ETP tutors attended the Holocaust Memorial Ceremony

 ...at the Alon High School in Ramat Hasharon 

This year on Holocaust memorial day, the ETP (ESRA English Tutors) volunteers at the Alon High School in Ramat Hasharon, where I am a volunteer tutor for the Bagrut English students, were invited to attend the school Holocaust memorial ceremony.

The amazing ETP program is run with the authorization of the Education Ministry which allows volunteers to work in the high schools where they help Bagrut students prepare for the oral English exam that all students must pass. Because of the high number of students in each class, the opportunity for students to talk English in class is very limited, so offering them a one-on-one opportunity to talk with a native English speaker can work wonders for their confidence and ability to speak fluently under pressure.

But this is not only a tutoring experience. Talking to these young adults who are about to finish school is a learning and very enthralling experience for the volunteers who get to know the students and hear about their activities and their ideas. In the Yigal Alon High School I am particularly impressed by the outstanding teacher I work with and by the dedicated coordinator of English studies, Denise Cohen, who never fails to express how much the volunteers are appreciated. Denise has been working with ESRA since 2013. She is a trailblazer for the ETP program and has set the standard for its success. She takes every opportunity to make us feel we are a part of the school and the invitation to attend the Holocaust memorial ceremony was a perfect example of this.

And what an impressive and moving experience the ceremony was. The highly talented and serious young students presented in texts, in song, and in music the stories of the brave women and girls who fought for their freedom during those dark years. The entire school was in attendance, all students dressed in white shirts and all following the ceremony with rapt attention.

It made me proud to belong to such an excellent institution and grateful to ESRA for giving us the opportunity to give as well as to receive so much from this generation of young Israeli students.