Newsletter No. 70

CUHK Newsletter No. 70 19th May 1995 3 Sexism o n Campus How Real Is the Issue? Fou r academics, tw omal e and two female , respon d t oou reques t total k about t he i r observation s on sexua l bia s and discriminatio n a tCUHK . This is a forum for the free expression of opinions on specific topics — topics proposed by the CUHK Newsletter or by readers. Faculty and staff are welcome to suggest topics, contribute their comments, or respond to views expressed herein. W h e n aske d to comment on the question 'Have I personally experienced o r observe d sexism on the Chines e Universit y campus?', m y immediat e respons e wa s t o indicat e tha t my answer would be exceedingly short. The reason for this brevity is simpl y du e t o th e fac t tha t durin g m y si x year s her e at CUHK, I have never once witnessed anact , o r read a statement, which could be remotely considered to be sexist. Ibase this statement on the experience I have had across all aspects of University activit y includin g student/staf f interaction , departmental organization, Faculty of Medicine business and central administration. In areas where subtle forms of sexism may exist, such as in the selection of students for highly sough t after places in medical school or in appointments to staf f positions and in promotions, never once have I heard mentioned that consideration should be given to an applicant's gender. Concerning specifi c policie s whic h the Universit y ma y adop t t o counterac t sexism where it occurs, on the bases of the experience of those other than myself, it is extremely important not to introduce an atmosphere in which every male is assumed to be sexist unless proven otherwise. This need for caution is based upon my experience at Stanford University in California where attempts to demonstrate that sexism is now firmly under control have begun to interfere not only with normal human behaviour (which most certainly does not include sexism) but also with the content of the curriculum. To give an example of the absurdit y of the Stanfor d situation, a few of last years' medical students wer e given to countin g the numbe r o f minutes spen t i n lectures dealin g with the male anatomy an d comparing it with tha t devote d to th e female. When it was discovered that a few minutes more had been spent describing matters masculine, an official complaint was lodged at the Dean's Office to indicate that this discrepancy represented a blatant form of sexism. I sincerely hope that this sort of overreaction never occurs at CUHK. J.A. Gosling Professor of anatomy Dr. Choi Po-king, lecturer in educational administration and policy, has talked to our reporter about herobservation son sexismon campus. Thefollowing is a summary of her views. CUHK is fast becoming an all-girl s university. At least that's how the myth goes. But how did this myth come about, especially when it's never been borne out by actual figures? Dr. Choi Po-king of the Department of Educational Administration and Policy attributed it to a fear some may have of the increasing number of female students. Back in the 1970s and 1980s, the student sex ratio was about six men to four women, or at times seven to three. Since the mid-80s after the introduction of the provisional acceptance scheme, there has been a slow but steady increase in the number of incoming female students. Dr. Choi said certain members of the Universit y greeted this with apprehension because they believed the quality of the Universit y would sufferasa result. In the year whe n th e se x rati o o f incomin g student s evene d ou t t o 1:1 , some mal e academic s o n the Committee on Undergraduate Admissions were noted to have expressed their disapproval by describing the sex ratio as 'deteriorating'. In another case, a male lecturer wondered aloud in the first lecture of an undergraduate course why there were 'so many women' in the class. To him, it was a sign of a second rate university. Dr . Choi said that graduate students had also complained of similar sexist remarks from lecturers . She comments, Thes e lecturer s ma y be unaware they've sai d something discouraging to female students. Society does not expect females as muchas i t does males to pursue a universit y education , bu t someho w thes e wome n hav e mad e it into university . The y nee d encouragement, no t discouragement . A femal e ha s t o b e ver y toug h t o withstan d thi s kin d o f discouragement from a teacher.' Another discouraging phenomenon for female students is the relatively small number of female lecturers. Dr. Choi observed that female students find it easier to identify with a female lecturer at a psychological and emotional level, although they may equally enjoy a male lecturer's classes. Therefore, in the science departments and faculties where teaching staff are predominently male , there's very little or no support system for female students. Even in the Arts Faculty where the majority of students are female, less than 20 per cent of the teaching staff are female. And in the Faculty of Education which is supposed to have the highest percentage of female students in the University, female teachers make up only 29 per cent of the total teaching staff. Dr. Choi says this imbalance means it is much harder for a female than a male student to find a role model in the University. Dr. Choi notices sexual bias in yet other forms which may escape those less conscious of gender issues. I n th e staf f list o f the Chinese University Calendar, she point s out , wome n teachin g o r administrative staf f are each given the title o f 'Miss' , 'Ms', 'Mrs ' a s the Universit y see s befits their marital status, whereas for men, onl y the academic and professional titles are listed. Similarly, on the monthly payslip, married female staff are automatically addressed by their husband's name despite the fact that some had indicated upon joining the University they didn't want to use it. 'Why is the status of a woman's privat e lif e bu t no t a man's indicated i n a public documen t wher e onl y the professional or academic qualifications are relevant?' asks Dr. Choi. Furthermore, in the point system adopted by the University for the assignment of living quarters which can be found under the section 'Housing Benefits' in the Terms A StaffHandbook, two of the point-worthy items are 'wife' and 'working wife'. There is however no mention of a corresponding 'husband' and 'working husband' as shoul d be expected of an institutio n where female staff members eligible fo r thi s benefit d o i n fact exist . The gender-neutral terms 'spouse ' an d 'working spouse ' would have been more appropriate. Dr. Choi believes these gestures stem from a traditional phenomenon ： a married woman very rarely went out to work and therefore was defined only by her marital status. But times have changed and many married women are now working. Yet despite this, Dr. Choi says, many people still retain the habit of calling a married woman 'Mrs'. 'Certain women prefer not to use their husband's surname. So t o make sure the public know they are married or divorced, the University labels themas "Ms" . It's an obsolet e tradition to define a woman by her marital status and not her own academic or professional achievements. The University still accepts it, though not consciously I suppose.' In course regulations and certain on-campus publications such as th e CUHKNewsletter, Dr. Choi continues, the traditional 'he' is used in cases where modern usage would prefer 's/he' . According to Dr. Choi, when confronted with the supposedly all-encompassing 'he', certai n female students may feel alienated. She feels that 'It's time to reconsider this outdated practice.' In attempting to eliminate any kind of discrimination, conscious or unconscious, the raising of awareness is crucial. Unfortunately, Dr. Choi finds that CUHK students are not particularly sensitive to gender issues — the level of their awareness is much the same as tha t of society at large. One way to raise awareness in the University is through gender-related courses. However, she does not find the University's attitude particularly receptive or encouraging. At present, many such courses are offered as part of the colleges' genera l education programme a t the expense o f the organizers' persona l resources and not as regula r department-funded programmes. Dr. Choi said that some academics are of the belief that gender is not mainstream and has no 'market', and therefore do not see it as an important area of development. Although Dr. Choi describes CUHK as having an 'entrenched male agenda', she says there are promising developments, such as the setting up of a society for women studies ( 女硏社 ) by several undergraduate women, to publish their own pamphlets and to refine the theoretical bases of their feminist views. And keeping fingers crossed, she hopes things will start moving in that direction. O To understand bow academic orpersonal titles are accorded toindividualson the official staff list and in other University documents,the Newsletter has approached the Personnel Office for clarification. Here is a replyfrom the Director of Personnel. The designation of 'Miss', 'Ms.' or 'Mrs .' on the staff list of the Chinese University Calendar is not meant to denote the marital status of female employees in the University. It is largely for the purpose of identifying whether the last name which appears on the list is the person's maiden name, or her spouse's last name. For example, for a female staff under the name of 'Mary Chan', 'Chan' can either be her maiden name or her husband's surname. The title of Miss or Mrs. is to help identify this. Ail these references may be dropped so that in future only their academic or professional titles are used. This should however be a conscious decision on the part of the University and should take into consideration staff views on the subject, which may be diverse. The computerized payroll system on AS400 which keeps University staff records is operated on the basis of informatio n liste d on the Hon g Kong Identity Card . Names on the payslips generated fromAS400 will reflect the names as they appear on the HKID cards; designations used (Prof., Dr., Mr., Mrs., Ms., or Miss) will follow the choices of individual staff members as indicated on the completed forms for new employees. Fo r those who have chosen 'Mrs.' or 'Ms .', however, the uniform designation of 'Ms. ' will b e accorded, because the surname that appears on an ID card can be a maiden name or the spouse's surname, and the system will not differentiate between the two. Again, the present practice can be modified to remove references to all these designations so that onl y th e name s ar e used . Withou t suc h titles however , it may appea r t o be . rathe r impersonal b y addressing the staff with the name only, say 'Mary Chan' instead of 'Miss/Ms . (Continuedonpage4)