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More Men Teachers: Let's Recruit Men Into Teaching & Early Childhood Education! by Mike Prochaska

Career Opinion Early Childhood Education

2 years ago

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The problem is that we are still viewing the care and education of young children as the work of women. Only 2 percent of the teachers within mainstream early childhood are men. Only 2 percent in the entire world, not just America, and the reason I believe is because men have not been recruited to work in early childhood education. Men need to see other men working with children not just as dads, but as grade school teachers, daycare teachers, preschool teachers, toddler teachers and infant teachers.

Every year we see commercials and advertising encouraging women to be police, fire people, engineers, in the armed forces, etc., but never do we see commercials and advertising about boys working with kids and taking care of the elderly. Men need to be made to feel like they belong in this field along with women.

More men should be encouraged to take up jobs in child care, according to early years experts who claim that male employees could help boost the workforce and offer positive, caring role models for children. That is why I want to introduce MenTeach.org to you. It's a website that has been working on recruiting more men into the early childhood education field. If you're a man and are considering teaching, you should check it out. If you are lucky enough to live in Ireland, they have their own webpage, MenInChildcare.net, and they give out scholarships to men who want to work in early childhood education.

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Marianne Clyde

I'd love to see more men teaching...so important for good male role models.

Like Reply 3 2 years ago

Ann Marie Gardinier Halstead

I couldn't agree more, Mike Prochaska !

Like Reply 2 2 years ago

Luke Davis

Yeah good luck with that.

Maybe you can start by asking all the male teachers that were thrown under the false accusation bus.

I mean they are already qualified.

Like Reply 5 2 years ago

Mike Prochaska

That is why you need admin to back
You up always

when they go low we go HIGH just remember that

Like Reply 1 2 years ago

Randall Fullner

All of this big talk about DIVERSITY - if it really is that important - why is it that with the huge LACK of diversity in elementary school teachers - only 20% men - is nothing being done to correct this huge imbalance?

Malcolm Newall

Perhaps it should be understood that mothers tend to assume men are an issue. Perhaps the reality that accusations against men tend to be automatically believed, while those against women are dismissed. Note the findings of the studies in juvenile justice system. Also note the outcomes they have found with regards to female predators being in effect ignored. This makes teaching as safe for a female predators as a good male. When a man is asserted to need supervision to be around children or being a perv for entering a family room with his child it should be easy to understand why men are not teaching

Like Reply 4 2 years ago

Elisa All Schmitz 30Seconds

Positive male role models are so important. I'll never forget my high school English teacher, who was so instrumental in my writing career. Thank you, Mr. Mitchell! And thank you, Mike Prochaska , for raising this issue!!

Michael Hecht

Until I started going to school for elementary education, I had no idea how hostile most school districts are towards male teachers. I would not recommend working in public education for any man.

this is why we have to protect men and promote them when they work in this field.

I would love to read some of. Your stories about this. Maybe write some tips of your own

Bill James

I've asked a key changemaker in Western Australia what can be done to encourage more good men into Early Childhood Teaching, and his reply was the same one I've heard a few times already: 'the most important thing is that the best person for the job, gets the job'. But this ignores the fact that if 50% of the population make up 97% of the Early Childhood workforce, we can't be sure that the best person for the job actually gets it (or even applied for it....or even trained for it in the first place).

Come write some tips about this. Let’s lead the way

Done. Hope it gets published on here

Like 2 2 years ago

Jim Turner

You're dreaming if you think the lack of male teachers has anything to do with encouragement. I have considered pursuing it, but feminism has done an excellent job of guaranteeing that won't happen, short of having a camera on myself at all times.

Don’t let women scare you away from following your heart. @jimturner I know women who work as plumbers and race car driver and you can lead te Way. Why I started showcasing men In ece.

One approach I tend to use to try to normalise men in EC: when anyone acts with surprise that I teach such young children, I act bemused at their reaction. This often embarrasses them slightly, but it gets the message across!

Like 4 2 years ago

Papen44 I would love it if you could
Write your own tip about your experiences. I am trying to showcase men in this field

Morgan Hawthorne

This is awesome. I have a son who is in fourth grade and he would LOVE to have a male teacher to be able to look up to and emulate. There is one male teacher in his entire school and all of his male friends REALLY wanted him last year as a teacher!

DoingGoodTogether

This is so important. More men in compassionate leadership roles will have an incredible difference on kids!

Burlington Tooshkenig

I have worked with children for half of my life as a vocation but it wasn't only until a few short years ago that I decided to to get the proper education to be considered an Early Childhood Educator. I now can see things from a child's point of view (as much as an adult can) and I also understand things from a child development perspective. I can say that it is more that just a diploma on the wall, it is the ability to know why children do the things they do and know how to best facilitate their learning. Yes there is a stigma that says that care giving to children is a woman's job but I no longer ascribe to that form of thinking. As a stay home dad I can confidently say that caring for children is as much as the father's right as it is the mother's. Therefore if it is so in the home should this not be reflected in the daycare and education systems? I have more to say about but at a later time...

Terri Jones

I volunteer with a foster child nonprofit and the kids flock to the one male on the staff. So important to have those role models when many don't have them at home!

Like Reply a year ago

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More Men Teachers: Let's Recruit Men Into Teaching & Early Childhood Education! by Mike Prochaska

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More Men Teachers: Let's Recruit Men Into Teaching & Early Childhood Education! by Mike Prochaska

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