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The Benjamin Rothman Kadoorie School is currently designed for around
eighty students in seven or eight classes and now in its second year,
already has thirty-five student from ages ranging between twelve and
nineteen. There are currently fifty-one staff members – each class has
two permanent teachers, and there is a wide range of para-medical
therapists, music and sports teachers, psychiatrists, a social-worker and
other support staff.
“Our entire ethos is built around flexibility, both conceptually and
functionally” says principal Bosmat Maoz. “We can speak to some of the
students and their learning is almost normal, but there are those with
whom we can only communicate using symbols. It goes without saying
that we adapt the learning to the needs and capabilities of each student
and the range of facilities and spaces we have here allows us to do so
in an optimal way. We can choose the best environment for the child’s
needs and the activity and learning we want to achieve with them. Three
times a year, the entire team holds assessment meetings on each student
and we plan together their long-term goals. Thanks to the donation from
Benjamin Rothman’s family and Alumot Or, we can also quickly receive
funding for specific projects which can help even one individual student.
For example we realized that one of them was musically-gifted and could
make good use of time spent playing the piano. There was a new piano
here within weeks”. Dr Benny Fisher, director of the Education Ministry’s
Rural Education and Youth Aliyah Division, says that “the foundation
provided added value to the school. The state invested a lot of resources
in building the new school but the foundation gave the faculty the tools to
develop their vision”.
While Benjamin Rothman Kadoorie school has it’s own carefully regulated
environment, the Kadoorie Youth Village is all around it, and noise of
school activities, music and sports events are always nearby. “Sudden
noises can be distressing for our children” says Maoz. “But we made a
decision not to ask Kadoorie to turn down the volume around our school
because they have to get used to living also in a larger community and the
youth village around gives us the perfect opportunity to gradually expose
them to society, guide them how to assimilate and cope with unexpected
stimulation and experiences”.
A lot of work has been done at the same time to prepare the other
Kadoorie faculty and students to accept and welcome their new friends.
“We carried out workshops for all our faculty before the new school
opened” says Dana Mor, principal of Kadoorie’s middle school. “And
they held discussions with their students, so that they understood how
to react if they heard any irregular noises coming from the school, or met
We know that whatever
level our child is at,
whether its in her
learning, extra-curricular
activities or preparation
for adulthood, Benjamin
Rothman school is capable
of providing her with the
solutions that best suit her
condition”
Shlomit, student’s mother