Episode 5: Spotlight on Daf Yomi

Learning About Learning: Conversations with Scholars of Jewish Education

Rabbi Professor Jane Kanarek (Hebrew College), Rabbi Avi Killip (Hadar), Professor Barry Wimpfheimer (Northwestern), Sara Wolkenfeld (Sefaria), moderated by Professor Jon Levisohn (Brandeis University).

For decades following its invention in 1923, Daf Yomi was practiced by experienced, mostly haredi Talmud scholars, and criticized by many as well. Over time, the practice grew in popularity in that community. But in the 21st century, the practice has expanded dramatically, both in terms of the background of the participants and in terms of the very concept of what it means to “do the daf.”
In this session, four highly experienced educators help us think about what Daf Yomi means, now, as a Jewish cultural or spiritual practice. What does it mean as a unifying practice (everyone who participates is "on the daf") that actually comprises many distinct and diverse practices? What does Daf Yomi represent, as a mode of engagement with the Jewish tradition that is both continuous and discontinuous with traditional modes of study? How does it bring people together in shared purpose? How does it meet individual needs or advance individual goals?
Originally recorded: 2/1/22

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Learning About Learning is a production of the Jack, Joseph, and Morton Mandel Center for Studies in Jewish Education at Brandeis University, and is engineered and edited by Nathan J. Vaughan of NJV Media LLC.