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 Since 1999, over 250 Ethiopian students have successfully taken part in the Bet Shemesh Educational and Residential Center's targeted integration program. As is the case with students in general at the Center, the Ethiopian students are given the focus and attention they need to succeed socially and academically in Israel.
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 Each Ethiopian student undergoes educational assessment upon entering the Center's integration program. The assessment is designed to detect both developed and early stages of learning disabilities such as dyslexia, attention deficit disorder, hyperactivity, and gaps in a child's cognitive development.
Typical social impasses concerning the new immigrant students include withdrawing from society, cleavages between the older and younger generations of Ethiopian immigrants as the younger try to "fit in", alcohol and drug abuse from an early age, and dropping out of high school. The Center heads off the previous by not letting the student "slip away". Following educational assessment, all students in the Ethiopian integration program are backed by the Educational Center's critical support services. At the core of the services is the Megasher - a special Ethiopian counselor who bridges the gap of language and cultural issues that arise during the transition. In addition, the counselor facilitates contact and reporting between the student's parents and community social workers as it concerns the children.
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 The Megasher ensures that the parents of the students are very much involved in their child's life and the student sees a model of successful integration in the Megasher. The individualized attention provided by Educational Center staff tackles slipping grades at the root by providing access to tutoring and private sessions with teachers.
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Importantly, the holistic integration program supports the new immigrants as they become familiarized with everything from food choices in Israel and grocery stores to navigating the bus system and changing a light bulb.
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The Center's program of integration contains the following orientation components:
(1) Hebrew Ulpan
(2) Cultural Orientation
(3) School Orientation
(4) Jewish Orientation
(5) Critical Support Services such as
Dental Care
Optometry
Counseling
Therapy
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