In the previous series “The foundation’s skills in teaching Torah” I discussed the importance of addressing foundation skills whenever we find students who are having difficulties with their Torah study. I examined some of the underlying causes of students failing to acquire foundation skills. In this article, I will focus on yet another phenomenon in the yeshiva world having a negative effect on learning. I call it “assumption”.

When we look at the popular speakers in the Torah world, we see that many of the more popular and successful ones — the ones bringing thousands of Yidden back to Torah as well as inspiring the frum groups — are themselves ba’alei teshuvah.

Why are they more successful? Do they know more Torah? Can they speak better? I would suggest the answer lies in one word: “assumption”.

Let me explain.

Unfortunately many Roshei Yeshiva today speak “yeshiva English”, which means they speak a dialect comprised of English words intermingled with many Yiddish, Hebrew, and Aramaic words and phrases. When giving a shiur or a lecture, these non-English words remain untranslated. The speaker assumes that the audience is familiar with the terminology. The underlying assumption is “I do not need to translate these obvious words or phrases.”

By contrast, speakers who were not raised with the “yeshivish” dialect tend to address an audience in plain English and when they quote a verse in Hebrew they translate it into English. They do not assume the phrases are understood by everybody.

We might assume that in a yeshiva setting all students are FFB so the translation is not necessary. Unfortunately, this assumption is false and leads to problems as the following stories illustrate.

I was going over the first Mishna in Hamafkid recently with a 12-year-old boy, who had been learning it in class for the past 3 months. I asked him if he could translate the word “hamafkid”. He replied, “no, my rebbe just said the word but he never translated it in class”. How is this boy going to succeed in properly understanding the Mishna if he cannot comprehend the basic terms?

Consider the following exchange with an 8-year-old boy I worked with. He learns in a school that teaches only in English or Lashon Hakodesh. During the remediation, the boy mentioned the word “teitch”.
“Did you hear this word from the rebbe the whole year?” I asked.
“Yes,” he replied.
“Is this word Hebrew, Yiddish or English?”.
“I think it is Hebrew”
“Can you translate it?”
“No”.
This exchange took place in the presence of the boy’s father, who was shocked that the rebbe had used a Yiddish word all year without once explaining its meaning.

Rebbes speak and teach this way because that is how the Torah was taught to them. There is an underlying notion that this is the Mesorah, the way Torah is meant to be given over and taught to the next generation. The problem is that clarity and comprehension are vital to proper learning and we cannot risk sacrificing them and having students feeling lost for the sake of “sounding more yeshivish”.

I would even go so far as to claim it goes against our Mesorah.

A fascinating gemara in Yuma 20b clearly indicates the proper way to address an audience. It describes how the Amora would use a translator to help the people understand his lecture. Rashi writes there something interesting. The Amora spoke in Hebrew softly to the interpreter and the interpreter would speak in the language of the audience.

Why is this story mentioned in the Gemara? To teach us a very important lesson in chinuch. When one gives over Torah to an audience or class the speaker must make sure that the audience he is addressing will have the ability to understand every word he is saying and that he should never lecture on “assumptions“. Moreover, if he does not speak the language of the audience he must always get an interpreter, not just speak and hope for the best.

We should note also that the Gemara here mentions only two languages: that of the speaker and that of the audience, neither the Amora nor the interpreter was speaking an ad hoc mixture of three or more languages. When a speaker switches back and forth between languages, listeners naturally lose focus and the Torah learning loses its appeal. The brain must work extra hard to figure out which language is being used at any one moment and then to translate the terms into the mother tongue. Concentration becomes much more difficult and if the listener cannot comprehend certain key terms at all, then no matter how brilliant the exposition, all understanding of the content is lost.

Rabbi Abenson is the founder and director of ShaarHatalmud, a unique yeshivah-based online program, which incorporates learning all Kodesh subjects, from Kriah all the way up to learning Gemara, Rishonim, and Shulchan Oruch. He also conducts evaluations, remediation, and training, and consults with school principals to improve students’ underdeveloped skills.
Rabbi Dovid Abenson can be contacted at:
Tel. 15147393629
Cell/Whatsapp 15149935300
Email: ravabenson@shaarhatalmud.com

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Shaar Hatalmud programs are geared for…

• Students: girls/boys, teenagers and bochurim who are struggling in their Limudei HaKodesh

• Early beginners through to advanced learners, who have lost their inspiration in Torah learning.

• Gifted bochurim and kollelit who want to expand their skills further in Limud HaTorah.

Shaar Hatalmud programs pinpoint the underlying issues and undeveloped skills that are holding a student back in their Hebrew reading or Torah studies, rectifying them quickly and efficiently with lasting results. All the way up to Gemara, Rishonim and Shulchan Aruch.

TESTIMONIALS

Mr. Schwartz* contacted me regarding his 10-year-old son Yaakov, who was struggling academically and it was now a daily effort to get him to go to school. The Shaar HaTalmud evaluation highlighted Yaakov’s fundamental problems. He was struggling with kriah and reading close up texts. I had recommended that he see a Behavioural Optometrist who specializes in close up vision using natural therapies and exercises before commencing the reading program. Thereafter, Yaakov and I worked together for just a few weeks when his rebbe then called me saying “I have been teaching grade 3 for 20 years and I have never seen such a turnaround so quickly.”

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I would like to share the following email…

Hi, Rabbi Abenson. I hope you had a beautiful and meaningful Pesach. We just want to express our Hakaras Hatov. It was apparent to everyone at the Seder and over Yom Tov how Aaron’s* kriah skills have greatly improved. His kriah was clear, fluid, and he had much more confidence and pride. Thank you for all of your hard work, dedication, and patience! With Much Hakaras Hatov, D and K, New York. Parents of a son, age 13.

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I received this email from Chani’s mother 2 years later after she completed the program…

“ B’’H I wanted to let you know that Chani* is doing great! She’s going into 12th grade and has had an excellent few years in high school so far. She does all her Chumash etc. homework by herself and is known to help others in her class read a new mefaresh sometimes. Thank you for the amazing transformation, we frequently tell others about you ”.

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Dovid,* age 16, was sent by his Menahel to see me. He was having a lot of difficulty in school, and as a last resort the school had him medicated which did not seem to help. After I evaluated him, Dovid showed that he interchanged many letters/vowels and mixed up the pronunciation from Ashkenazi to Sephardi. Consequently, he was using more brain-power to read, which hampered his learning, translation, and Rashi skills.

Another important factor was that Dovid was bilingual in English and French, however, he would lose focus in class from his English rebbe, since some basic English words were unfamiliar to him. We had to go back to the basics, building his foundation skills first, before upgrading him in Gemara skills. The Menahel called a couple of weeks later amazed at the progress Dovid had made in such a short amount of time, more than they had been able to accomplish the whole year.

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My rebbe, HaRav Matisyahu Salomon shlita, Mashgiach of BMG Lakewood New Jersey, asked me to evaluate a bochur. The bochur, Reuven confided, “I had learned all my Bar Mitzvah parsha by heart since I could not read, but because my father was a big Mechanech, I did not want to embarrass him”. I recorded him reading posukim and after 8 sessions of having gone through the reading program, I replayed his first recording back to him and he could not believe the change. Reuven* went on to get married and joined a Kollel.

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For over 20 years, Rabbi Y.A. Oppenheimer shlita, a Maggid Shiur in Gateshead Yeshiva, UK has asked me to work with numerous bochurim who have struggled in Yeshiva. I would like to share with my readers the following cases.

Chaim* was on the brink of leaving Yeshiva life to go out to the work field. Rabbi Oppenheimer suggested that he gives it one more chance and learns the program. After two months, Chaim was so impressed by his improvement that he stayed on in yeshiva. Three years later I received a phone call from his father, “My son just got engaged and it’s all because of you, you gave him the skills for life. He would not have been where he is today without your help”.

Moshe* had been studying in yeshiva for a number of years but was not “getting” gemara. After a few months of learning the program, Moshe was able to go on his own. He asked permission from his Rosh Hayeshiva not to go to shiur winter zman. He got a chavrusa and in 6 months finished the whole Bava Kama with Rashi and Tosafos before any of the 300 bochurim in the yeshiva.

Avrumi, who after acquiring the foundation’s skills in learning, finished Masechta Megillah and made a siyum in Rabbi Oppenheimer shlita’s house on Purim.

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Shmuel A* called me: “I have been an Avreich in Kollel for the past ten years and I am losing the cheishek for learning. Can you help me?” Impressed that he was ready to help himself and seek help, I asked him if he had any problems with kriah which he didn’t, so we started learning the Gemara Upgrade Program. After four sessions, his Gemara skills had dramatically improved. I instructed him to open up any Gemara and follow the steps we had covered in the program. He randomly opened up a daf in Masechta Chullin — which he had never learned before — and understood it immediately with clarity. He was amazed!

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Avrohom* is a 68-year-old man who had studied in the traditional yeshivas in America all his life. In fact he had obtained Smicha, however, he always had difficulties with his Hebrew reading and translation. These difficulties which filtered down to struggling to try to learn Gemara. He told me that he always had to have a rebbe to teach him. As he explained,

“I felt I just had to accept that this was a fact of life and it was Min HaShomayim. The strange thing was that in English reading, I could read up to 200 words per minute! I happened to read in the Mishpacha magazine regarding the unbelievable work where you stated: “upgrade all levels of learners and levels of commitment to Yiddishkeit”. I thought I would try seeing if and how you could help me. I was amazed by the diagnostic results of the evaluation you gave me, and after just a few sessions of the reading program, I was able to read! You made Gemara learning seem so simple and I got very excited about this. I actually went and got trained in the program to be able to help others. I wish I had had this opportunity 60 years ago! Thank you Rabbi Abenson for giving me a new lease on life!”

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An excerpt from an email from a former student, Yitzchok* age 17 at the time, explaining how he felt before and after the course was completed.

Before Meeting

Ideas/ View: I must admit my view on Judaism was a bit pessimistic. I had been exposed to many negative experiences in the Jewish world (students/ teachers/ individual school systems) which only grew with time.

Skill level: Unfortunately, like most schools to which I have attended, I found if you aren’t at the top of the class, then you aren’t worth the time of the teacher. On certain subjects, I am a tad slower at learning (applicable to everyone). For me, this was Judaic Studies, and as the top of the class kept rising, the majority (me included) fell at the wayside.

Experience: Over time I grew resentment towards Judaism and everyone who stood for it. (I had become a self-hating Jew) At a certain point, I had gotten fed up with it all and was throwing in the towel. Goodbye and good riddance.

First Impression

How We Found Him: By some miracle, my father found Rabbi Abenson’s advert in a newspaper and luckily we found Rabbi Abenson when we did because I had just bought a one-way ticket for the “I’m out of here” train on a course for Never Coming Back Station.

Where We Met: My father called Rabbi Abenson and potentially scheduled a meeting. Looking back, you can really see Hashem’s hand. As it turned out, Rabbi Abenson just so happened to be in Lakewood, so with our window of meeting him was short, that Motzei Shabbos we were out the door in no time, leaving to meet him. ”

His Evaluation: A rigmarole of tests later, Rabbi Abenson diagnosed what in fact was holding me back. Firstly, everything that I was able to “read” was memorized. I COULDN’T read. Secondly, I didn’t know half the Hebrew letters and would confuse the others! (I was 17) No one had ever taught me the letters, or at least properly. Lastly, Nikudos were just symbols to me! As Rabbi Abenson put it ” I was basically reading Chinese and no matter how hard I try, it will never make sense!” I did not have the skill set.

My thoughts: When we arrived I really didn’t know what to expect, but I assumed a mental preconception “Oh great another clown who is going to try ruining my life some more”. Being honest, when Rabbi Abenson started testing me, I felt very vulnerable and embarrassed. I had worn my inability to read as a badge of shame on myself for a very long time. I was being tested as an accurate evaluation of how well I could or couldn’t do. The truth is I had been truly inept, to which I had been trying to keep hidden from the world. There isn’t anyone who likes showing their flaws, and prior to meeting Rabbi Abenson I had thought this was a major flaw of mine. It was not until I met Rabbi Abenson who began to instill in me, that this wasn’t a flaw in me, but rather in the education I had been taught. Like that (Snap) we set it up.

Our Experiences:

In The Beginning: One of the biggest things that stood out about Rabbi Abenson was that he made learning a challenge. It became something to look forward to. Another thing, he really cared. He checked in with me to see what was going on in my life even after I completed the program.

Throughout The Year:

As the year went on, I built a friendship with him and I began telling him what my views were, why I had them, and what I was on the brink of doing. We had many talks and he helped me overcome some of the hurdles I was struggling with. Thanks to Rabbi Abenson I never used that one-way ticket.

Building A Future:

Later in the year, I had told Rabbi Abenson that I was never planning to go to a yeshiva in Israel post-high-school. It just so happened I was graduating that year. It took a lot of talks, and a lot of trust in Rabbi Abenson to start contemplating the possibility. Finally one day I said I’ll give it a shot. He said how the things I had been exposed too aren’t what it’s really like. Thanks to Rabbi Abenson I would never have gone to Israel, and it’s thanks to him that I was able to experience a world of difference in positivity and changing my outlook entirely forever.

Post-Rabbi Abenson

The Leap of Faith: And so it happened that the year ended, I had graduated on the honor roll. I had learned to read Hebrew which was something I had never been able to do before. I was energized with the thoughts of the future. I was off to a new chapter in my life, I contemplated, ticket in hand on board an ELAL flight. I thought about what a crazy year it was. In the weeks prior, Rabbi Abenson verified that the yeshiva I would go to would be a good fit for me.

Two years later: It has been an adventure and a half. I had been in Israel for the past two years at yeshiva in Israel , in a post-high school program. It has been incredible and I have finished the whole Sidrei Mishna!!

Thank you Rabbi Abenson

Sincerely,

Y C

*Names have been changed to protect the privacy of individuals