State-Funded, Quality Education
for Every Child
in Israel
Israel’s education system is struggling to keep up with the challenges of the 21st century and with rapid technological and social change. It has grown cumbersome, centralized and rigid, and the result is widening gaps, harm to all of our children, and the erosion of the standing of teachers.
What's the problem?
Our education system has lost its way: a shortage of teachers, overcrowded classrooms, violence and bullying, growing emotional distress amongst our children, and bureaucracy and centralized management that make it harder for principals and teachers to simply do their jobs.
But the problem isn’t just managerial — this is a system that fails to take responsibility. It leaves ultra-Orthodox children without the basic tools they need to participate fully in society and the economy, neglects early childhood education between birth and age three, allows politicians to change curricula according to their own interests, and continues to prepare our children for yesterday’s world instead of a world of AI, technology, and rapid change.
And the result?
Israel’s education budget has grown by more than 450% since 2000. And yet, when we look at international assessments, not only have results failed to improve or even remain stable — they have actually declined.
The State of Israel cannot afford to let this situation continue.
What's the solution?
We’ll bring the best people into teaching: we’ll raise the bar and pay accordingly — with a starting salary of 12,000 NIS for teachers.
We’ll stand by a simple principle: either 100% of the core curriculum is taught or that school gets 0% public funding — so that every child in Israel gets the tools they need to participate fully in Israeli society.
We’ll take responsibility for our children from day one: we’ll expand the availability of high-quality, subsidized childcare from birth to age three, and give children of families where parents serve priority in both admission and subsidies.
We’ll return power to the people on the ground: principals, teachers, and local authorities. At the same time, we’ll take control of the curriculum out of politicians’ hands and establish a National Council for Education to develop a long-term vision and a common foundation of knowledge, skills, and values for every child in Israel.
We’ll prepare the education system for the AI era and restore Israeli excellence.
We’ll also restore discipline and safety to our classrooms: backing for principals and teachers and a policy of zero tolerance for violence alongside far greater access to emotional support for our kids and enabling early identification of emotional distress.
How we'll know we've succeeded
People will be lining up to be teachers
We’ll raise the bar for entering the teaching profession while making teaching a respected, rewarding, and attractive career. We’ll set a starting salary of NIS 12,000 for teachers and ensure that teachers have real backing from the system.
Steady improvement in Israeli students’ results on international assessments
Closing the gap with the OECD average within five years and continuing to improve thereafter.
Every ultra-Orthodox student will study the core curriculum
Within eight years, all ultra-Orthodox students from first through twelfth grade will study the full core curriculum. We'll also ensure that Mamlachti Haredi educational frameworks are fully available at every stage of education.
Our plan to repair Israel’s education system
01
Bring the Best into Teaching — Raising the Bar and Raising Pay: We’ll raise the bar for entering the teaching profession and improve teacher training while making teaching a respected, rewarding, and attractive career. We’ll set a starting salary of 12,000 NIS for teachers and give educators real backing from the system. Because an excellent education system starts with excellent educators. We need to attract them — and make them want to stay.
02
High-Quality, Subsidized Early Childhood Programs for Children of Those Who Serve: We’ll stop the collapse of the daycare system: we’ll raise childcare workers’ salaries, recruit more staff, and ensure supervision and professional guidance in every childcare setting for kids from birth to age three. Within eight years, we’ll build a high-quality, subsidized public system so that every family that wants can access a good, safe childcare program for their children. From day one, priority for subsidies and admission as well as additional benefits will be given to the families of combat soldiers, reservists, wounded service members, and bereaved families.
03
Stop Getting in the Way of Schools Doing Their Jobs: We’ll move the education system away from a centralized model in which 69% of the decisions affecting our children’s lives are made at the Ministry of Education’s headquarters and move towards a model that gives greater authority to local governments — including the employment of teaching staff — as well as to school principals and educational institutions.
The Ministry of Education will focus on setting policy, goals, and oversight, while local authorities and institutions that prove their abilities will receive greater pedagogical, budgetary, and hiring autonomy. At the same time, struggling local authorities and institutions will receive increased guidance, oversight, and resources to prevent existing gaps from widening.
04
Not State Education? Not on My Dime — Either Teach 100% of the Core Curriculum or get 0% Public Funding: If it’s not state-run – it’s not at taxpayers’ expense: We’ll connect ultra-Orthodox education with the state education system based on a simple principle: public funding will go only to institutions that teach 100% of the core curriculum and give their students the tools they need to participate in higher education, employment, civic life, and service — without compromising their way of life or their faith.
05
From Tribes to One People: We’ll build an education system that brings the different parts of our people together. A National Council for Education will establish a core curriculum comprising 60% of the curriculum for every child in Israel — knowledge, values, civics, and skills for the new world.
Alongside this common foundation, each educational stream will determine 20% of its curriculum, with the remaining 20% determined by the local authority or school, preserving the identity and distinct character of each community. The Council will be professional and independent and will shape education policy for the long term — instead of curricula changing every time a new minister takes office.
06
Today’s Education System Is Preparing Students for Yesterday’s World: Israel must set a clear goal: to lead the world in the responsible, equitable and appropriate integration of artificial intelligence into education while rebuilding Israeli excellence in STEM. To achieve this, we’ll integrate AI tools that enable personalized learning, identify gaps, and provide real-time feedback, while strengthening the teacher’s role as a guide, mentor, and educational and emotional presence. Beginning in first grade, we’ll teach students how to use artificial intelligence thoughtfully and responsibly.
07
Restoring Discipline and Safety to the Classroom: We’ll institute a zero tolerance for violence policy and restore the authority and the institutional backing that principals and educational staff need to set clear boundaries and protect students and teachers. At the same time, we’ll double funding for emotional support, recruit more counselors and psychologists, and identify emotional distress, bullying, and isolation before they escalate into violence or students dropping out. Schools will be places that see every child and respond to their needs — but also safe places that make clear that violence has no place and that crossing boundaries has consequences.
08
A Subsidized Extracurricular Activity for Every Student: We’ll give every child a voucher for extracurricular activities, youth movements, and enrichment programs regardless of their family’s financial circumstances. We’ll connect formal and informal education so that schools can see the full picture and identify emotional distress or changes in behavior early. This will ensure more opportunities for every child — and an education system capable of seeing, identifying, and acting before problems escalate.
09
A Mechina Year for Everyone: We’ll deepen a shared foundation of values by integrating youth movements into schools. We’ll also launch the “Matzpen” (compass) program in twelfth grade, making that year one of values education and preparation for meaningful service and contributing to society.
10
Even During Emergencies — Education First: No more shopping malls and restaurants staying open while schools are closed. In an emergency, we’ll operate according to one principle: education first. The education system will resume operations before leisure and entertainment venues do. We’ll ensure safe, flexible educational continuity, prioritizing in-person learning in small groups, making use of protected spaces, and incorporating high-quality online solutions. At the same time, we’ll mobilize local authorities, public institutions, and communities in a collective effort so that no child is left behind – even in an emergency.
FAQ
Israel’s current education system is an outdated, centralized mechanism set up at the founding of the state, where most day-to-day decisions (70%) are made by officials in Jerusalem. Our plan offers an upgrade: dismantling the cumbersome districts and turning the Ministry of Education into a supervising regulator only, alongside a flexible regional layer whose job is to support local authorities. Most authority, budgetary management, staffing, and schedule-building will be handed over directly to school principals and local governments to enable flexibility, competition, and initiative.
We will enact a National Education Council Law that empowers the Council to shape a long-term strategic vision – a multi-year plan for the education system, much like security planning. This will ensure stability and prevent the system from being thrown into turmoil every time a minister changes, guaranteeing professional continuity and confidence in long-term planning.
A dramatic shift from centralized control in Jerusalem (where 70% of authority sits at the national level today) to a decentralized model where power moves to local authorities and school principals. Principals will get full autonomy in shaping the schedule, choosing the teaching staff, and managing the budget – on the understanding that they are the ones who know the children up close.
We will significantly slash the cumbersome ministry headquarters and districts and turn the ministry into a regulatory body that only sets standards and policy. Shifting resources away from the bureaucracy and straight to schools and students will improve efficiency and the ability to actually carry out reforms.
Today the state allocates budgets by classroom “standard hours” and rigid tables, which stifles initiative and entrenches mediocrity. The reform switches the model to direct per-student funding. Money will follow the personal needs of each child and their institution, and will be allocated differentially: students from the periphery, from a weaker socio-economic background, with special needs, and by further criteria to be set will receive a larger budget. The budget will therefore become a tool that advances real fairness, strengthens those who need it most, and helps close gaps on the ground.
The ultra-Orthodox system will pass into the full control, management, and supervision of state and local authorities. Students in this sector will study a shared foundational curriculum, shaped by the National Education Council (math, English, and digital literacy), that lets them integrate into the workforce and society while preserving the distinct features of their way of life.
The rule is simple: “not state-run – not at taxpayers’ expense.” Our “New Contract” states that funding for unregulated institutions, sectoral schools, and party networks will be phased out. An institution that wants state funding must be state-run, fully-supervised, and teach a core curriculum decided upon by the National Education Council. Schools that choose to remain independent and outside state oversight will be entirely private and will not receive a single shekel from the state budget.
There will be a massive rollout of AI across every layer of the system so each student can learn at their own pace and style. The technology will serve as a support tool for the teacher, who shifts from frontal instructor to coach and mentor, receiving real-time feedback on students’ knowledge gaps.
A five-year plan to lift the teacher’s standing, including the conversion of professionals into teachers, performance-based excellence rewards (KPIs), and higher entry requirements for the profession. The goal is to attract young, outstanding talent and make teaching a prestigious, sought-after profession.
Building a quality, accessible, supervised network of daycare from birth, with a dramatic improvement in employment conditions and caregiver training. The state will set pedagogical standards, incentivize daycare centers to move into supervised tracks, and take responsibility for early childhood as part of a single educational continuum – easing the burden on parents and securing a solid foundation for children.
It means defining 12th grade as a year devoted to forging a shared Israeli identity, preparing for meaningful service, and contributing to the community. This runs alongside integrating informal education and youth movements into the schedule, all to build a backbone of values and promote civic responsibility among all students.
We will establish 15 new STEM centers across the country. We will create a direct link between schools, academia, and industry by expanding the network of advanced science and research centers in the periphery and the center. Students will engage in project-based learning (PBL) and solve real problems in fields such as cyber, robotics, and green energy.
