This course has valuable information, but it is ultimately political. The professors don't even disclose that there are two opposing historical schools: "New Historians," whom Palestinians reference; and traditional historians, favored by most Israelis. Which version is followed here? The answer is a mix, without identification. This is not the same as "balance," which would entail each side laying out its key points and evidence. As others note, there is zero reading material. One wonders if this is because to choose a historian is to choose sides--that is how divisive this topic is. The discussion forums are also poorly monitored, unlike other Coursera courses; which does not advance understanding.

"A little knowledge is a dangerous thing" unfortunately applies to this condensed intro course. And contrary to expectations for an offering from Tel Aviv U., most Israelis would likely be offended by some of its assertions/omissions. For example, Israelis recall that Palestinian founding father Haj Amin al-Husseini was a Nazi agitator in Europe and bequeathed an anti-Jewish ideology (Netanyahu even made a speech about this in 2015 that was covered internationally). Yet in this course, you will be told simply that al-Husseini was a "man of religion."

The lecturers didn't stand in a neutral space, regarding the Zionist presence in palestine. Israel's presence today in the Middle East is part of the process of European colonization, This is the truth that this course didn't say.

I have learnt a lot how modern present day state of Israel came into being dating back from the first foundations laid out by Theodore Herzl who had this vision of creating a Jewish state through the his establishment of the Zionism movement which paved a way for the Jewish community scattered all over the world who faced social problems and fragmentation to migrate back to Israel because of Antisemitism and to the creation of the treaties such as the Balfour declaration and the role played by Baron Edmund De Rothschild who was a Jewish philanthropist who helped the ideas of Zionism and i have gained insight and an overview of the Jewish and the History of Modern Israel.

Learned an amazing amount about Israel. The interviews complimented the lectures very nicely and provided an even greater narrative/

Firstly i think for a coursera course it is not Long enough at all. There are not enough assignments which motivate studying and fixing the newly learned things in the memory. There are neither required nor recommended readings at all. For me reading is a very good Addition to the Videos so that you can slowly think about the thoughts and arguments. Especially in a topic which is undoubtly very controversal in public as in academia like especially the history of Israel and Palestine from the 30s onwards it is important to give different narratives of history to the students. There are no narratives critical to british colonialism at all mentioned, instead of the White paper of 1939. After all the course represents a very one sided an biased narrative which is presented to a global audience of students. Even if a certain narrative is preferred by the teaching scholars, which is completely acceptable and natural, not just in the field of history, it nevertheless is important to cover different narratives fairly and as neutral as possible, which does not happen in this course. When mentioned other narratives are quickly downplayed or denied, and repeatedly dichotomies like the "inferior" arabs, the "ferocity" of the arab oposition and so on are mentioned or cited without beeing problematized at all. Nevertheless the Course was a reminder of many Things I learned before, and brings up some interesting historic connections and key points.

In the end it is a good course. The videos might seem short, but are filled with tons of information. It has guest professors who were very interesting, and I hope they could have give their perspective on the subjects as well.

There is no reading material, which is kinda sad. And it's naturally a little partial in favor to jews, but that's only natural. Prof. Susser, though, seems a lot more objective.

I thank very much the professors for this course.

Really enjoyed the information and perspective from the course. The only issue is that everything is from the Israeli point of view - the course would benefit from some discussion/inclusion from other perspectives. Still, it gave me a good background on the issues, and I would take more classes from the same institution.

This is a very good course, very informative and the Professors are very good lecturers. Only one thing that could be better and that is to have the course material on pdf so one would be able to read as well. I went in November for the first time to Israel and fell in love with the country and enormous history it has to offer. So I decided to deepen my knowledge and find an online history course which was The History of Modern Israel.

An excellent course. I enjoyed a lot and learnt a lot. The lectures were very clear and super interesting. Professor Eyal Naveh is amazing and professor Asher Susser too. I missed a bit of more different interviews, but overall the course is excellent. I wish everybody would take this course for having a more clear picture of what happens in Israel today. 10/10. Thanks a lot.

Although this course serves as a broad overview, the average student will come away with more knowledge than they had going in. Professors and guests were all knowledgeable and easy to understand.

The only exception: two videos are spoken in Hebrew and a bit distracting ... even with subtitles on. What worked for me was muting the sound, and simply reading the text.

Fantastic course that gives a quick, yet thorough survey of Modern Israeli history. The primary professor may be one of my favorite professors I've ever heard in my life. His passion when talking about the Holocaust is especially evident. I would recommend this course to any history "buff" or lay person looking to increase their knowledge about modern Israeli

I have always wanted to know the true story of the Israeli people, I never wanted to listen to what television or some newspapers tell about this people and today I am satisfied with what I learned through this course I agree that all peoples must have their own land despite the fact that we are in fact all brothers and sisters in the background.

The course is very interesting! I would recommend it to anyone interested in the subject.

However, the English subtitles are far from perfect! Quite often, they interfere with the understanding because they substitute the words of the lecturer for other words, sometimes quite ridiculous! The English subtitles definitely need to be proofread!

I am proud of learning a course about the History of the modern state of Israel beginning from Zionism Ideology till the state of Israel was born.

This is the History of the Jewish people and the fulfillment of the Biblical Prophecy for the Jews to inherit the Promised Land which foretold by the prophets before 2000 years ago.

Excellent course. I learned a lot about the formation of the State of Israel.

The course is very well assembled and addresses issues in an academic way without preconceived concepts. It is an essential course to better understand what Zionism was, its origins and especially the creation of the Yishuv and the State of Israel.

I am 83 years old. Much of this I remember. I did poorly on the test because It is hard for me to take clear notes quickly. {medical condition}. However, as coming from a Jewish background I found the class very interesting. Israel will survive no matter how horrible the situation in the Middle East exists!

Joyce Spier

I have been interested in the history of Israel. This course gives a good summary of history of modern Israel. I learned that modern Israel really had to go through a lot of conflicts and struggles. I liked the videos but it was faster to read the transcripts. So if you want to save time, read the transcripts.

El conocimiento impartido es interesante porque muestra más allá de la información básica con que normalmente se refieren al proceso de formación de nación de Israel, ayudando a formar unas bases más solidas sobre este tema que sirvan para entender la realidad del Israel actual.

This course is a importante complement to a lot of books, and bring us a great Vision about such relevant details that are dificult to find, percept or even understand without a teacher.

Thank you for all !!!

טוב מאוד אם אפשר לי לילמוד איתכם

בארצ בעתיד קרוב

שלום

Very interesting to know about Israel modern history (majority on XX Century)

If you like this course I also recommend: The Emergence of the Modern Middle East

Also in two parts, but it's about the other Middle East places (not just Israel / Palestine)

Thank you.

Very topical and extremely interesting. The professors were great. This course should be experienced by any American that wishes to be informed about the creation of the State of Israel. Nicely done. Thank you, Coursera, and thank you, Tel Aviv University.

Esse curso é uma ferramenta excelente para compreender os conflitos históricos , políticos , religiosos e ideológicos que estão envolto a nação de Israel e a Palestina. Parabéns a Universidade de Tel Aviv e aos seus professores pelo trabalho desenvolvido.

Very enlightening. I took this mainly to supplement my history A-level, but also to feel more confident in debates about the topic of being pro-israel or anti-israel. I now understand that the argument has far more layers than meets the eye.

O curso foi ótimo, o único problema, no meu ponto de vista, foi o de da ''Semana 2'' até a ''Semana 3'' do curso terem apenas uma avaliação, ao invés de dividir em duas para que não houvesse o acúmulo de conteúdo, dificultando um pouco.

Very good class about the history of a complex situation in Palestine.

Teachers are clear, they don't take any side and we learn a lot.

It's important to have a good point of view of one of the oldest and complex conflict of modern times.