A Day in the Life of a Hebrew Language Teacher Back to Top

Overview

Hebrew is taught in just over 1% of schools across the country. It is the tenth most popular foreign language taught in the United States. Although Hebrew is offered at very few public schools, many private religious schools often require students to take the course. The duties of a Hebrew teacher include creating lesson plans, planning activities, creating and grading tests or assignments, and engaging students. Hebrew teachers must immerse students in the language by constantly speaking, writing, and reading Hebrew, and encouraging the students to do the same. The initial difficulty Hebrew teachers face is teaching the Hebrew alphabet. A Hebrew teacher must be fluent in Hebrew and English. A Hebrew teacher must often teach the history and culture of the language, so knowledge and interest of these topics is important as well.

Elementary and Middle School

There are only select schools that offer Hebrew at the elementary level, and these schools tend to be private. Among elementary and middle schools, the most common foreign language program is the exploratory model, which provides introductory exposure to the language. Language focus programs are the second most common program for elementary schools, emphasizing listening, speaking, reading, writing, and culture. The remainder of elementary school programs usually use the immersion model, which provides students with the opportunity to attain high levels of proficiency in the foreign language. When a student reaches middle school, he or she is usually given the chance to choose which language to study. The middle school classes offer an introduction to Hebrew that will be built upon in high school.

High School

In most school systems, three years of a foreign language is required for a student to graduate. A Hebrew teacher can teach anywhere from level one to five. High school foreign language classes move away from the simple translation of middle school and begin to instruct students on writing, reading, listening, and comprehending. At each level of Hebrew, students will be more immersed in the language and are expected to retain each of the levels before.

Hebrew teachers must earn a bachelor’s degree in Hebrew, and must be fluent in both English and Hebrew. They must also obtain a teaching certificate in the state they wish to teach in. It is also highly recommended to obtain a foreign language certificate. Currently, only 31% of elementary level foreign language teachers have this certificate, so having one will certainly put you above the competition. The majority of high school foreign language teachers are certified to teach a foreign language. One quarter of elementary schools and nearly one third of secondary schools offering languages reported being affected by a shortage of qualified language teachers. The most affected schools were elementary schools in rural areas and high schools with a large percentage of students from a low-socioeconomic background. The need for qualified foreign language teachers is growing, and the average salary for the secondary level is slightly higher than that of the average teacher, $56,000.

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