Samara ORT Secondary School # 42, "Gesher"
Secondary School # 42 was founded in 1939 and is one of Samara’s oldest educational institutions. It was originally an all-boys school, then became an all-girls school, then held night classes and finally became a general secondary school.
In 1999, classes were introduced for the study of Hebrew and Jewish history, culture and traditions. In the same year, an ORT Technology Center was opened, thanks to cooperation between World ORT and the Samara Region Ministry of Education. Nowadays, ORT Secondary School # 42, "Gesher" is one of the most advanced computerized schools in the region.
| Name of School | ORT Secondary School # 42, "Gesher" |
| Location | Samara\Russia |
| Age range | Elementary, Junior High, High School |
| Students | 706 |
| Teachers | 45 |
Structure and General Education
ORT Secondary School # 42, "Gesher" caters for students from 1st through to 11th grade. It has an official status as a municipal-subsidised educational institution with in-depth study of several subjects. The school has two departments: “General Education” and “General Education with study of the Jewish cycle” (Gesher), attended by 66% and 34% of the student population respectively.
Alongside the general education provided in accordance with the Russian Federation National Curriculum and Regional Curriculum of Samara Region, the school also has two advanced study tracks supported by ORT: Jewish education and technology education.
Jewish Education
Grants & Contributions to the National Education System
In 2007, Samara Secondary School # 42 ORT “Gesher” began its cooperation with Hewlett-Packard in line with the grant framework “Transforming Teaching and Learning through Technology”. The school’s mobile multimedia computer lab was built with this grant funding, in addition to support from ORT.
In 2009, the school won a second grant from Hewlett-Packard in line with the framework “Innovation in Education”. The grant was used to develop the project “Highway to High Tech: School, University, Career”, the aim of which was to teach students about using high-tech technology in their daily lives, to involve the whole school community in activities using high-tech technology, and to promote further education and careers in the high-tech field.
Samara Secondary School # 42 ORT “Gesher” has valuable experience of promoting tolerance and mutual respect in the wider community. Students participate in the city’s multi-ethnic conferences devoted to the issues of tolerance, describing their projects related to the history of Samara. Jewish teaching staff share their experiences with other Jewish organizations of Samara, and actively participate in national and international conferences addressing the challenges of multicultural education.
The school trains computer science and technology teachers across the Samara region on topics such as using technology as a means of building design process thinking under the auspices of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Samara region.
Sunday School
Sunday School has taken place at Secondary School # 42 "Gesher" since 2002. All subjects are taught within an informal educational framework, which includes Jewish holiday celebrations, quests, family clubs, games, conferences, film projections, project presentations and excursions. The Sunday School is an active participant in the Samara International Program, organised by the Centre for Informal Education of the Oktyabrskiy District of Samara.
The following subjects are taught at the Sunday School
