ABSTRACT
Shirazi Jews did not traditionally place a heavy emphasis upon formal education. Vocational skill was usually deemed of greater pragmatic value than esoteric knowledge so that the educational emphasis tended to focus on occupational apprenticeship. Erudite scholarship in religious matters was highly valued, but very few ever attained a high level of scholastic proficiency. In fact, the main goal of traditional education was to prepare males for participation in synagogue ritual and was, at best, only partially successful in attaining this end.
