Political tolerance among civic education teachers in Israel

Political tolerance is a core element of democratic culture and a central objective of civic education. This study examines political tolerance among 160 civic education teachers in Israel’s state (secular) and state-religious school systems following the events of October 7, 2023. Five dimensions were analyzed: Jewish-Arab relations, religion and state, classroom discourse, socio-economic issues, and liberal values. The findings revealed significantly higher levels of overall political tolerance among teachers in the state education system, with the largest differences emerging regarding religion and state, liberal values, and Jewish-Arab relations. Religiosity was the strongest negative predictor of political tolerance, whereas higher educational attainment and female gender were associated with modest positive effects. The findings underscore the pivotal role of civic education teachers in mediating democratic values during periods of societal polarization and national crisis and highlight the need for teacher education programs that strengthen democratic resilience, pluralistic dialogue, and tolerance.