A Taste of "Teaching Israel through Disagreement"

Online
Free
Webinar: February 25, 2026 at 11:00 am - 12:00 pm EST, Online
How can we talk about Israel? Today's Jewish educators and learners often feel anxious, isolated, or overwhelmed when it comes to talking about Israel in their schools and classrooms.

Join us for a taste of Mahloket Matters' unique disagreement pedagogy, rooted in Jewish tradition and applied to the most contentious topic in American Jewish communal life today. Together we'll scratch the surface and learn more about how Teaching Israel through Disagreement can prepare you to lead challenging conversations about Israel with children and adults.

The intensive will take place in Manhattan on June 3-4, 2026. Application coming soon. 
Share:
Setting
  • After School and Beyond
  • Educator Training
  • Camp
  • Congregational Learning
  • Family Engagement
  • Teen Engagement
Topic
  • Israel - Contemporary
  • Israel - State
  • Jewish Text and Thought
  • Zionism
A headshot of Sefi Kraut.
Sefi Kraut
Sefi Kraut has taught Judaic Studies since 2004 and is deeply committed to cultivating thoughtful, engaged Jewish educators. She directs the Pardes Mahloket Matters project, which offers a methodology and educational frameworks—rooted in Torah, social psychology, and conflict-navigation tools—for engaging disagreement constructively. At its core is a demanding conviction: Jewish tradition does not avoid conflict, but teaches how to navigate it wisely. Sefi leads fellowships and seminars for educators, rabbis, and communal leaders, and co-created a teen curriculum integrating Jewish text and social-emotional learning. Most recently, she helped launch the Mahloket Matters Israel Educator Fellowship, supporting educators in facilitating nuanced and challenging conversations about Israel.


 

Mikhael Reuven Kesher
Mikhael Kesher

Mikhael Kesher is a curator of educational experiences and resources, whose professional passion is supporting Jewish educators and learners in building informed, constructive, and committed relationships with am yisrael (the Jewish people) and medinat yisrael (the Jewish state). As a British-born Israeli-by-choice and new American, he cares deeply about strengthening each Jew’s connection to global Jewry. Before joining The Jewish Education Project as Director, Israel Education, Mikhael worked at Harvard Hillel, MIT Hillel, and Hebrew College. He holds Master’s degrees in Philosophy (University of Cambridge), Near Eastern & Judaic Studies (Brandeis University), and Jewish professional leadership (Brandeis University). At home, Mikhael is an avid reader, ḥevruta enthusiast, and devoted abba to two young children.

Who's coming? (10 participants)

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