The visit to Hevron yeshiva
The visit to Hevron yeshivaPhoto: Education Minister spokesperson

During the conference of Education Ministers from the OECD countries that is being held in Israel, Education Minister and Jewish Home party leader Naftali Bennett brought the ministers to the haredi Hevron yeshiva in Jerusalem's Givat Mordechai neighborhood, and told them about Talmud study and the method of studying with a "havruta," a study partner.

Bennett and the ministers arrived at the yeshiva at the peak of the morning study session, and the ministers were fascinated by the sight of a thousand or so young men studying Talmud in pairs and singly in the vast study hall.

The "havruta" method is fairly unique to Talmud study, and this is most probably the reason that it piqued the interest of the education professionals. The method of studying in pairs has proven to be optimal, as it encourages discussion and debate while ensuring that the students remain focused, as they wouldn't necessarily do in a group of three or more.

Following the visit, Bennett took to Twitter and wrote: "A riddle: What do you think was the peak of the OECD ministers' visit so far? By what were they most impressed?"

Several minutes later, Bennett tweeted the answer: "The Education Ministers reported that the peak of their visit was seeing 1000 boys studying Talmud with fiery enthusiasm with a 'havruta'."