Israel to Include Majority of Ultra-Orthodox Students in National Standardized Tests Starting Next Year

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Israel will require most ultra-Orthodox students to take national standardized tests starting next year, integrating them into the official education assessment system. This move follows agreements with Haredi education networks and aims to measure student achievement despite ongoing curriculum and teacher challenges.

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Israel will include most ultra-Orthodox students in national Meitzav tests starting next year.
Agreements were reached with Yahadut HaTorah's Independent Education Network to join testing.
About 140,000 Haredi students, 75% of grades 1-8, will be assessed in core subjects.
Testing does not guarantee teaching of core curriculum or availability of qualified teachers.
The move aims to unify education assessment across all sectors in Israel.
Significant gaps and enforcement issues remain in Haredi and general education systems.

The Israeli government informed the Supreme Court that starting next academic year, most ultra-Orthodox (Haredi) students will participate in the national Meitzav standardized tests. This announcement came as part of the state's response to petitions challenging funding for Haredi institutions that do not teach core curriculum subjects. The government revealed that agreements have been reached with the Independent Education Network affiliated with Yahadut HaTorah, which will join the Meitzav testing alongside the Shas-affiliated Bnei Yosef network and girls' seminaries that have already been participating in recent years.

This development marks the first time that the entire education system, including Haredi schools, will be evaluated through uniform national assessments in language, English, science, and mathematics. Approximately 140,000 additional students will be included, representing about 75% of all Haredi students from grades 1 through 8. The state emphasized that while the tests will measure student achievements and allow comparisons between schools, this does not guarantee that core subjects will be taught or that qualified teachers will be available in every school.

The state attorney highlighted ongoing challenges, noting significant gaps in curriculum implementation and enforcement across educational networks. Similar issues exist in the general education system, where teacher shortages and large disparities in learning outcomes have been documented. The government stressed that the Meitzav tests will provide a more unified and transparent evaluation framework for all students, including those in the Haredi sector.

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