I Have a Surprise for You

I'm Jewish! SURPRISE!

I was working with a student (who is Asian; I won't specify his ethnicity) at the high school today, and I was reading with him about the Israel/Palestine conflict. We got to a part about the day Israel gained independence. I said something about how "we celebrate that day as a holiday" and had to explain that I was Jewish myself. The student's reaction was a lot like the reaction from the other student who found out I was Jewish. He was so amazed. Again, I couldn't really find out why he was so surprised. I'm guessing that he had never met a Jew before. Maybe it was like meeting a celebrity. No, really. Maybe he has only read about Jews is books and seen them on TV. Maybe meeting one was a big deal.

Reflecting on these two Surprise-I'm-a-Jew events, I wonder if I shouldn't be telling students I'm Jewish. It's not like I'm skipping around shouting "Hey, everyone! I'm Jewish!" I mention it when students are learning about Israel or Hebrew or something related to Judaism. That way, I can help their learning experience.

Okay, but religion should stay out of the classroom, right? The way I see it, I don't mention the religious part of Judaism if I can get around it. I'm culturally Jewish rather that religiously (interpret that how you wish), and I believe that students must learn about other cultures. What better to learn about a foreign culture than to meet someone who identifies with that culture? But something tells me that I should keep my mouth shut, because one of these days, it might cause a problem...

--Elie