This profession does not have to be closely observed to see that most educators are females. Rarely, there is an older white male who is a coach that teaches a certain class. If there is a male teacher, they're located in the secondary level of education. Most female educators are seen in elementary schools. In my opinion, I feel as though others see female elementary teachers as mothers. That is why people expect them to always clean the classroom, pick up after children, and go as far as babying the students. Since this is "expected", this does not affect a woman's pay. I strongly agreed with a quote from Weiner and the4 explanation given after in this module. '“We've had a highly feminized profession, but feminized means both that women do the work, but also that it's devalued because it is women's work,” Weiner says, pointing to many issues that exist in education, such as underpaid teachers, buildings in disrepair, and even an “inverted” pyramid where men hold far more leadership positions than women.'
The gender wage gap has been present as far back as the 1860s. It has been more than one hundred and fifty years since then, and there is still a gap in the wage between genders in mostly all professions. How much more can a man really do than a woman? How are women not being presented the same opportunities or rules as men are if we are all equals? Women have so many strict guidelines they need to follow, especially in the school environment. I have experienced this throughout my whole education. Specifically, a dress code that is placed. Girls are told, "Do not show your shoulders, no holes in your jeans, no piercings anywhere other than your earlobes, nothing too tight, cover up, don't be a distraction!" Meanwhile boys only had to worry about picking up their pants if they were falling. This has been carried out to the profession itself and female teachers are expected not to wear heals that are too high, skirts that are way past the knees, loose pants, etc. There always has been a difference in genders when it comes to a profession, and I just hope as a society we can change that perspective instead of just mentioning it or ignoring the problem.
Hi Isabella! I really enjoyed reading your blog and opinion on gender affecting the teaching profession this week. I agree with you saying that many teachers in elementary school are female since they are looked at as second mothers that are with us throughout the day. I thought it was interesting you included about since these duties are expected that it doesn’t affect their pay. The two quotes you added were really good to read and further pushed the need to increase and equal pay for teachers regardless of gender. I like how you included that there has been a huge gap in the wages that different teachers make due to a lot of factors. I like how you included that many girls were picked on for their dress where the boys got to wear and show as much as they pleased. I agree and like how you included that there needs to be change in society and work on these issues.
ReplyDeleteHi Isabella! I loved reading your blog about gender in the teaching profession. I really enjoyed the quote you included by Weiner and I think this really elevated your blog. I think it is so important to note that not only is teaching just a women dominated profession but it is looked down on because of it. I think your section about wage gaps was very helpful in this blog to truly understand how different pay can be. I wonder what your opinion is on the question 'would teachers make more if it was a male dominated field?' I think this is such a loaded question and would be curious to get your imput on it.
ReplyDeleteHello Kaci,
DeleteThank you for your comment! To answer your question, I am not entirely sure. I lean more towards the answer yes only because I feel as though men are seen as more professional and can get things "done". Though, the stereotype of a female teacher acting as a second mother would come into play and maybe people think men wouldn't care much for their child as much as a woman. I just wish these stereotypes and patriarchy would go away as we progress.
Hi Isabella! i love the way you explained your statement in this vlog, and you're right the majority of women are seen more in elementary schools because of that 2nd mother role they hold. As well as you would only see male teachers in secondary schools. One thing i would like to add as well is that they also have women as elementary teachers because of the patience they hold to the students in that age level. I also agree on the argument about dress code because it very true, girls have more rules to follow to be appropriate while boys only need to fix the small things.
ReplyDeleteHi! You brought up a really great point about how most elementary school teachers are female. I thought it was super interesting that you brought that teaching is seen as more of a feminist job because women are seen as more of the "care takers" and looking after kids is seen as more of the "mother's role", but because of the job being lead by women it is devalued. I always noticed that most of my teachers were female, and i wish it was more normalized for men to be teachers. It's honestly so sad to me that this hasnt changed throughout the years. I feel as though being a teacher is taken for granted because of the low salary, but people need to understand that theres a lot that goes into it! I also loved how you addressed the different ways that women and men are treated at schools with the differences in dress code. Do you think it would be a good idea to discuss stereotypical gender roles in the workplace with students? And if so how would you address it?
ReplyDeleteHello Ariadna,
DeleteIt is very unfortunate that it is not normalized for males to be in this profession. When observing my education classes, I realize they are either filled with all girls or just one male is present. It would definitely be a good idea to introduce and notify future students about the stereotypical gender roles in the workplace. How are we supposed to grow without understanding the subject? I would just be straight forward with my students about this topic and give them suggestions on how we could change.
Hi Isabella, I think you made a really great point in your response to the module. Most elementary teachers are female and are treated like "mothers" in the classroom and are expected to clean, pick up after the students, and basically parent them. I think it was interesting to note the difference in dress codes that we often see in schools that are patronizing towards young women; we expect girls in school to completely cover up to not be distracting yet the dress code for boys is not as strict. I also liked the graphic that you added at the end. Overall, great job on your response!
ReplyDeleteHello Willow,
DeleteThank you for your response! I'm glad you could agree with my perspective and response. All my school career I was told I needed to cover up, told not to wear a certain piece of clothing, or to change. It is frustrating because my shoulders wouldn't even be in sight and I'd still be told not lift my shirt more. Male friends of mine would get away with muscle shirts or ripped jeans. I'd love to finally see a change in the future and for this to be taught to students.
Hello, I really enjoyed reading your blog post and understanding your view point on the subject. The first thing I want to bring up is I went to a school that was dominantly Turkish admin and teachers, with the few exceptions of white and Hispanic. A little background on the school is it is a charter school and there are uniforms as well, with the few days of free dress. The dress code you were bringing up really hit me because when I was in middle school we were allowed to wear shorts and pants, skirts if you had a religious note from your priest. The shirts were normal uniformed collared shirts, but the only kind of jacket we could wear was a sweater, jackets with hoods were not allowed. Then in highschool we were only allowed to wear pants. The reason for bringing up the school dress code is because during free dress, tank tops had to be three fingers, no holes in jeans, if wearing shorts had to past our fingers and knees even when sitting, no sweatpants or leggings, no piercings other than two earring holes, no dresses. Even during homecoming and prom we had restrictions as well, but we were allowed to wear dresses.
ReplyDeleteOne time in tenth grade in year book class, the JV volleyball team, we were told to put black blocks over their legs because the shorts were too low for the administration likings. These restrictions annoyed me because it is saying that male students and teachers at my school would not be able to hold themselves back from feeling aroused.
Hi Isabella! This is a fantastic post! I really connected with the first part of your post. I think that gender roles play a major part in what people expect of educators, especially in Texas. Elementary teachers often go far beyond just teaching children the curriculum. Because most elementary teachers are women, they often play as motherly figures in their students' lives. They provide emotional care and do tasks like picking up after students. These aspects of being an educator are not assumed of for male teachers in the same way that they are for female teachers. This often goes overlooked because oftentimes teachers are more than happy to perform these extra tasks because it benefits their students. It also goes overlooked because most male teachers do not teach the younger grades. However, I saw firsthand the differences in the expectations between female and male teachers once I reached high school.
ReplyDeletehi isabella! I really enjoyed reading your blog. I agree that since women are expected to be teachers their choice sometimes is not value or respected. I really appreciated the quote you used by Weiner. It explains that when something is seen as a women's job it is often viewed by many as not a job of value. This explains why often teachers feel as though they are not being appreciated and could explain why many leave the profession. I think it is very unfortunate that women are almost expected to be good teachers because they should intrinsically have the values to be a good teacher simply because they are women. Rather than being appreciated for their many traits that make them a great teacher. Or be seen for the many skills and knowledge they have that allow them to be a great teacher. It also invalidates the time they have take to get and education so they could be a goof teacher.
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