Where are all the men?

Wow! I can't believe another month has already passed. Since my last post at the end of August I have continued to work as a relief ECE teacher in early childhood centers around the Christchurch area. I have been getting quite a bit of work lately (often 4-5 days a week). The preschools are usually separated into different areas dependent on the age of the children. Most preschools will have a nursery room (unders 2's) and a preschool room (3-5 years old). Some other centers will have a third room, toddler room (2 - 3 years old). As a relief teacher, I have had the opportunity to work at several different early childhood centers. It is such a great opportunity to be able to work at all these different centers and see how each one operates. Although many of the centers share similarities in the way they operate, the centers can also be quite different from one center to the next. I am learning a lot about the way I would like my classroom to run by experiencing such a wide range of centers.

At the end of August, I saw a clip on a news program (Close Up) that caught my attention. The video clip showcases and interviews two male kindy teachers in Wellington, New Zealand who took part in a project called YMen. "The premise behind the project was to address the chronic shortages of men working in early childhood education and high rates of unemployment among men under the age of 24" (Meo, K., 2012).

The two male kindy teachers showcased in the video discuss their experiences working as early childhood teachers. It is interesting to listen to the experiences they have had and it got me thinking about the shortage of men working in early childhood education in New Zealand. I started looking online, searching for articles and information about the shortage of male ECE teachers in New Zealand. Although efforts have been made to increase the number of male ECE teachers in New Zealand, numbers remain very low. New Zealand has one of the lowest numbers for male ECE teachers in the developed world. While working in New Zealand as a relief ECE teacher, I have only come across one or two male teachers. Although I know there are more male ECE teachers out there, it is evident that there is a shortage of male teachers. To me, this shortage in male ECE teachers is very concerning. I believe it is important for children to be exposed to both female and male role models.

"Without getting into stereotyping, males and females are simply different, so the way we treat children is different. Male teachers are generally happy to let children take more risks - rough and tumble, sword fights, physical play - where women will try to end what they see as conflict and mediate. You need both - that's why gender balance is so important in centres". (Bloke hunting for early childhood education)

Although the statements made in the above quote are quite general and based on ones own thoughts, I believe the statements hold a lot of truth. As the quote says, males and females are simply different. I have seen first hand the differences between the way children interact with males and the way they interact with females. I grew up as a very active child who engaged in a lot of rough and tumble play. As an ECE teacher, I see the importance in this kind of play and encourage this type of play among children. I do however, realize that I am among the minority of girls who enjoys this type of play. Men are much more likely to enjoy rough and tumble play and to tolerate it. From my experience, boys seem much more comfortable engaging in rough and tumble play with men. While I think the benefits of having male ECE teachers are quite clear, there is a lack of research reinforcing these benefits. More research needs to be done in order to reinforce the importance of employing more male teachers. 

I created a Scoop.It on the topic of male ECE teachers in New Zealand. The Scoop.It (Men's Role in NZ Early Childhood) has several articles and information about male ECE teachers in New Zealand. The articles were very interesting to read through. While it is obvious there is a shortage of men in early childhood, it was still shocking to read some of the statistics presented in the articles. The percentage of men working in early childhood education has grown minimally in the last ten years in New Zealand from 1.08% to 1.3% (data from article, Bloke hunting for early childhood education). The articles discuss some of the possible reasons for such low numbers of male ECE teachers. Some people suggest the reason there are so few male ECE teachers is due to the stereotype that male ECE teachers are all pedophiles. Others suggest the low numbers are due to the fact that centers are simply not catering to male teachers. While there are many different factors playing a role in the low number of male ECE teachers, it is clear that something needs to be done in order to increase the number of male ECE teachers. 

Reference:

Meo, Kim. (2012). YMen project: Kindergartens are helping inspire young men & children alike. The Space, 27,  10-11.