Title: Odd Man Out
Source: Hill, D. (1996). Odd man out. Teacher
Magazine, 8(1), 33.
Key Points: Hill mentions that a lack of male educators has not
always been the case. Prior to the Civil
War, it was a regular occurrence seeing men teaching in the classrooms. Hill examines the teaching experiences
of a tenured male elementary school teacher.
Without parents knowing the male teacher Hill interviewed, this male
teacher faced situations where parents wanted their child out of his classroom,
assumed him gay, assumed him a pedophile, watched him with a close eye, and
expected him to fail.
Intended Audience:
Everyone. People need to be aware
of how judgements and preconceived notions are harmful to everyone.
Relevance: Education
needs to be a world for everyone regardless of gender. It is important students understand teachers
are there because they are qualified and desire to educate the youth of
today. Our communities must be open to
any human that earns their right to be a teacher and see them for who they are
and not who other portray them to be. I
hope that no women and men in our cohorts run into situations where their job
and performance is judged purely based on their gender.
I did my intersectionality paper on this subject and it is disturbing to read and learn about all the stereotypes working against men in primary education settings. The idea that gender in the classroom came out of balance during the Civil War is something I read as well, and found it to be very interesting that since that time it has not changed. Men face multiple layers of unjust stereotypes as elementary teachers and it is time we all saw them for what they are. Thank you for posting!!
ReplyDeleteSarah, I appreciate you making this post. I have heard of this situation before, but have never experienced it due to working in middle schools and high schools. I find it very interesting parents judge teachers based on their gender in the elementary level. Sadly, I think it tells us more about the stereotypes society has built around male teachers in primary school. I liked you making a point that this article is for everyone…because no one should be judged by their gender. I had a male teacher for second grade and part of third grade, so I never thought anything about the matter. It would be interesting to see if the students have issues with male teachers or if the issue solely lies with the parents.
ReplyDeleteThanks for posting this. I worked in an elementary classroom before and it's not easy to shake off that feeling of being watched at all times. So much that I was wary of the types of activities I would do with the students, such as playing on the play ground and things like that. This concept can be driven in both ways and applied to men and women in any traditionally gender based jobs. Its also really important to foster that thought with our students so they don't make the same assumptions that others do.
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