 4. Subject Matter Taught in the 7th Grade of the Jewish Day S c h o o l ...................................... 19 5. Conceptions of the Educational Enterprise .... 122 vi CHAPTER 1 A STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM OF THE JEWISH CURRICULUM Jewish Education in America from the Revolution to 1881 In both form and content, Jewish education in America before 1881 reflected the realities in the American environment and pre­ vailing practices in the general community. Between the end of the Revolution and the Civil War, established Jewish communities pro­ vided for their Jewish education in congregational Day Schools where secular and Jewish subjects were taught, or in congregational supple­ mentary schools for Jewish subjects only.^ The Jewish curriculum of these schools consisted of the traditional components: basic Hebrew reading skills, and the translation of selections from the Bible. With the rise of the American public school in the second half of the 19th century, the Jewish Day School declined and Jewish education shifted to a supplementary form, under both communal and congrega­ tional auspices. Eventually,