Saturday, July 03, 2010

Academic Bias In Israel - How It Is Done

From an op-ed by Amnon Rubinstein:-

...There are many spheres in society in which the integration of Sephardi Jews is remarkable. In politics, business, the arts, the army - all unparalleled in European societies.

BUT ONLY the blind will fail to notice the unpleasant facts. Thus, in recent research, a social scientist found that of the universities' tenured staff, the share of Sephardi Jews was 8.9 percent and at Tel Aviv University less than 8%. It should be assumed that among full professors, the rate is even lower. Can we explain this scandalously
low figure by objective criteria?

...I do not think this is due to outright discrimination, but rather to the fact that Israeli academics, especially in the politicized social sciences, tend to replicate themselves. Indeed, some university departments look as if the academic staff is made up of academic clones, sharing a similar curriculum vitae and identical political and ideological views. Anyone who is familiar with the groves of academe will immediately identify this mold, which excludes not only non-Ashkenazi candidates but also anyone who does not fit...


- - -

No comments: