Yaron Eliav is a professor of near eastern and Jewish studies at
the University of Michigan. Yaron Eliav was awarded the Transforming
Learning for Third Century Initiative Grant. Through it, he is
partnering with the Kelsey Museum to innovate the way students learn
about the ancient Judaic world though hands-on engagement with artifacts
and other forms of exploration.
As the University of Michigan
prepares to celebrate its 2017 bicentennial, the Third Century
Initiative is intended to create more opportunities for innovative
learning programs. The Initiative is especially focused on global
challenges, and aims to engage with technology to address issues like
mental health or how the judicial system interacts with the public all
over the world.
The Initiative also intends to intensify student
learning, through projects in and out of the classroom including work
in museums, art galleries, libraries, laboratories, and other spaces.
These include projects on 3D printing, arts in public spaces, and the
creation of a campus farm to increase awareness of sustainable food
systems. The University awarded nearly $6.4 million to six faculty
projects in 2015.
Professor Yaron Eliav from the Department of Near Eastern Studies
at the University of Michigan primarily concentrates on Jewish studies,
ancient Judaism, rabbinic literature, and archeology. Professor Yaron
Eliav, who earned his PhD at Hebrew University in Jerusalem, is
currently leading a project that was awarded a Transforming Learning for Third Century (TLTC) grant.
The TLTC initiative funds faculty
projects that demonstrate capacity to transform learning for students.
The project that Professor Eliav heads is titled Changing the Way We
Teach the Ancient World. The project team is made up of faculty and
researchers from three different units of the University of Michigan:
the Department of Near Eastern Studies, the Kelsey Museum of Archeology,
and the Language Resource Center.
Through the integration of a
hands-on-experience at the Kelsey Museum, the project intends to improve
the learning environment of undergraduate students who are studying the
ancient world. Specifically, the project is designed to take students
away from a passive role in learning and engage them in physical
interaction with archeological artifacts. The project will also be
integrate new educational tools with existing, seldom used IT resources
to enable active investigative participation of students.
