Joseph Reimer

When American Jewish psychologists Bruno Bettelheim and Lawrence Kohlberg introduced in the late 1960s their research on kibbutz child-rearing and education, they presented kibbutz as a radical, secular, collectivist experiment. The term radical experiment was the key to capturing the interest of their social-science-oriented audiences. Yet, as their biographers would later attest, Bettelheim and Kohlberg each found a spiritual meaning to their kibbutz research that they never shared with their readers. Those personal Jewish meanings are the primary focus of this article.

Given the centrality of Shabbat celebration to the weekly cycle of Jewish residential camps, it is surprising how little Shabbat-at-camp has been studied. This participant observational study of three American Jewish residential camps has focused on how Shabbat-at-camp is created and how the ritual celebrations engage the older campers. This study found that when these camps encourage ritual innovation and invite their oldest campers to take leadership in ritual practice, the teens respond with great energy and dedication. Drawing a detailed portrait of these invented rituals, I argue that behind the carnival atmosphere lies a serious invitation to four distinct Jewish learning opportunities and a path to becoming leaders in their camp world.

Missing from the growing literature on Jewish camps is Lukinsky's (1968) pioneering study of the curriculum to teach responsibility that he designed for the 1966 Ramah American Seminar. Reviewing this work I discovered that Lukinsky-under Schwab's (1971) influence-creates a rare balance between his own perspectives as an educational practitioner turned researcher with those of Erik Erikson, the famed developmental psychologist. I suggest that we read his work as an example to all who call upon theories of psychological development on how to use those theories to illuminate our thinking while not allowing them to dominate our educational discourse.

What is the place of teaching about other world religions in a Jewish educational curriculum for adolescents? This article explores a course in world religions that has been taught at the Genesis Program at Brandeis University since 2001. Based on a participant observational study during 2002 and 2012, the author traces how the teachers construct goals and implement plans that include site visits to places of worship of the religions they are studying. The questions raised and the struggles of students to make sense of Judaism in the context of world religions is the backdrop for considering both why and how other Jewish educators might thoughtfully include the study of other religions as part of their Jewish education for adolescents.

How do Jewish residential summer camps provide campers and staff with opportunities to learn and grow as Jews? Sales and Saxe (2004) have viewed this growth through the lens of their socialization theory. This article asks: Can there be more to the camp experience than being socialized into the norms and values of a well-aligned Jewish environment? Based on a case study of the drama program in Camp Ramah in Wisconsin, the author proposes viewing certain camp experiences through the lens of optimal Jewish experiences ( Csikszentmihalyi, 1990 ). These are moments when individuals-often operating in a group context-rise to the challenge of new Jewish learning and succeed to present their accomplishments before appreciative audiences. The conditions that give rise to these optimal Jewish experiences are explored and suggestions are offered for how other camp leaders can create these conditions in their camps.

In his retrospective essay, Seymour Fox (1997 ) identified "vision" as the essential element that shaped the Ramah camp system. I will take a critical look at Fox's main claims: * A particular model of vision was essential to the development of Camp Ramah, and * That model of vision should guide contemporary Jewish educators in creating Jewish educational excellence. I will draw upon historical accounts and theories of organizational leadership and change to question Fox's first claim about the history of Camp Ramah and to offer an alternative model of vision to guide future leaders of Jewish camps.