Mechina

A Mechina or Mechinah ( Hebrew : מכינה; "preparation"; plural מכינות Mechinot) is an Israeli mostly one-year training program in which secondary school students can voluntarily prepare for university or for Israeli military service or civil service after completing their schooling .

Preparation for university

The mechinot preparing for Israeli universities fall into several categories:

• Israeli universities offer mechinot for graduates of Israeli high schools.
• Mechinot Olim (singular Mechinat Olim , Hebrew מכינת עולים; olim = immigrant ) are special Mechinot for immigrants to Israel who want to study at an Israeli university. The programs, which are held entirely in Hebrew, teach Hebrew (from beginner level if required), Jewish history and - depending on the chosen focus - subjects from the humanities, social or natural sciences. The Technion only considers students from its own Mechinat Olim for enrollment.
• Private (commercial) companies offer remedial courses that support school leavers with university applications. Participants can prepare for admission tests in the Mechinot or complete or improve their results (points) in certain tests used when applying to Israel.

Preparation for military service

Military service preparation programs (English Pre-Army-Mechinot) have gradually developed since the late 1980s. Many of them were established in Jewish settlements in the areas occupied or annexed by Israel since 1967.

They can be differentiated according to whether they are religious , secular or mixed religious and secular.

Religious Mechinot

The oldest mechinot to prepare for military service are religious mechinot. They are aimed at students of a yeshiva (religious school) and prepare them for their time in the non-religious armed forces. Jewish thinking, beliefs and actions are taught. In addition, there is physical training for military service and training of leadership skills by active officers of the Israeli armed forces.

The first religious mechina, Bnei David , was founded in 1988 in the Jewish West Bank settlement of Eli .
Other religious Mechinot include: Ateret Kohanim in East Jerusalem , the Leadership Yeshiva Academy in Avnei Eitan and Katzrin on the Golan Heights , Carmey Hayil in Kibbutz Beit Rimon in Galilee , and Kirjat Malachi in southern Israel.

Secular Mechinot

With Nachschon in Nili , a Jewish settlement in the West Bank , the first of the secular pre-army Mechinot was founded in 1997.
The secular Mechinot teaches leadership skills, principles and practice of democracy, Zionism , Jewish history, philosophy and more. In addition, there is voluntary service that the Mechinot students do. In contrast to the religious Mechinot, the practice of the Jewish faith is not part of the official program; the events also cover the ethics and traditions of Judaism . The non-religious Mechinot include Nachshon , Meitzar on the Golan Heights , Ma'ayan Baruch and Mechinat Rabin Oranim in northern Israel and Hanegev in the south.

Religious-secular Mechinot

In view of the widening gap between religious and non-religious / secular currents in Israeli society, Mechinot were founded aimed at both religious and non-religious interested parties. They offer a broad spectrum ranging from Zionism and Judaism to political science and philosophy and training for leadership roles. In addition, there is a commitment in the local communities and in society as well as voluntary work. Corresponding Mechinot example, Beit Yisrael in Kibbutz Beit Yisrael in Gilo , East Jerusalem , the youth program of the Israeli Academy for Leadership A Prat in Kfar Adumim in the West Bank or the Reform Judaism belonging IMPJ-mechina in Jaffa .

Documentary: Mechina: A Preparation

The question of how young Israelis change during their mechina time before their compulsory military service, is the published 2005 US documentary mechina: A Preparation (German mechina: A preparation ) of Maital Guttman and Madeleine Sackler after. The film was included in the official selection of several Jewish film festivals in the USA .

Web links

(all websites in English)

University preparation

• Mechinot am Technion (for graduates from Israeli schools and Olim)
• Mechina at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem (for graduates from Israeli schools)
• Mechina Olim at Tel Aviv University
• Mechina Olim at Bar Ilan University

Military service preparation

• Jewish Agency for Israel, Army Mechinot
• Rochelle Furstenberg: Israeli Life: Idealism From Below Hadassah Magazine, October 2008 Vol. 90 No. 2
• The Mechina Program of the Northern Negev Midot Analysis Report No. November 7, 2008 (PDF file; 814 kB)
• Children and Youth at Risk The Pratt Foundation, Israel 2006 (PDF file; 364 kB)
• Amos Harel: 'Shooting and crying' Haaretz.com, accessed March 31, 2009
• Anshel Pfeffer and Amos Harel: IDF ends Gaza probe, says misconduct claims are 'rumors' Haaretz.com, accessed March 31, 2009
• B'tselem, settlements

Individual evidence

1. ↑ The Mechinah Program; Bnei David ( Memento of the original from January 31, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (English; accessed March 22, 2009) 
2. ^ The Pre-Military Academy; Mechina Ateret ( Memento of the original from March 2, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (accessed April 2, 2009) 
3. ↑ Leadership Yeshiva Academy ( Memento of the original from July 7, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (English; accessed March 22, 2009) 
4. ↑ ^{a b} Children and Youth at Risk, 2006 ( Memento of the original dated August 10, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. The Pratt Foundation, Israel 
5. ^ Pre-military program; Mechina Carmey Hayil (accessed April 2, 2009)
6. ↑ Ethan Bronner: Accounts of Gaza Killings Raise Furor in Israel March 19 2009, The New York Times
7. ↑ Jerusalem Foundation Dedicates Newly Renovated Beit Matanya ( Memento of the original from July 26, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (accessed April 2, 2009) 
8. ↑ B'tselem, expropriation Statistics
9. ↑ The Israeli Academy for Leadership Ein Prat ( memento of the original from April 13, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (accessed April 2, 2009) 
10. ^ Project Mechina; The Israel Movement for Progressive Judaism (IMPJ) (accessed April 2, 2009)
11. ↑ Celia Soudry: Capturing the 'Real World' transition for Israeli teens ( Memento of the original from May 31, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. June 12 2008, Jewish Journal.com 
12. ↑ Mechina: A Preparation in the Internet Movie Database (English) - Internet presence of the film ( Memento of the original from December 17, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.