An Imbalance Of Gender

I recently read my colleague's blog post here about his experience of being a male in the Education Sector.  His words deeply saddened me and I felt the need to ponder on this subject, as much to support him and other male teachers, as to seek to understand how this imbalance could be better managed and improved.

The gender divide in the New Zealand education system is rather profound.  The New Zealand Herald reported last year that fewer than one-in-five primary school teachers are male.  I found this statistic incredibly interesting and I started to wonder why that was the case.

We work in a female-dominated workplace, one of few like it I would hazard to guess.  But why?  Is it the pay rate - the fact that working in many other fields can have much greater financial benefits may deter males from pursuing teaching as a career.  Is it the old fashioned perception that teaching is a 'female' job - nurturing young minds.  Was it the fear of being put into uncomfortable or career-damaging situations with female students such as we see in the media more and more regularly.

I began to get curious what working in such a gender imbalanced environment would be like if I was in the gender minority.  How would I feel working alongside, taking breaks and having my entire day's conversation with people of the opposite sex.  Would I feel understood?  Like my views were always taken into account?  If my sense of humour or sensitivities were truly understood and appreciated.  I think not.

It's not that I think that female teachers choose to 'not understand' male teachers or their needs, it just doesn't always occur to us how it might feel to be one of only a few (or the only one in the case of my colleague) in a room full of women.  I wonder if this lack of understanding and appreciation for being 'male' is the reason why the gender imbalance begins to even out the higher up the career chain we go in education.  I can imagine that being a principal as a male, and having many male colleagues of the same status is affirming and rather a blessing for men in that position - suddenly they are surrounded by like-minds, people who truly 'get them'.

My colleague is right - we work, think and relax very differently.  We as female teachers need to be mindful of this and not be quick to judge our male counterparts' words or actions when taken for what they actually are - them being inherently male.  He was also right about our boys needing positive male role models.  Too many boys in our schools lack a male that they can truly look up to.

We need our male teachers to stay in education, we need the balance they bring to our heavily feminine workplace.  We need their sense of humour, the practical nature of the way they approach tasks and stressful situations to bring harmony to our working relationships.

Perhaps rural or small schools could start up (dare I say it!) - Men's Clubs, where male teachers can meet and share their experiences in a forum where they are understood and valued.  Perhaps woman teachers need to be more mindful of the topics of their conversations - whether we would want to discuss similar topics if the gender coin were flipped and we were in the minority.  Perhaps we just need to figure out how to attract more males to education, for them to see it as a viable and proud vocation to be a part of.

Whatever the solution, it's clear to me that we need to support and seek to understand our male colleagues.  We need to do it for them, we need to do it for ourselves, and we definitely need to do it for our boys.

A Road Of Possibilities

The year ahead stretches out in front of me like a winding road of possibilities.  Every new year for me starts much like this, the fresh excitement of new students, perhaps a new classroom, new colleagues, and hopefully renewed energy and passion for this craft of mine - teaching.

This year will be rather bittersweet and exciting at the same time.  This is the year that I step into the role of Deputy Principal and I am so excited about the opportunities and challenges that this presents for me.  The bittersweet part is the loss of colleagues that have become part of the fabric of the school, their absence like a thread unravelling until the needles are picked up and the thread stitched back by the presence of a new member to the school family.  Excitement at the change of personalities and skills on our team and the possibilities that each new member will bring to our school.  I am looking forward to nurturing and helping to grow our young teachers, I am thrilled about about stepping into the role of an Educational Leader, and intrigued to find out where this year is going to take me as a teacher, leader and mentor.

My goals for this year:

• Being mindful of making authentic connections with my new colleagues and students; alongside continuing to support and encourage my current colleagues.  I want to strive to be a role model for the others in my school, fostering a love for learning and a passion to be the very best we can be.
• Embedding the new practices and knowledge brought into the school during the past months and letting things settle and grow into being intertwined with what we already do.
• Making warm, reciprocal connections with our local community and iwi - this is a passion of mine and one that I am very excited about embracing this year.

So this year, this winding road of possibilities, it stretches out before my eyes, and I am ready. 

"You do not need to know precisely what is happening, or exactly where it is all going.  What you need is to recognize the possibilities and challenges offered by the present moment, and to embrace them with courage, faith and hope."  - Thomas Merton

Twitter Geek and a World Wide PLN

I must admit that for a long time Twitter was a mystical, kind of scary, no-go-zone for me.  I just didn't really see the point of it.  To be honest, I think that my knowledge of the Twittersphere extended to knowing that celebrities used it to share their daily food intake or places they had been with their equally famous friends.  I had no clue that it could be used for my own professional development as an educator or to connect with others in the educational field from all around the world.  When my colleague suggested I try it for professional development purposes I gave it a go not expecting much, and I was immediately hooked.

Twitter, in my experience, is one of the most valuable professional development opportunities I have discovered since beginning my teaching career.  It has encouraged me to think more deeply about my beliefs around the pedagogy of teaching, made me question what I do daily as an educator and why I do those things.  I have done more educational readings, learnt more about modern practice and current research in education, and then discussed these things with others in the educational field, than ever before.

And the best thing about it is that it's free, it's available anywhere and on any device.  Twitter is such an amazing find.

If you haven't joined the world of Twitter, I suggest you give it a go.  It's incredibly easy to set up an account and there are a multitude of blogs and videos to help you out if you need it.  A great blog to try is www.mrkempnz.com.

Dipping My Toes Into Something New

New year's bring with them the possibility and excitement of new challenges and beginnings.  A challenge that I have decided to commit to in 2015 is writing a personal blog of my professional practice.

Half Cold Coffee was born when I glanced down beside me as I sat typing on my computer and noticed that once again my coffee had sat for far too long to be palatable, desirable or even drinkable.  As a teacher this is an all-too-regular daily (many times a day!) occurrence as I rush from task to task - sadly, but out of necessity, the coffee always loses out!

So come join me on my journey to connect with others in the educational field through the medium of blogging.

Word to the wise - drink that coffee before it gets cold!