Israeli Druze Village Excels in Education
Despite the discrimination in budget allocation and educational assistance suffered by the Israeli Arab sector, the Druze town of Beit Jann has achieved record high graduation rates.
Beit Jann is a Druze village in the Upper Galilee with a population of about 11,500. According to a study by Israel’s Central Bureau of Statistics, the village is ranked low in terms of socioeconomics. The data also shows that the average wage of an employee in Beit Jann for 2011 was 4,726 shekels per month ($1,300). For the sake of comparison, the average wage in Israel at the time was almost double that, at 7,522 shekels ($2,000).
But as it turns out, there is one area where Beit Jann can’t be beat. According to data released Sept. 1 by the Ministry of Education, Beit Jann is ranked third in all of Israel for the percentage of students eligible for a matriculation certificate. Over 85% of the village’s students successfully completed their exams and are eligible for graduation. With this, they have surpassed wealthier towns in the center of the country like Herzliya, Raanana and Ramat HaSharon, and left towns like Rehovot, Rishon LeTziyon and Netanya far behind.
