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A group of well respected rabbonim will address the Flatbush community this Sunday, December 10th, discussing techniques for getting through to teens in today’s turbulent and challenge-laden world.
The evening will be hosted by Yeshiva Ateres Shmuel of Waterbury whose track record with teenage bochurim speaks for itself, taking in students at all levels and infusing each one with self confidence and a love of yiddishkeit.
“The Ponovzher Rav once said that a yasom is someone who has no parents and an orphaned nation is one who has no children,” said Rabbi Moshe Tuvia Lieff, Morah D’asra of Agudath Israel Bais Binyomin, who will be speaking at the event. “Our biggest challenge and privilege is to be michanech our children with the geshmak of yiddishkeit, a mahalach that Mesivta Ateres Shmuel warmly embodies and embraces.”
Rabbi Lieff is just one of the featured speakers at the symposium, which is open to both men and women, and will be held at 8:30 PM at the Agudah of Avenue L. Other well known figures who will be offering their insights on chinuch for teens are Rabbi Aharon Kaufman, Rosh HaYeshiva, Yeshiva Ateres Shmuel, Rabbi Elya Brudny, Rosh Yeshiva at the Mirrer Yeshiva and Rabbi Daniel Kalish, Menahel of Mesivta Ateres Shmuel.
Among the topics to be addressed is understanding the difference between educating younger and older children.
“With younger children everything is about rules and regulation and it has to be that way,” explained Rabbi Kaufman. “That approach works well because in elementary school, children are very accepting and they have fewer outside influences. But as they get older, children want to become more independent so at that stage, the key is understanding that chinuch becomes relationship based and not rule based.”
Now located in Durham, Connecticut on a new campus that encompasses more than 55 acres, the Waterbury yeshiva’s mesivta program attracted numerous esteemed guests over the past year including Rav Yaakov Hillel, Rav Reuven Feinstein, Rav Binyomin Eisenberger, Rabbi Chaim Dovid Zwiebel and Rabbi Zvi Bloom.
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One Response
Rabbi Kaufman is one of the chinuch thinkers of today’s generation, and he is deserving of extreme kavod and recognition for this. Our generation is thirsting for leaders who make chinuch about the progress and growth of the talmid, not the reputation of the yeshiva or its hanhala.
Having said that, I must respectfully disagree with the message as contained in this article (perhaps his intent was a bit different and more similar to my complaint).
Rules do not serve the benefit of the talmid. They make the lives of the mechanchim easier. And that is even true for younger ages. I am not advocating doing away with rules. It would be impossible to exist in chaos. I am busy looking to find rules that help the talmid. One can impose needed rules for decorum of the class, etc., but until these are brought to the talmidim as something they want to follow, they are counterproductive. Yeshiva cannot be a boot camp. It needs to be a place where the talmidim want to go, want to be, and enjoy being there and progressing in their growth as tinokos shel bais rabon. Otherwise, we create a classroom of talmidim who are only motivated to protect themselves from negative consequences which would follow violation of the rules. We are commanded to not be עבדים המשמשים את הרב על מנת לקבל פרס. Every animal seeks to avoid noxious situations. To adhere to Torah and Mitzvos to avoid pain, even Gehinnom is a low madreigoh. If we build that in their most formative years, we are doing a disservice to the talmid.
Someone told me recently of a bombshell observation. We are told that Beis Shamai was victorious in a machlokes with Beis Hillel after 2 1/2 years, and the psak din was נוח לו לאדם שלא נברא משנברא. Why? The Gemora explains that there are 365 מצות לא תעשה and only 248 מצות עשה. This means that a person is closer to violating a לאו than fulfilling an עשה. We need to place this rule on the classroom. If we have a room full of don’ts, and nowhere near enough positives, we create a compliant talmid who avoids pain. But the building of a foundation to love Torah cannot find its place there.
Yes, there is a place for rules. But even the young, who tend to be more compliant need the inspiration to grow into true אהבת התורה and אהבת השם. Not talking in class is not the answer.