Q: Name, hometown, university, and current program and city?
Brianna Pecsok, Cincinnati, Ohio, The Ohio State University 2014, Masa Israel Teaching Fellows in Netanya (Israel Outdoors Next)
Q: What has you experience been like so far, any special moments?
So far I’ve had a phenomenal experience. In some ways I feel like I’m back in university because I live so close to friends and we have a great community of fellows here in Netanya. I’m constantly inspired by them! I also have fallen in love with teaching. This is the best kind of teaching – we don’t have to give grades or tests! I am working middle school students and I think I am learning from them more than they are learning from me. Recently I did a lesson on Martin Luther King, Jr, and since middle schoolers are able to grasp more we had some really important discussions about inequality and racism, in America and in Israel. I also really enjoy that Sundays are dedicated to our learning. Exploring Jaffa, visiting Haifa, and visiting settlements in the West Bank were particularly interesting.
Q: Tell us a fun fact about Israelis?
I love acro, and Israelis really LOVE acroyoga. There are so many people here that practice acro that I typically don’t have to explain “what is acro” because they’ve seen it in action at the park, the beach, or even in a flash mob in Habima Square. There are over 9,000 people in the group “נפגשים לעוף – Israel Acro Community” on Facebook, three official jams (acro meetups) a week in Tel Aviv, a vibrant group of talented teachers all over Israel, and a huge Acro Israel convention that happens every year in Mitzpe Ramon that attracts people to Israel from all over the world. Needless to say, I’ve plugged into this community and it’s immensely enhanced my time here in Israel so far. I’m in acro heaven.
Q: Any advice for future MITFers?
Originally I overlooked this program because “I don’t want to be a teacher”. Don’t overlook this program!!!! Schools benefit tremendously from you being there, and it’s a very rewarding experience. So far I feel like I’ve grown a lot and I enjoy the challenge. When you aren’t teaching, you also have so much time to explore Israel (even to travel outside of Israel because it’s for a whole school year). Take advantage of this opportunity because it’s truly an incredible one.
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