1.0 Introduction
Teaching career in education setting is commonly seen with a greater numbers of females rather than males. Paton (2013) mentioned that researches have identified, ‘men are being put off applying for jobs in primary schools because working with young children is seen as a woman’s profession’. This perception leaves a questioned on the existence of male teachers especially at primary level. Jamieson (2007) mentioned on the huge difference between women and men at the primary level, ‘women outnumber men four to one’.
Thus, it has been clearly proven that males have a strong belief and perception that teaching career welcomes females rather than males. Retaining more male teachers in the educational setting can be beneficial not only to students’ learning but also to various other aspects. Therefore to make an effort in the demand of more male teachers, this essay will further discuss the factors influencing male to select teaching as a career.
2.0 Factors Affecting Male to Choose Teaching as a Career
Based on several studies, there are few reasons leading to the scenario of men showing less preference in the teaching field. One of the reasons that have been recognized is low income. Teaching profession is assumed to be a low wage career (Born, No Date). Perceptions of the community have been identified as the second factor. Last but not least is the factor of teaching career being seen as a female profession rather than both female and male profession.
2.1 Low Income
Male in common are the breadwinner in a family:
A man feels that if he’s going to get married and have children, he should be able to provide for his wife and children. I think that is as true today as it was when my father in the 1950’s w...
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...man’s job’ The Telegraph, Available at: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationnews/9849976/Teaching-in-primary-schools-still-seen-as-a-womans-job.html, (accessed: 16/04/14)
Smith. J., (2013) The Happiest and Unhappiest Jobs in America, Available at: http://www.forbes.com/sites/jacquelynsmith/2013/03/22/the-happiest-and-unhappiest-jobs-in-america/,(accessed: 18/04/14)
Verel, P., (2012) Being the Breadwinner Still Large Part of Male identity, Study Finds, Available at: http://www.fordham.edu/campus_resources/enewsroom/archives/archive_2501.asp, (accessed: 18/04/14)
Weissmann, J., (2011) ‘Are Teachers Paid Too Much? How 4 Studies Answered 1 Big Question’, The Atlantic – Reference Blog, Posted: 04/11/11, Available at: http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2011/11/are-teachers-paid-too-much-how-4-studies-answered-1-big-question/247872/, (accessed: 18/04/14)
Mann believed that the best people to teach were females. Females, he argued, contained a nurturing instinct that is needed in order to teach students. I vehemently disagree. In order to be a good teacher, being passionate is the key to success. It is imperative that you love what you do and that passion will seep into your work. Whether you are a man or a woman, it is important to love your job and you can see just how much the world will change because of that. Mann’s theory of transmission does not apply in today’s society. There are many male teachers that are excellent and have left a strong and positive outlook on students. While men are still outnumbered in this field, it does not mean it is due to a lack of competency. It merely means that although we have come far, we still have a long way to go in breaking down gender roles and
This hidden curriculum of lessons endured in the everyday functioning of the classroom where teachers are unaware of their own biased teaching behaviors for the sake their diligent duties as teachers. These teachers are applying their teaching based on how they obtained it. In the younger age, the learning environment is feminine since the adult females outnumber the male teachers. Teachers present curricular materials that contain gender stereotype behavior which the students internalize and exhibit these behaviors which in turn guide their own behaviors and preferences. In these institutions, teachers receive little training in combating gender stereotypes of their own and others and as a consequence, teachers often model, reinforce and lay the foundation for gender role differentiation among their
Marsh, C.J. (2010). Becoming a teacher: Knowledge, skills and issues. Frenchs Forest, Sydney, NSW: Pearson Australia
To further understand why some African American male teachers became teachers and why they want to become teacher, I interviewed teachers currently in the field
At the elementary school level, the majority of teachers are women. In an experiment form the University of California, Los Angeles, boys were found to have better reading scores than the girls when "taught" by a machine. When a female teacher was brought in to give the lesson, the girls outperformed the boys (Thomas 122). Why is this? Maybe it's the difference in the behavior styles of the boys and girls. David Thomas, in his essay "The Mind of Man", says, "Boys are, across all cultures, much more boisterous and overly competitive than girls. They seek out physical competition ... this makes them harder to control than girls." Little boys create more distractions by being loud whereas girls are more docile and less disruptive. Tony Mooney, a secondary- school headmaster, says, "Women teachers find boys too noisy... and reward more 'feminine' behavior" (qtd. in Thomas 121). I am one of those women teachers that like the quietness of girls. From experiences of the past, I would say that most other female teachers feel the same way I do.
There are many reasons why I chose teaching to research. One reasons being is that there is more behind teaching than just getting up in front of students and speaking. Another reason being that the teaching field needs more male teachers. “The message we’re sending to boys is that, not only is teaching a women’s realm, but perhaps education as well.” Bryan Nelson said, indicating that the nation needs more male teachers (Gutierrez-Folch, K-12 Schools Need More Male Teachers, p.1). Another reason why I chose this career is because I have always wanted to be a teacher for a very long time, and I like helping people with their schoolwork if they need it. Another reason that I want to be a teacher is that male teachers can serve as role for some kids (Gutierrez-Folch, K-12 Schools Need More Male Teachers, p.1). The last reason why I chose this career is because many of the teachers I have had in the past have influenced me to become a teacher.
In a society where kids must go to school up to the collegiate level, teaching is an impactful career choice. Teachers help contour the minds of future leaders of the world. Furthermore, teachers play a crucial role in guiding students to the knowledge, skills, and abilities they need to succeed in life, and teachers lead students to make informed decisions on any topic the meet in the future. As a teacher, a person must relinquish their knowledge onto students. Finally, they must prepare their students for all the obstacles they will face later in life.
To refute these claims it should be noted that experienced teachers usually understand gender differences and are adept at accommodating a variety of learning styles within their classroom. Students will one day live and work side-by-side with members of the opposite sex, educating students in single-sex schools limits their opportunity to work cooperatively and co-exist with members of the opposite sex.
Teachers are what make the doctors, lawyers, policemen and the list goes on, yet many people still do not consider their job a profession. Argumentors ideology is a bit logical because not all students graduate high school; enter college/university, graduate and end up in a profession. Students are the reaped crop and if some are not delivering fruit, how can others tell that the students were taught properly? Also, as seen through Savage Inequalities: Children in American School’s, by Jonathan Kozol, some teachers should not be allowed in that field. Teachers are supposed to instruct, engage, and place attention to the students, but if they do not have a passion to educate the students, they will receive that negative atmosphere in the classroom and decide no to learn. In the beginning, teachers were mainly women because the government did not have to pay them too much. Currently, we have both male and female instructors doing the job. Teachers are educating the future, so they should receive proper education and tools, like a lot of other professions, teachers should undergo a series of lessons and tests every two years, so they can be kept up to date on the methodologies of teaching. Furthermore, in order to teach the children properly, teachers need the right materials for that peculiar subject. Lastly, teachers should receive multicultural training, so they know what types of students they are dealing with.
Bonomo, V. (2010). Gender matters in elementary education: Research-based strategies to meet the distinctive learning needs of boys and girls. Educational Horizons, 88(4), 257-264
I chose education as my career path after working in a classroom to fulfill a Field Study course. The children had a powerful impact; they were amazing; challenging, and most of all loving. In helping them, I quickly realized that I was the one receiving the gift that ultimately inspired me down the path of serving disadvantaged children. After experiencing two semesters in classrooms, I realized my enthusiasm for teaching was not a mere in-the-moment feeling but rather a genuine enthusiasm. I became aware that teachers are an important foundation in society and I look forward to the opportunity to develop the skills children need to adapt and apply for the rest of their lives by encouraging knowledge, character and resilience.
Finally, Gkolia, Dimitrios, & Koustelios (2014) indicated in their study that background characteristics such as teachers’ gender, teaching experience, educational level, and age affect their self-efficacy.
Marsh, C. (2008). Becoming a Teacher. (4th ed.). French Forest: Pearson Education. Retrieved from: http://lms.curtin.edu.au/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_2_1&url=%2fwebapps%2fblackboard%2fexecute%2flauncher%3ftype%3dCourse%26id%3d_62128_1%26url%3d.
The roles women typically play in the family may not always be consistent with success in the occupational arena. Staying home to care for a sick child may conflict with an important meeting (Broman 1991:511). Sometimes there has to be a change of plans when it comes to the family. Most people believe that family comes first no matter what. Men 's engagement in paid work fulfills prescriptions of hegemonic masculinity by facilitating their ability to gain status in the public sphere. A man can judge his worth by the size of a paycheck (Thebaud 2010:335). Most research shows that women are more likely to be effected by the household and men are more likely to be effected by their job. Some people feel that the goal is to reach higher on the occupational
...That statistic further enforces the belief that males should not or cannot teach young children. Men are still shying away from jobs that are considered “feminine”, mostly because the media still makes it seem as though they will be less of a man if they choose careers that are female dominated.