Gender equality? Attitudes towards equal opportunity for women in higher education among Israeli Muslim Males

THE BASIC ASSUMPTION of the paper is that Israel is practically a bi-national State, where the Arab minority constitutes approximately 20% of the population. The Arab minority is now in an interim state – it is passing from a traditional, collective way of life to a modern, individualistic one. Israeli Arabs recognize the fact that education is the key to socio-economic status. Part of the social change is the growing dominance of women in secondary and higher education in the Arab sector.Women now constitute approximately two thirds of Arab students in the Israeli institutions of higher education. The article sets out to explore the impact of education and religiosity of Israeli Muslim males on their attitudes towards women’s right to pursue higher education. The main finding of the research is the wide support for women’s right to higher education. Religiosity and education of the interviewees have been found to impact their attitudes.