Research
Achiya works together with major research centers and Israeli universities to bring a new level of professionalism to Haredi education.
Achiya’s research initiatives are conducted in collaboration with the Henrietta Szold Institute, Israel’s National Institute for Research in the Behavioral Sciences; Bar-Ilan University; the School of Occupational Therapy of Hadassah; the Faculty of Medicine at Hebrew University in Jerusalem; and the JDC Brookdale Institute. The results of the research will enable us to design new, more effective strategies to meet the changing needs of the Haredi population.
Evaluation of the electronic version of Achiya’s Corrective Reading Method
Evaluation of an early intervention program for at-risk preschool boys
Long term efficiacy of an early intervention program among preschool boys
Short-term efficiacy of an early intervention program among preschool girls
Efficiacy of program for advancing language skills amongst preschool children
Evaluation of the three-year pilot Creative Thinking Program to advance creative cognitive skills among preschool children through introducing them to basic scientific concepts
The Creative Thinking program Evaluation 31/10/2015
Dr. Idit Manny Ikan and Roya Efrati of the Henrietta Szold Institute, Israel’s National Institute for Research in the Behavioral Sciences evaluated the program via periodic standardized testing of its impact on the children, teachers and community as well as investigating practical methods of implementing the program in other educational framework.
According to the research evaluation presented to representatives of the Van Leer Foundation in September, 2014, the program succeeded in its goal of exposing children from a weak background who would normally not participate in enrichment activities beyond preschool to new concepts they will need for future academic advancement.
Teachers were unanimously satisfied the program . Among the parameters measured were the level of children’s enjoyment, facilitator’s attidtde, variety of content, guidance provided by facilitator, and the program’s adusttment to religious values and children age levels.
Almost all the parents of children in the program participated in a minimum of two workshops, were highly satisfied with the workshops, and tried out at home the ideas for activities provided by the workshop facilitators. Almost all expressed a desire to participate in future workshops.
Teachers also expressed satisfaction with teacher’s training workshops, saying that it was an experiential experience, that provided them with new knowledge and skills to be able to teach scientific enrichment programs in the classroom.
To read full report of findings
Evaluation of the electronic version of Achiya’s Corrective Reading Method
(Funded by the NII and the Ministry of education)
During the years 2005 to 2008, researchers Dr. Yitzchak Weiss and Dr. Cheftziba of Bar-Ilan University conducted a study evaluating the impact of Achiya’s Corrective Reading software on learning disabled children. The control group of learning disabled children received traditional remedial instruction.
Results: In comparison to children in the control group, the children using the software program showed greater progress in reading punctuated words and unpunctuated words, as well as in general reading comprehension.
Evaluation of an early intervention program for at-risk preschool boys
(Funded by the Bernard van Leer Foundation)
Read research results – Published in the American Journal of Occupational Therapy 2011
During the years 2005 to 2008, researchers from the School of Occupational Therapy at Hadassah and the Faculty of Medicine at Hebrew University evaluated the impact of Achiya’s developmental intervention program in Haredi kindergartens for boys (the Maagan Achiya program) in the city of Elad.
The researchers measured the children’s visual-motor, motor, and cognitive functions, as well as their performance and participation in daily activities. The study measured the impact of the direct intervention in the kindergarten as well as the satisfaction level expressed by the teachers.
The following is the summary of Dr. Michal Weill MD., Pediatrician, and Doctor of Developmental Medicine, who conducted the research in collaboration with Naomi Weintraub, OT., PhD.; Aviva Yochman, OT., PhD.; and Anat Golos, OT., MSc.; School of Occupational Therapy of Hadassah and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel.
“The study results provide the tools needed to build intervention programs, and future training to the educational teams for adapting the educational settings of the preschools and Talmud Torahs to the children’s developmental needs. In addition, the study produced an advanced training program for the educational team in several developmental areas, and emphasized fine and gross motor fields, visual-motor integration, linguistic abilities, and social and emotional abilities for preschoolers.
This study’s results support the finding by other studies, which found that well-designed and well-executed preschool educational programs promote child development. It seems that when the program is extensive and encompasses several areas of intervention, it is more likely to deliver the needed results, more than an intervention program, which focuses solely on one area. An extensive intervention program, such as the program provided by Achiya assisted in meeting the children’s needs in a most comprehensive manner.
The working relationship which was based on trust, allowed for maximum cooperation between the Achiya staff, the educational team and the researchers. We believe that this was a major contributor to the satisfaction of the educational team and parents, and to the improvement of the children’s performance and participation.
Finally, it appears that the Achiya for Preschoolers Intervention Program was successful because it combined structure and content that coincided with the values and needs of the ultra-orthodox population. These created a real and productive partnership, which benefited the team, children and parents. This cooperation is necessary to allow continuation of execution of similar intervention programs in the field of preschool development.”
Long-term efficacy of an early intervention program among preschool boys
(Funded by the Bernard van Leer Foundation)
During the year 2009, a Hebrew University study tracked the long-term effects of the Achiya intervention on the participants’ achievement in school. Research was concluded in June 2010.
The study results demonstrated that compared to a control group, the boys who participated in the intervention program during the years 2005 to 2008 had significantly superior school achievement in the majority of learning areas. These results suggest that the early intervention program for preschool and kindergarten boys from low socio-economic backgrounds attending ultra-orthodox educational institutions was successful both in the short term as well as in the long term, and that the achievements attained in the preschool and kindergarten continued into the school, as seen in the children’s reading and writing performance (according to teachers’ reports).
It appears that a multidisciplinary team, in which the occupational therapists and educational staff work together as a team, make it possible to address the needs of the children and specifically the children at-risk with developmental delays.
Short-term efficacy of an early intervention program among preschool girls
(Funded by the Bernard van Leer Foundation)
During the year 2009, Hadassah Hospital and Hebrew University’s School of Occupational Therapy conducted a study to evaluate the impact of Achiya’s early intervention program among preschool ultra-orthodox girls, specifically the program’s impact on improving performance skills and increasing the students’ participation in the preschool’s daily activities.
The study results demonstrated that the intervention program was effective in improving the girls’ graph motor and non-verbal abilities, and to a lower degree, their motor cognition. The intervention program did not seem to be effective in the area of motor skills. It may be that a one-year intervention program is insufficient to change teachers’ perceptions and practices concerning the importance of incorporating gross-motor activities into the preschool activities, and thus, a second year of intervention may yield better results.
Efficacy of program for advancing language skills amongst preschool children
(funded by JDC)
Researchers from the JDC Brookdale Institute have tracked the influence of the Language Skills Program on the development of language skills amongst 3-6 year old kindergarteners participating in the Program during the years 2010-2014.
As part of a research project, the Meyers-Joint-Brookdale Institute has been evaluating the program since its inception in order to provide data that will be used to help perfect the program’s design and development.
Research includes:
1) Monitoring the program
2) Evaluating the impact of the program on the teachers’ general teaching ability
3) Evaluating the program’s influence on the teachers’ conversations with the children and the teachers’ ability to integrate language enrichment into their classrooms.
To view English executive summary
