Gila Tatar, Principal, KIAH School for the Deaf

This week marked a pedagogical achievement and educational triumph at the Kol Israel Haverim School for the Deaf in Jerusalem. For the first time ever, ten of the school's students, Jews and Arabs alike, all deaf, or hearing-impaired with additional handicaps, took their matriculation examination in pastry confection. All ten succeeded and obtained grades between 80 – 90%. As the examination ended, not a few tears of emotion were shed by teachers and staff members, who all took part in preparing the students for the exam.

During the past five years, the KIAH School for the hearing-impaired has partnered with special education schools in Jerusalem's Kiryat Yovel neighborhood to present their students for matriculation examinations. Our entry into this process generated professional expectations from our pupils and especially from our teachers. This successful achievement is the result of the pupils' abilities and determination in overcoming language and communication obstacles and of their teachers' joint resolve towards professionalization by raising expectations and setting new and loftier objectives for the pupils.