Tiferes Yeshiva Adopts Successful ‘Bifnim’ Program

by Malky Weinstock

Inspired by the overwhelming success of Igud Hamelamdim’s Gemara Bifnim program, the Tiferes Bochurim yeshiva of Morristown, NJ, was most recently the newest school to hop on the bandwagon.

The program, which for the last five years is used in over 35 elementary schools across the U.S. and Canada, teaches Gemara students how to read and decipher the Armaic text. Special tests, focused on proper comprehension, guides students how to learn Gemara from the page. Now, for the first time, that popular program is being tested in a yeshiva setting.

Morristown’s Tiferes Bochurim is geared for Baalei Teshuva and other late learners, for whom learning to read Gemara can be especially challenging. Hearing about the successes of the Bifnim program, Morristown’s Rabbi Dovid Faiden (Dick) reached out to Igud Hamelamdim’s director, Rabbi Avrohom Bluming, to see whether older students could join too.

When his students took the test this week, Rabbi Faiden was extremely thankful. 

“The Bifnim program is much more than just a competition for cheder boys,” he shared. “My students gained tremendously from the techniques and are excited to be able to learn Gemara themselves from the text!”

The Gemara Bifnim program, engineered by Igud Hamelamdim, focuses on the detailed breakdown, and composition of the Gemara text, enabling students to master Gemara study. “The program was created to help every student embark on a clear path to becoming an independent learner,” says Rabbi Bluming.

Judging by the program’s expansion to include bochurim at Morristown yeshiva, it seems that its destiny of helping students of all ages is well on its way to coming true.

Read more about the program here: https://www.igudhamelamdim.org/gemarah-bfnim-mivtza-torah