About 1 year ago an exciting new website was launched to help students with their Gemara studies in Yeshiva.
In this short amount of time, Gemaraacademy.com already has close to 300 videos on Gemara Shabbos, Perek Hakoines, and Perek Hamafkid. There has been more than 6,000 plays and 72,000 hits.
There has also been feedback from various Yeshivos. A Menahel of a Mesivta shared in an email that his Bochurim are using the videos for their Chazarah and they love it.
For this upcoming Yeshiva year Gemara Academy will be used in a number of Yeshivos as a curriculum. They are Menachem Mendel Cheder of Seattle, Hillel High in Milwaukee, Hamesivta on Ocean Parkway, The Cheder at the Ohel
Darchai Menachem, A class in the Cheder in Lakewood and a class in the Chabad Cheder of Monsey.
Gemara Academy is designed to be a personal Chavrusa that a student can use to learn at his own pace. The classes can be paused, rewound, or played over again. It can be used to prepare for the next day’s class or for Chazarah of the previous day’s class.
The teacher is Rabbi Chananya Hoffinger who has been teaching at Hamesivta of Ocean Parkway for 7 years and experienced firsthand the difficulties that come up when learning and teaching Gemara.
“One of the most common difficulties is the vast expansiveness of the Gemara that makes it so hard to stay focused and see the structure of the Gemara,” he says. “Another challenge is the feeling of not knowing what approach and method the Gemara will use in the current Sugya.”
To deal with this, Rabbi Hoffinger created a system of teaching using PowerPoint presentations that use flowcharts that show exactly which tools the Gemara uses in each Sugya and the larger map of the Gemara.
Because Gemara is a study of the Mishna it therefore uses the same tools over and over again; since in the process of analyzing a teaching the same tools are always used. As a result after a very short time the student begins to become more familiar with these tools that the Gemara uses as he sees them used over and over again within the visual context of the flowchart.
One of the important goals of Gemara Academy is that the student come to appreciate the text, and not that the text be replaced with a visual based class. As a result each flowchart is exactly parallel and mirrors the Gemara that it’s teaching. In addition each PowerPoint presentation of the Gemara also has the Gemara text with the Tzuras Hadaf so that the student can become familiar and comfortable with the text.
So Gemara Academy seeks to accomplish a number of things:
1) Show the map of the Gemara so that the student can see the bigger picture and not become lost in the details
2) To become familiar with the style and tools that the Gemara uses
3) To see through the flowchart how the ideas in the Gemara are developed
4) To exactly mirror the text so the student comes to appreciate and become comfortable with the text
All of this will help students become more independent in their learning. As they master the style and tools the Gemara uses, they will feel more empowered and able to approach a new piece of Gemara and learn it on their own.
This system of learning and Gemara Academy was presented to over 150 educators at the Torah Umesorah convention, at the Chinuch conference, and by visiting Yeshivos. These educators are from Lubavitch, Litvish, Chassidish, and Modern Orthodox Yeshivos and organizations. The response has been tremendously positive and many more Yeshivos are interested and ready to begin using Gemara Academy once the curriculums that they need are prepared.
VIDEO:
very talented, smart, and out of the box. exploring the different ways on how to approach learning.making the difficult easy. this will be the future of successful learning in yeshivas.
helping others by making it accessible to all. students. businessmen and all who have the passion to grow more.
the first of its talented kind.
i look forward to this idea growing.
Lots of continued nachas – your son has done an amazing job in filling a dire need in our chinuch system.
Hatzlacha raba!
This method and tool can be applied to other subjects as well. I’ve created curriculum and materials on Chumash, Halacha, and Sichos and presented that to many Mechanchim. The response was very positive.
At this time I’m focusing on Gemara. IYH in the future this work will expand to other subjects as well.
For now access to the videos is free. There aren’t any plans right now to change that.
Rabbi Hoffinger, will you be expanding this program to other subjects as well? I’m just imagining my son will get used to the benefit of this with Gemara, and then the next class starts and it’s back to the old way… I think if you’re gonna revolutionize learning in our yeshivas, you gotta do it all the way. At least make it available, and we as parents can communicate to our son’s schools that we want this.
Will the videos stay free of charge, or will you start charging once we get hooked;)?
How long does it take you to prepare a class with the flow charts and pictures and and highlighting and videos? Trying to figure out how you can prepare multiple masechtos at the same time. Are there other people working with you?
Wow! I’m so glad something like this exists, what you have created is amazing. It will open doors for students that never had a chance. Truly inspiring and wonderful that you did this. Kol hakavod 🙂
the world needs more people like you!
Keep up the great work!
It looks really good, I wish there were tools like when I was a kid. Remembering the flow is a core difficulty of keeping track of long sugyos and visualization can be a big help. I’m sure if the technology existing in earlier times, such visuals would have been produced generations ago. The rambam made drawings, and so did Rashi (כזה), so this is a time honored tradition!
As a Mechanech I know firsthand how many students struggle with Gemarrah and get turned off. Your work is absolutely incredible! Much Hatzlacha in your holy work. You cant even imagine how much this can accomplish!
Amazing to see your success, Keep us posted on the future of Lubavitch Chinuch!
Yay! About time we have a Lubab putting out awesome work on Gemarah! Keep it up Rabbi Hoffinger.
FINALLY! So excited that this is happening, has been long overdue! Please help support this work.
The goal is that by next year Gemara Academy will have curriculums and videos on 8-10 different Gemaras that are learned in Yeshivos. Like הכונס, המפקיד, השואל, השוכר, מכות וכו Right now the new classes are only on Gemara and they include many visuals and animations. With time it will hopefully expand to include Rashi and Tosfos as well. There will be 2 versions 1) For younger students on small pieces, with the focus on it being clear and showing the students how every Gemara uses the same tools. It will include the visuals and animations. 2) For older students… Read more »
I am truly impressed by my dear brother’s videos. I have watched some of his videos and have learned from them.
I recommend this program for any school that would like to enhance their gemara lessons.
I have used rabbi hoffinger flow chart in my class room and can attest to how helpful the boys find them to be. For some boys it can help them understand a gemara they would otherwise have given up on, and for other boys it adds a great degree of clarity. I am hoping reb chananya will soon have the entire first Perek of bava Kama available for my class. This program is a real help! May you have much hatzlocha on your avodas hakodesh
I am a teacher and have experienced both sides of the debate. there are those that insist that we must stick to the traditional way of teaching. the reality is that many bachurim graduate our Mesivta lacking skills in Gemara, both in their (in)ability to mnaster the text, or their (in) ability to follow the flow of logic the reality is that many bachurim arrive in Zal, lacking basic Gemara skills – they are un-able to read the text, and unable to follow the flow if logic. we have dedicated teachers who have been in the field and are rising… Read more »
Chananya, keep this up!! This is amazing amazing work.
Hatzlacha Rabba!
This program we have begun using this year has transformed our Gemarah curriculum, allowing students who have never enjoyed any succes or enjoyment have been able to make tremendous strides!
Tamu Ureu ki tov Hashem!
Beautifully done! Very clear and easy to follow. Keep up the great work.
With Gemara Academy our class is unrecognizable from last year. B”H I’ve never seen the kids so focused during a lesson, asking amazing questions and being able to find all of it in the text. All of the resources he provided for my class are amazing and the parents are also on board because they see how professional the whole program is. Thank you Rabbi Hoffinger, may you go MeiChayil el chayil!
I’m very impressed with the program. Keep upt the good work and Hatzlacha Rabbah!
Rabbi Hoffinger I am impressed you are still going and growing. I was curious to see if you would actually follow through and deliver on your promise of being a dependable tool for bochurim, or if you would wind down after the initial burst of innovative excitement. I have to say I’m impressed with your determination and perseverance.
Rabbi Hoffingers ability to simplify that which was originally intended to be straightforward in the first place is enlightening. The Rebbe constantly insisted that the Torah is direct and spent hours on Rashi showing us how logical Rashis approach to Torah really is. Somehow the myth that Gemarah is out to have a “Chaap” still persists. This is illogical and counter intuitive. Gemarah was used to define halacha at the time. For Gemarah to be anything but straight -forward, would defy logic. Rabbi Hoffinger brilliantly shows were this misconception takes root and dispels it through his straight-forward and organized approach… Read more »
I’m ‘Chananya’s’ father.
‘The Rebbe, MH”M, and ‘The Freidiker Rebbe’s great efforts in sustaining this community played a vital part in this! This is why I came to Crown Heights in 1977, and where I met ‘Chananya’s’ mother.
I’m ‘Chananya’s’ father…and, well, IM DUMBFOUNDED! I cannot believe this is happening! TOTALLY THRILLED! Lightening! Where I received the ‘schus’ for something like this is beyond my ken. I’m going out to purchase a ‘Pinching Machine’ to make me certain that ‘I’m not dreaming!’ ‘Chananya’…’Kol HaKovod!’ Whoopee!
Wow, you saw a problem and did something amazing to help fix it! I wish you much luck and hope everyone can see the genius behind the whole thing 🙂
Your hard work, dedication, commitment and perseverance paid off.
There are 2 parts to the program
1) Online videos – for free
2) Class curriculum – at a cost
IYH a new and state of the art website will be up and running in the near future.
Great innovation! Can we get Oholei Torah and Lubavitcher Yeshiva to use it too? Is this free to individuals or is there a sign up fee?
Like the Kahn academy, I think this is the solution to high tuition costs and lack of proper educational methods in yeshivas. Not that it would replace actual teachers but it would create the ability to have 1) structured curriculum and also 2) teacher aided self study.
Thank you to Rabbi Hoffinger for bringing his understanding of different learning styles to the learning of Gemara. Can this also be used for home/online schooling?
Great Job Much Hatzlacha
This program is really impressive. The schools needed this for years.
Great job Chananya!
yasher koach Rabbi Hoffinger , we started using your program and were amazed to see the increase of focus in f the talmidim
Wow! cant believe that he already is working with so many schools! This program was just unveiled 6 months ago
This means this is an amazing product and the man behind it, Rabbi Hoffinger, is as well!
Much hatzlacha!
We are using Rabbi Hoffingers program in the Cheder at the Ohel and the talmidim and teachers love it. Keep up the good work!
Pinchas Margolis
Much Hatzlacha Rabbi Hoffinger
This is awesome how it kicked off! Thank you Rabbi Hoffinger for having a vision to create a curriculum that will be used finally by Yeshivos, making it possible for our children to be empowered to open a gemarah and just learn!