Starting the school year in the shadow of the war

On Wednesday, December 13, 2023, a preparation day was held in Bezalel for the first time for all the teaching staff at the academy, in anticipation of the start of the school year in the shadow of the war.

As part of the preparation day, meetings for all departments and programs took place. The president of the academy, Prof. Adi Stern, and the vice president, Arch. Liat Brix-Etgar, moved between the various meetings and talked with the lecturers.

During the meetings, guided conversations were held on the topic of dealing with the expected challenges in teaching and learning in this complex period when the school year opens. Special emphasis was given to the emotional and pedagogical aspects required of the lecturers at this time. The talks were moderated by members of the Bezalel Art & Design Teaching Center team.

Along with the departmental meetings, there were eight parallel workshops for all lecturers, which focused on tools for dealing with tensions between groups in a diverse class. The workshops were led by team members of the aChord Center for Social Psychology at the Hebrew University. Over 500 lecturers participated in the participation day held at the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Bezalel campus.

As part of the preparation program for the upcoming school year, Bezalel launched a trilingual web platform on guidelines on freedom of expression at this time. This platform is intended for students and lecturers at the Academy, as a starting point for conversation, discussion, and thought about freedom of expression at the Academy of Arts and Design.

Guidelines regarding freedom of expression and creation