Education key to assimilation, study says

Arab American women see their education as most important in raising their family, not for a career. DP

By Daniel Tedford

dailypilot.com: Far fewer Arab American women, 67.5%, get jobs compared to white women, 82%, according to the 2000 U.S. census.

While some may see this as a troubling trend that points to inequality, some Arab American women would disagree, according to a recent UCI study.

For some Arab American women, getting an education is an asset, not to achieve career goals, but to help raise a family, according to the study published in the April issue of the American Sociological Review.

“Education comes into play because educated women have more skills and resources needed to navigate the American social system,” author of the study and UCI professor Jen’nan Read said. “The fact that female education is highly valued suggests stereotypes are off.”

According to census data, while more white educated women are working, more Arab American women are educated by comparison with 37% of working-age Arab American women having received a bachelor’s degree or higher, while 29% of working-age white women have the same education among their peers.

“[In our culture] woman have often relied on their husbands for money, their home and food,” UCI political science major Zeinab Najaf said. “My mom does not have an education, and the values that she instilled in me were to get an education and do the things she couldn’t do.”
Be sure to read the rest of this story! This is only a small part of it.