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Education by Riddle
By asking questions you can learn almost
everything (Socrates)

• By
• Dan Giora Chamizer

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Outline

• Introduction
• About us
• Education by Riddle
• The concept how it was developed, how it works
• Advantages, Limitations
• Case study - The Ethiopian Project
• Other projects
• Facts and numbers

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Introduction

• Education by Riddle - a unique educational
  method that involves common-sense riddles and
  questions, in various fields of interests, which
  creates rational challenges for the students
  towards the ultimate goal

EDUCATION
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About us

• Dan Chamizer - Founder
• Israels most famous riddler
• Described by many as modern Renaissance man
• Created riddles for newspapers, TV stations,
  radio shows
• Has orchestrated national hunts for treasures
  worth millions of dollars for companies such as
  Microsoft, Intel and Israels largest banks.

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About us

• Giora Chamizer - Founder CEO
• Responsible for the creation of prize contests,
  games and riddles for Israeli TV and the
  countrys leading daily newspaper.
• Creator of sheshtus, Israels longest-running
  TV game show - entering its 8th season
• In charged of localization projects adapting for
  shows such as lets make a deal, family feud

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About us - Statistics

• It took 3 months for the Chamizer riddle to raise
  the ratings of a daily radio show from 1 to 11,
  making it the most-listened-to show in Israel for
  the next seven years.
• 250,000 people visited the Negev region of Israel
  for Chamizers Negev Treasure hunt.
• 59 of the Yedioths daily newspaper (Israels
  largest) have said they try to solve Chamizers
  daily riddle (Israeli Advertising Union, 1997)
• 91 of Israelis claim to have heard of Chamizers
  riddle (Israeli Advertising Union, 1997).
• 17,000 school classes in Israel have participated
  in Chamizers unique Education by riddle system
  in the past 4 years.
• 237 Chamizer projects have been purchased and
  sponsored by private commercial companies since
  1980.
• 65 of Israels new-media and online companies
  have used Chamizers formats.

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Education by Riddle

• By asking questions you can learn almost
  everything (Socrates)

• Asking questions is the corner stone in every
  educational
• process.
• Asking question involves not only the absorbing
  mind of the
• students but also the processing mind -
  directing the student to
• process information in order to come with the
  right solution.

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Education by Riddle How it was developed
Lack of educational methods that leads toself
education, knowledge hunt, curiosity, and
interests
Based on the riddle questioning idea to create
an educational platform that suits any type of
material and goals
Based on the success of Treasure hunt, daily
riddle and other mind challenging games
The idea to develop an educational tool/platform
based on the contest-reward concept that have
been tried successfully in past projects.
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Education by Riddle - The Concepts

• Motivate students in a stimulating,
  entertaining and competitive methods, in various
  fields of interests, towards the ultimate goal

EDUCATION
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Education by Riddle - how it works
Students entering the site on a weekly basis to
receive a mission

• Updated weekly
• Directing the students
• using set of riddles
• to solve

Content Editor and creator
Interactive Content Center
Students work on their mission in order to come
with the right solution
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Education by Riddle - how it works

• Students compete against each other, but also
  against other classes.
• At the end of each project, the best classes win
  huge prizes.
• Each student joins the group effort in order to
  help his or her class the team win.
• The teacher functions in the program not like an
  omniscient central figure but more like a tutor,
  whose job is to help the class organize itself
  without intervening in the actual learning
  process.

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Education by Riddle Advantages

• To students
• Operating students imagination resources
  throughout the all educational process.
• Creating happening around the educational
  process.
• Creating interest and curiosity in the studied
  material.
• Generates the ability to work either in groups of
  individually.
• Using interactive resources in order to
  accomplish the various missions.
• Research-study.
• Based on interior motivation derived from the
  pleasure and/or from competitive motives.
• Developing creation, original and associative
  thinking - positive influence on remembering the
  materials.
• Learning a specific material on all its aspects.
• Encouraging the desire for achievement .

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Education by Riddle Advantages

• To schools and teachers
• Each program is tailor-made to promote one main
  subject or cause encouraging kids to read,
  commemorating a historical event, supporting
  minorities within societies, and so on.
• Enables teachers to simultaneously cover various
  areas of interest.
• Developing non-frontal teaching methods an
  experience for the teacher.
• Using alternative valuation tools .
• Encourage the development of teaching programs
  based on the riddle concept.

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Education by Riddle Limitations

• New educational method has its limitations
• Could threaten teachers authority.
• No Clear and finite methods of evaluation
  teachers evaluate on alternative ways of
  evaluation.
• When riddles are too difficult, could lead to the
  development of antagonism towards the method.
• After using this entertaining method of
  education, conventional methods could be
  perceived as pale and boring.

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Education by RiddleThe Ethiopian Project

• Goal
• To promote acceptance among their classmates of
  young Ethiopian Jews, who have come to Israel
  during the past decade.
• sponsored by the Joint Foundation

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Education by RiddleThe Ethiopian Project

• The project involved 400 mixed classes
  countrywide.
• The classes competed for cash prizes, an
  appearance in a popular TV show, and an official
  invitation from the Israeli president in
  Jerusalem.

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Education by RiddleThe Ethiopian Project

• Each class received a poster to hang in the
  classroom on the poster were 10 empty boxes.
• Each box represented a task that the class,
  working together, would attempt to fill.
• All tasks revolved around the Ethiopian heritage
  its customs, folklore, history, and language.

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Education by RiddleThe Ethiopian Project

• The tasks were assigned once per week on a
  central website dedicated for the project.
• Some tasks involved riddles the kids had to
  solve, while other exercises were creative in
  nature coming up with logos, songs, and stories.
  
• Through working together on the tasks,
  non-Ethiopian kids were exposed to what Ethiopian
  kids tend to hide their amazing heritage. Since
  all competed for the same prize as one team,
  getting to know the minority became a necessity.
• The website provided clues and helpful
  suggestions. Participants could contact each
  other through the website, and classes could
  share information, ask for tips, and even chat
  with other students.

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Education by RiddleThe Ethiopian Project

• Each class dedicated one hour a week during
  school hours for the projects.
• The kids eventually documented their projects on
  the poster.
• After 10 weeks, all 400 classes submitted their
  posters to a committee of judges.
• The committee selected the best posters and
  announced the winners on the website.
• The total budget of this project was 100,000.

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Education by Riddle - Other projects
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Education by Riddle - facts and numbers

• Half of the students ages 12-18 have participated
  in Education by Riddle projects
• Academic courses are given to teachers in order
  for them to use the method
• The Israeli Ministry of Education officially
  approved the system, and academic institutions
  such as the Ben Gurion University and Gordon
  Education Academy have given their blessing as
  well.
• Thousands of students have taken their final
  history exams using Chamizers system. Instead of
  memorizing facts from books and being tested,
  they received a set of riddles to solve.
• Foundations like CRB (Charles B. Bfronfman) and
  the Joint Foundation, and companies such as
  Microsoft and Intel have sponsored the projects,
  fully believing in their contribution to
  community education.

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Education by Riddle

• Thank you