Commentary: Inequality and Education in Israel

• In Event: Economic Inequality and Educational Opportunity: International Perspectives on Research and Policy Options

Abstract

Recent research examines the impact of secondary schooling on gaps in education achievement in Israel, in three dimensions: between Hebrew and Arabic speakers, served by separate school systems; between students from different socio-economic backgrounds (ranked by income and parental education); and by gender. Students in Arabic-speaking schools lag behind Hebrew speakers upon entry to secondary school. We ask whether secondary school widens or narrows the gap, using regression analysis to compare twelfth grade matriculation outcomes of students with similar eighth grade standardized test scores, conditioned on gender and socio-economic attributes. We find that for students performing poorly in the eighth grade, improving their relative level of achievement is strongly conditioned on their background: students from high income and high education households have a much better chance of extricating themselves from low achievement. This highlights the importance of targeted instructional and affective programs aimed at compensating for the educational disadvantage of growing up in a low-income household to parents with low levels of education.

Author

• Moshe Justman, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev