Failed French Class Flusters Torah

Some of Maimo’s extracurricular Torah-learning opportunities faced doubtful futures due to complications with the tenth grade French class.
As part of last year’s attempt to make its operating budget more efficient, the school laid off many employees, among them Madame Linda Sapol, the previous French teacher. This year, her task is performed by two teachers. While Madame Terry Anne Bynoe teaches the tenth grade, Mrs. Tobie Geller teaches all the other classes.
Madame Bynoe is currently a student at Brandeis University. The first semester of the year ran in a rather streamlined manner. Three scheduled periods of French a week ensured that the Class of ’12 would have a well-rounded basic instruction of one of the most geographically speaking widely-spoken languages in the world. However, the commencement of the second semester posed problems for the French class. Brandies University rescheduled Madame Bynoe’s classes schedule and programmed her classes in conflicting times with her teaching schedule.
The school was faced with a dilemma: it could scramble to find a new French teacher for the second time in six months. Alternatively, it could bend the student’s schedules backwards to reschedule the French classes. It chose the latter option.
French class for tenth graders now takes place twice a week, on Mondays during lunch and sixth period, and on Wednesdays starting during the normally-scheduled French class and continuing into the first fifteen minutes of lunch. Indeed, the sophomores are actually getting five more minutes of French every week than they used to before the change.
However, the alteration of arrangement posed serious effects; it threatened to shut down the Wednesday lunchtime ChassiduT class.
The class began this year and is taught by Mr. Shmuel Silberman. The main texts of the lessons have included works by various Chassidic masters, including the חובת התלמידים by The Pozezner Rav, מאור עיניים by Rebbe Nachum of Chernobyl, one of the forefathers of the Talner Rebbe; and currently the ליקוטי מוהר"ן, the teachings of Rebbe Nachman of Breslev. Rabbi Silberman has even amalgamated his own research into a class on marriage from the Chassidic perspective. The class originally has a core of three students, all of which are in the tenth grade French class. (A core student is defined as one who has attended the class from its inception.) Their Wednesday lunchtime class was facing obliteration, as it clashed with the rescheduled French class.
Additionally, Monday’s sixth period signifies one thing for many high school boys: the Lomdesher class with Rabbi Aharon Benmergui. Two boys in the tenth grade French class have been attending Rabbi Benmergui’s Shiur since it began last year.
Both classes have adapted to fit the new schedules of the French students. The ChassiduT class has decided simply to begin fifteen minutes into lunch, at the conclusion of the extended French period. Rabbi Benmergui has graciously rearranged his agenda to shift his class to Thursday’s sixth period.
The change in schedule of the French class has brought mixed reactions. One student says “it has no bearing on my schedule—if it doesn’t interfere, I don’t care.” Another is quite upset at the turmoil surrounding their once-peaceful French class. Both students wished to remain anonymous.
French will soon no longer be taught in Maimo; the school is gradually implementing a new Arabic program.
In the meantime, one may look back to the Tannaic period and reflect upon the stories of the greatest teachers of Israel relocating entire institutions to different cities in order to preserve the continuity of the Torah. Teachers of Torah must be willing to adapt to new situations and circumstances; clearly, the מלמדי תורה at Maimo are well aware and have already taken decisive action to maintain the eternity of Torah.