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November 5, 1999/26 Cheshvan 5760, Vol. 52, No.10
Learning across the miles
Distance education an increasingly prevalent choice for Jewish studies
CHRIS GARIFO
Staff Writer
Distance learning on the Internet is becoming more popular with people who want to increase their knowledge of Judaism.
Photo illustration by Sharyn Hinchcliffe
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Distance learning is providing an increasingly popular option for students of all ages who want to improve their knowledge of all things Jewish.
"For me, (distance learning) was a Jewish education lifeline," says Nina Perlmutter, director of continuing education and non-degree distance learning at the Spertus Institute of Jewish Studies in Chicago. Perlmutter is on a leave of absence from Yavapai College in Prescott, where she teaches philosophy and religious studies classes.
Perlmutter says that with the explosion of the Internet, distance learning is being recognized as the wave of the future.
"Distance learning is really catching on in some of the more remote areas. I couldn't have had any adult Jewish learning in Prescott without it," she says.
She says distance learning is also catching on in suburban areas, in part because residents often avoid traveling into downtown areas when classes are taught there.
Perlmutter says that online courses are proving especially valuable for Jewish students in the United States who are leaving big-city enclaves such as New York for smaller, often remote towns that offer few Jewish learning opportunities locally.
Anonymity is another driving force behind distance learning's growing popularity, says Rabbi Yaakov Menken, director of Project Genesis (www.torah.org) in Baltimore, which offers a variety of non-credit, online courses on Jewish law, ethics and philosophy, plus classes on each weekly Torah portion.
"Many Jews are embarrassed to display their lack of knowledge," Menken explains. He adds that the Internet allows students to learn without leaving the privacy of their homes.
Online courses also allow students to study at times and in places that accommodate their schedules, Perlmutter and Menken say. Often students don't have to meet at a specific time online, but rather can log on to the Internet when it's convenient to access the course they're taking.
Gigi Brzycki, religious school coordinator at Temple Beth Israel is Scottsdale, says that convenience is what attracted her to Spertus Institute's distance learning program, through which she's working toward a master's degree in Jewish studies. She says she uses videos and online material in the courses she's taking.
She likes "the fact that I could work at my own speed and time."
Some education programs offer online chat rooms in which students and teachers meet for lectures and discussions. Perlmutter envisions a day when students will take Jewish education courses in a virtual classroom where they can see and hear one another, but "not real soon."
Online courses generally are no more expensive, and may be less costly, than classroom instruction, Perlmutter says, for students and institutions alike. Students may not need to own a computer to take a course, since local public libraries increasingly are providing Internet access.
Online courses also mean that the institutions offering them don't have to pay for classrooms or many of the support facilities and services that more traditional methods of learning require.
Spertus (www.spertus.edu), which is fully accredited through the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools, offers online master of science degrees in Jewish studies and Jewish education, a master of science degree in Jewish communal sciences and a doctorate in Jewish studies. Perlmutter is heading up Spertus' efforts to eventually provide non-credit mini-courses within the institute's distance learning program.
Although Project Genesis offers no college credits, all of its courses are free, Menken says.
The program relies on private donations and currently receives little or no support from Jewish foundations or federations, he says. He cites the newness of online education and federations' reluctance to branch out into uncharted endeavors.
"It's a new technology and some of the federations have been slowest to ... take advantage of the Internet," Menken says. "A lot of federations are concentrating on ongoing projects, while it's the ... startups that are reaching the most people."
For example, Menken says, Project Genesis has 30,000 subscribers, up from 20,000 a year ago.
"These are people who have signed up to receive one or more classes in Judaism, Torah reading, ethics and law on a weekly basis," he says. "In terms of reaching maximum audience at minimum cost, we provide the best bang for your buck."
The Jewish Theological Seminary (www.learn.jtsa.edu) in New York has 7,000 subscribers to its free online education site, says Michael Starr, JTS director of distance learning. "It's another way for people who are looking to grow Jewishly," Starr says, "another piece to the puzzle."
Perlmutter says distance learning works best when it includes interpersonal contact, between students and teachers, and among the students themselves. For example, she notes some programs offer online "chat" that allows students to discuss information among themselves and with their teachers. Also, she says, students may travel to the school's campus to take courses in a more traditional setting.
"I have taught myself with programs that are just one-way programs; I think, as an instructor, they're more effective with (online interaction)," Perlmutter says. "With Jewish learning, you need that interpersonal kind of connection."
She adds: "I love traditional teaching and learning. I'm basically a classroom teacher, but I appreciate the new modes available."
Menken agrees that interpersonal contact is important and says he doesn't see distance learning replacing traditional education: "I would hate to eliminate (classroom teaching) because of the need in the Jewish community for personal interaction. ... For those who are able to interact with a teacher, there is so much to be derived from that. Internet classes are a poor man's surrogate."
Neither Perlmutter nor Menken say they expect distance learning to eliminate classroom teaching. "For those who can't get to the classrooms, we're offering a substitute, but certainly not in the vein of competition," Menken says.
The JTS's Starr agrees, saying distance learning is "expanding the options, expanding the opportunities. It's a way to be integrated into a synagogue or organizational program. We don't want to be a competitor. Where it has its greatest impact is when it can be part of a larger program."
Rabbi Mark Bisman of Har Zion Congregation in Phoenix is a discussion leader for a non-credit, online "Introduction to the Talmud" course being taught by Professor Joel Roth of JTS in New York. Among the students taking the course are two members of Bisman's congregation.
Bisman says such programs provide an opportunity for people with common interests to get together in cyberspace, even though they might live hundreds or thousands of miles apart or have working schedules that allow them to meet in person only rarely.
"When you have a narrow constituency to draw from with an even narrower interest, it's harder to gather people together," Bisman says.
Though Bisman has experienced some of the same frustrations many Internet users face - software problems and systems that don't always work right - he comments, "When it works, it's fun!"
The Bureau of Jewish Education in Phoenix currently offers no online education programs and has "no plan to go online at this time," says program director Myra Shindler.
"We do a lot of outreach and adult education programs in different locations across the Valley, but you still need to come to the location," Shindler says.
Students considering distance learning, Perlmutter says, should "check out the sources, the accreditation, and I would encourage people to demand (personal) contact with instructors and, if possible, with your peers."
Perlmutter warns that students have to be cautious when choosing a program of study.
"The Internet gives you access to a lot of (nonsense) and also to some very much improved education programs," she says. "The Internet has hurt and helped learning. People believe everything is on the Internet. But, in terms of getting access to (information), you suddenly have great access to the finest schools, as well as to the flakes. So, you have to be careful about who you're linking up with. You have to do a little more homework about that."
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