GOOD PRACTICE
20-07-2011
20-07-2011

Social responsibility of higher education, Open up knowledge to society, Acces, equity and quality

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Mentoring, higher eduaction, disadvantaged children, scholarship
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PERACH Tutoring and Mentoring Project

Weizmann Institute of Science - Davidson Institute of Science Education
ISRAEL
Europe

Contact Information

Amos Carmeli


  

PERACH (an acronym in Hebrew for "Tutoring Project"), is the national Israeli tutoring and mentoring project, pairs up needy children from underprivileged backgrounds with university students who act as their tutors, giving the child personal attention—often sorely lacking—and serving as a role model. The personal attention that PERACH children receive from their mentors helps them realize their potential and blossom into motivated individuals.

The students receive a scholarship and /or credit points in return for their activity.

Operating with close to 30,000 students as tutors to 60,000 children annually, PERACH is the largest organization of its kind worldwide and a source of inspiration and support for similar projects around the globe.
 
The PERACH project was established in 1974 by a handful of students from the Weizmann Institute of Science who tutored children in need, since then it has expanded enormously both in scale and in the scope of its activities. Today, approximately 15% of all students in Israel’s institutes of higher education and tens of thousands of children in need take part in the project each year. A significant percentage of PERACH's mentors and mentees come from minority groups.

PERACH mentees are children from a disadvantaged socio-economic background, often suffering from educational, emotional and behavioral difficulties (Approximately 20% of PERACH children are new immigrants and 25% come from the Arab sector).

We also provide mentors to children with mental and physical disabilities, children with incarcerated parents, disadvantaged high school students who need help to prepare for their matriculation exams, dyslexic or blind university students and others.
At PERACH, we believe that Personal Development, Social Inclusion and Academic Achievements are all attainable for these children.
  1. To enrich and improve the lives of children from underprivileged backgrounds from all sectors of society through a warm and caring relationship with a personal mentor and to narrow the gaps in Israeli society.
  2. To help university students meet the cost of higher education, by providing partial scholarships and/or academic credits in return for their work with needy children.
  3. To allow university students (the country's future leaders in every field) to experience, first-hand, some of the country's most pressing social problems, thus to enhance their leadership skills and develop values of social responsibility.
  4. To promote tolerance and understanding among different sectors of society, through joint activities.

82% of PERACH’s activities are one to one mentoring. Mentors meet with their mentees for at least two hours, twice a week. Encounters take place at the pupil’s home (to acquaint the mentor with the child's home and family life), at the university campus, at playgrounds, libraries, museums or at PERACH’s enrichment centers (see below). The activity is supervised and monitored by PERACH coordinators but leaves the pair a lot of leeway to decide what to do - prepare homework , play computer games or soccer, go on nature hikes etc.
18% of the students are engaged in group activities on an individual basis, while the others serve as tutors in their field of study, for various programs throughout the country.
The syllabi of these programs are prepared by professionals who provide the tutors with written materials and guidance. These programs are offered in a variety of areas such as Health and Dental Care, Science Education, Nature and Environment, Law and order, Music and many more.
In addition, PERACH operates nine science centers and close to 50 enrichment centers, located mostly on the periphery.

Promoting students’ social involvement. Improving mentees' social skills, sense of friendship and belonging. Increasing the children's perceived general competence, academic achievement and their motivation to learn.

Developing various mentoring interventions for various ages (pre-school, middle school adolescence and student), developmental tasks (e.g. special education), and academic subjects (e.g. language, math, chemistry).
Developing various guiding and enriching tools for mentors and mentees to promote the effectiveness of mentoring.
Developing a professional face to face and virtual guiding system.
Developing an innovative computerized monitoring system.
 


1974 - Present
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