At the graduation event of the Taasiyeda Association—developing young human resources for industry, and the Ministry of Education, teachers and students from the Arab sector did not show respect for the national anthem, Kipa reported Friday.
The Taasiyeda Association, founded by the Manufacturers Association of Israel, has taken upon itself the national responsibility to encourage the development of human capital in the country by bringing the young generation closer to the various industrial fields.
Israeli school teachers and students, who took part last week in the graduation event of the Taasiyeda at the Safari in Ramat Gan, stood up in honor of the national anthem of Israel, and were amazed to discover that students from one of the Arab schools remained seated during the singing of Hatikva.
A Jewish teacher who had sent a protest letter to the event organizers told Kipa that she did not expect the Arab school staff and students to sing the Hatikva, but they could at least respect the national anthem by standing up and not remain seated while the anthem was playing.
“I see this as degrading the honor of the State of Israel, the Ministry of Education and the Taasiyeda Association,” the teacher wrote the organizers, noting that “this behavior expressed contempt for the organizers of the ceremony and all the participants.”
“I expected that one of the dignitaries sitting on the sidelines would protest before the entire audience, but not a word was said either by the supervisor or by the other partners,” the teacher wrote.
She also noted the educational problem stemming from this lack of official response: “What is the educational message to all those young students who were present and saw the despicable behavior of the Arab sector?” she asked.
According to the complaining teacher, her students found it difficult to accept the behavior of the Arab teachers and students: “My students and I had concluded a wonderful day with a very difficult sense of disgrace, and I consider this an educational failure,” she wrote, adding, “Of course I spoke with my students and tried to calm the negative feelings that flooded them, but I will admit that they had a very difficult time accepting my words.”
Finally, she wrote, “I could not stand still and be silent in the face of ingratitude on the part of an educational institution that receives money and budgets from its state. It is unbearable and requires immediate repair of the system.”
So far, Kipa has received no response to its inquiries from the Ministry of Education nor the Taasiyeda Association.