MDES GU4510

Lots of reading assignments, which will take more or less time depending on your fluency. Some simple "go home and write sentences" homeworks. Essays graded on content and language skill. Very fair final for which almost no studying was necessary.

I learned fluency and speaking skills in Hebrew. I also enjoyed the content of the art and writting s we read.

I know that some people have extraordinarily good experiences with the Hebrew department in MEALAC and others have heinously bad ones. Fortunately, I've been part of the first group. That's not to say that some people have been royally shafted, but I've been lucky, I suppose. Prof. Raphaeli's class is the first I've ever taken where, when we came to winter break, I truly wished I could continue to have her class straight through to spring semester. In class, I find her delightful and helpful, always willing to supply even obvious vocabulary words you may have forgotten (I am notorious for this; in my third year, I am still forgetting "to know" and "large"). She grades fairly, and any problems you have on her quizzes are made obvious, so you can correct them the next time. It's not an easy class, but it's a fair one.

I learned a lot in terms of my Hebrew writing skills. I am now able to review assignments before I turn them in and catch mistakes I never would have thought about prior to this course. My Hebrew writing skills have definitely improved as a result of this class and the way it is taught, especially with the opportunities to correct out submitted assignments.

The workload is definetly not overwhelming. It is not a pure breeze either. If you pace yourself you will enjoy the class the most and get the most out of it. Half an hour everyday is what I suggest, but there will be days where something may take you two hours or a day where you have nothing to worry about. The workload often depends on your previous level of Hebrew. Eitherway, it is not boring and it changes often so you wont get stuck in something you may not particularly like. Prof Raphaeli-Slifkov is patient and always there to help you. It is a great class- a highly reccommend it to everyone. If you have some doubts shake loose of them because you will see that this will soon be your favorite class.

Great class!! 1 Columbia University: Arts & Sciences Fall 2021 Course: MDESGU4510_001_2021_3-3RDYRMODERNHEBREWI : MDESGU4510_001_2021_3 - 3RD YR MODERN HEBREW I Instructor: Naama Harel

Advanced Modern Hebrew was one of the best classes I have ever taken at Barnard and Columbia (or ever)! I have learned more in that class than I ever thought possible. It was entertaining yet challenging, one of Ruth Rapphaeli's greatest talents as a teacher is meeting everyones needs as a student. Even though everyone's experience with Hebrew is different, very soon after the first day of class the class becomes very unified. Even though the individual student makes his or her own individual achievements and accomplishments, challenges are often tackled as a team. The material is stimulating. The prof. always picks different types of stories to read so you can never get bored. She has great taste in the stories she picks. All of them usually have some suspence involved so that you really want to know what happenes at the end. The articles she picks are everyday articles from a newspaper that usually have a lot of the vocabularly that was just discussed. They too are interesting. The absolute best part of the class, though, is the wonderflul teacher. She trully is wonderful both as a teacher and as a person. As the saying goes 'Its the teacher who could make or break the class.' She is the sweetest person you will ever meet, she is sincere and thoughtful. She is extremely fair. She trully wants you to learn while enjoying the class. She wants you to have a good time and to rea…

I learned quite a bit from this course, and have gained a greater understanding and knowledge of Hebrew literature, poetry, cinema, and television. Moreover, I have expanded my vocabulary and strengthened my writing skills.

Many small assignments and quizes, all repetitive and dull. Still, it makes for the easiest A in a four-point class I've ever seen.

What a f***in waste of time this class was. Professor Raphaeli teaches with the exact mannerisms of a kindergarten teacher dealing with retarded gimps. Everything is repeated, over-enunciated, repeated a couple more times, slowly explained, etc. Much time in the class is spent learning grammatical rules that no Israeli would know or care about. Little or no attempt is made at fluency. To her defense, the class was also full of students who acted like kindergarten gimps.