College classes taught mostly by liberals, study confirms

The Washington Post ^ | 03-30-2005 | The Washington Post

[Crookie Monster]

College classes taught mostly by liberals, study confirms March 30, 2005 UPDA0330 • Latest: College faculties, long assumed to be a liberal bastion, lean further to the left than even the most conspiratorial conservatives might have imagined, a new study says. • Within those ivy-covered halls: By their own description, 72 percent of those teaching at American universities and colleges are liberal and 15 percent are conservative, says the study being published this week. The imbalance is almost as striking in partisan terms: 50 percent of the faculty members surveyed identified themselves as Democrats and 11 percent as Republicans. The disparity is even more pronounced at the most elite schools, where, according to the study, 87 percent of faculty members are liberal and 13 percent are conservative. • Missing: Conservatives, religion and women: "What's most striking is how few conservatives there are in any field," said Robert Lichter, a professor at George Mason University and a co-author of the study. "There was no field we studied in which there were more conservatives than liberals or more Republicans than Democrats. It's a very homogeneous environment, not just in the places you'd expect to be dominated by liberals." Religious services take a back seat for many faculty members, with 51 percent saying they rarely or never attend church or synagogue and 31 percent calling themselves regular churchgoers. On the gender front, 72 percent of the full-time faculty members are male and 28 percent female. • About the study: The findings are based on a survey of 1,643 full-time faculty members at 183 four-year schools. The researchers used 1999 data from the North American Academic Study Survey, the most recent comprehensive data available. The study was funded by the Randolph Foundation, a right-leaning group.

[twigs]

Read Ron Radosh's biography. He had no problem getting a university teaching job when he was a communist. It was only when he began to think and write more conservatively that he found a problem. No, left thinkers are not more intelligent, whatever you may think.

[KarlInOhio]

I think that was the first time I saw a Zot! in progress. I was trying to figure out what in the world BugSqusher was saying (professors = smart people = liberal). Then I saw he signed up today. I switched to the next page and there was nothing left but the smoldering craters with the signs "Comment #xx Removed by Moderator".

[timtoews5292004]

I teach broadcasting, not english. Thanks for pointing that out, just the same. I hate it when my students spell things incorrectly. I just wish the "post" function of freerepublic came with a spellcheck feature. Another forum I belong to has that. It is a nice addition.

[rattrap]

They had to do a study? Hell, I'da told em that for free.

[azGOPgal]

From my experiences, the professors that you aren't able to figure out what their political leanings are, tend to be either moderate or right leaning. The liberal profs stand at the front of the class spouting out their views and MIGHT add a few facts on the subject they're supposed to be teaching.

[Da Bilge Troll]

Liberal logic is always hilarious - as the DUmmie FUnnies show on a daily basis! teehee!

[VRWCmember]

When you post a comment, look to the left of the "Preview" button and find the button with the word "Spell" on it. It is a spellchecker that will spot unrecognized words and offer a dropdown list of suggestions for the word (which you can also ignore btw).

[timtoews5292004]

In the six months or more I've been on freerepublic, I have never ever EVER noticed that before. Thanks, twice.

[timtoews5292004]

Yep. Thats usually how it works. Liberal professors often shout out their conservative counterparts, so they tend to keep their own views quiet or hard to discover. They tend to just teaching the subject matter, instead of their own viewpoint on the subject matter as well.

[SolidRedState]

Thanks, Mr. Obvious. I never made the connection.

[Constitutionalist Conservative]

From the original WaPo version of the article:

When asked about the findings, Jonathan Knight, director of academic freedom and tenure for the American Association of University Professors, said, "The question is how this translates into what happens within the academic community on such issues as curriculum, admission of students, evaluation of students, evaluation of faculty for salary and promotion." Knight said he isn't aware of "any good evidence" that personal views are having an impact on campus policies.

[LS]

All the more need for this, by a conservative prof:

[NorCoGOP]

File this under:

Well, DUH!

[Dashing Dasher]

You forgot part....

Dinosaurs Extinct!

Bush's fault

Full story at 11...

[festus]

In other news most mothers are women.

[festus]

"Southside_Chicago_Republican" ???

I'm not sure about you. I think you are a mythical creature. First they told me the tooth fairy was real and then republicans on the south side of chicago......

;-) I bet you get some flak for your views eh ?

[rwfromkansas]

hey, private reply based on curiosity...

[Southside_Chicago_Republican]

I'm kind of like the ivory-billed woodpecker -- believed to be extinct, but occasionally there are unconfirmed sightings.

[Paloma_55]

as a teacher at a community college, I take offense to the second comment

As a person who has taught a number of college and professional classes, perhaps I should have put a smiley in for the humor impaired?







uh oh...



Almost did it again!

[Paloma_55]

"PMS Primarily a Women's Issue
Full story at 11..."

Apparently you're not married. :)


PRIMARILY!!!

Let me use it in a sentence..

A comet hitting the earth and resulting in the destruction of the entire world is PRIMARILY a women's issue.

There, is that better!?!?

:)