Walkomitz, Simḥah Ḥayyim
WALKOMITZ, SIMḤAH ḤAYYIM
WALKOMITZ, SIMḤAH ḤAYYIM (sometimes pronounced Wilkomitz ), (1871–1918), Hebrew teacher and educator. Born in Nesvizh, Belorussia, Walkomitz became interested in the *Haskalah movement and went to Vilna, where he broadened the scope of his studies. He joined the *Benei Moshe Association and in 1896 went to Ereẓ Israel. As a teacher, he helped to lay the foundations of Hebrew education, stressing the labor ideal. He taught in Reḥovot, Metullah, Rosh Pinnah, and Jaffa, devoting his major efforts to the establishment and development of the school at Rosh Pinnah, where, from 1902, he was headmaster for 16 years. The first rural educational institution in Ereẓ Israel, this school served as a model for the entire country. Walkomitz was among the founders of the *Teachers' Association in Ereẓ Israel, delivering a comprehensive lecture at its first meeting in 1903 on the image of the Hebrew rural school. The anthology Ha-Moreh ("The Teacher," 1959), dedicated to his memory, contains appreciations of Walkomitz, as well as his own articles and model lessons, which had previously appeared in various periodicals. His son, ami assaf (1903–1963), a member of the moshav *Bet Yehoshua, was a *Mapai member of Knesset and served as deputy minister of education and culture from 1958 to 1963.
[Gedalyah Elkoshi]