Most of us know that  tikkun olam literally translates to "repair of the world." But what does it really mean?  Does it mean working with environmentalists to repair the rapidly evaporating Dead Sea? Does it mean saving our Jewish Ethiopian brethren and bringing them to Israel? Does it mean keeping the Halachot (Jewish law) and doing mitzvot (good deeds)? Is it the Jewish version of social justice? 

These were some of the questions pondered by a group of about 100 talented elementary and high school educators from Israel and Los Angeles last month. The teachers were together in Israel attending the 6th Annual Joint Teachers' Seminar sponsored by The Jewish Federation's Tel Aviv/Los Angeles Partnership program. The Joint Seminar is held every year as part of the Federation's School Twinning Program with Tel Aviv.  

"This is a very important program," said Benny Ferdman, teacher and art director of the New Jewish Community High School in Los Angeles, who attended the nine-day joint seminar in Israel. "I think Israel is no longer the focal point for the American Jewish Community. It is extremely important for Jews in the Diaspora to continue to get to know Israel. It is equally important for Israelis to get to know the Diaspora. There is a tremendous lack of understanding between the Israeli and American Jewish communities. The students can learn from each other and connect on a very different level."

The theme for the Seminar was tikkun olam. Organizers of this year's program were striving to bring an interesting and complex set of ideas to the educators that could be used throughout their travels through Israel and during the regular school year with students. The teachers traveled throughout Israel, many of them for the first time, from the South to the North contemplating the tikkun olam theme. They met with Israelis from every socio-economic stratum and looked at some of the complex issues the country is facing on a daily basis. 

The School Twinning Program matches Tel Aviv schools with those in Los Angeles. The teachers and students work together throughout the year creating interesting and exciting Jewish curriculum. As part of the exchange, a hand-picked group of students from Los Angeles visit Israel and Israeli students visit Los Angeles. The idea started in 1998 with only a few schools involved. Today, the program touts 18 sets of twinned schools with hundreds of students and teachers involved in both countries.

At the end of their journey, the educators met in Tel Aviv to assess how they could bring their new knowledge to their students in joint curriculum sessions throughout the school year.

"What is it that you take with you from this experience," said Dr. David Ackerman, of the Bureau of Jewish Education in Los Angeles. "What is something you want to implement in your school?"
One Israeli teacher said she would like to take her students to the "Museum in the Dark" in Holon. The whole museum is blacked out and you have to guide yourself through with a guide stick. At the end, there is a bar where museum goers have to order and drink and pay for it. The teacher felt that the lesson of tikkun olam would be powerful in this environment.

Akiva Potok, a teacher from Los Angeles Hebrew High School felt very strongly that the tikkun olam lesson could be explored through the complex environmental issues Israel is facing at the Dead Sea. During their tour through the country, the group visited the rapidly evaporating Dead Sea and discussed all of the issues regarding how to solve the problem.  He felt the students could learn a lot from the environmental issues while at the same time practicing tikkun olam.

The Seminar included school-to-school work sessions to create a year-long curriculum that is studied by students in Los Angeles and Tel Aviv simultaneously. Students will also spend two weeks visiting their twin school and live with host families during their stay.  

"This is a great experience for Israeli and American students," said Roi Shamir, a teacher at Eroni Tet High School in Tel Aviv, which is twinned with New Jewish Community High School. "It has made them think about being Jews and what it means in today's complicated world."

By the last day of the Seminar, it was not just the students who were making connections. The teachers had created their own close bonds and were exchanging personal information in order to stay in touch outside the realm of the program.

"As educators and as people we have connected on many levels," said Nurit Barr, a biology teacher from Tichon Hadash High School in Tel Aviv, which is twinned with New Community Jewish High School. "We have been able to create a very important and significant educational program for the children. It changes their lives and keeps them connected to Judaism in a way that they would have never been exposed to without the program. This is an incredible opportunity for all involved."