What is gender? How do I stand at the vanguard of change while retaining my identity? These are questions that I ask myself as we embark on this endeavor. I think that often times we as a people try and view gender roles as a thing of the past. We want to believe that we are a changed people and that gender profiling and stereotypes are a thing of the past. As an early childhood educator I am in the unique position of being a man in a profession dominated by women. This is the opposite of what many individuals conjure up when they think of gender roles in society and over time. Sure, once upon a time men were predominant in grade-level instruction, but in the young formative years it has always been women acting as that first guide into instruction. I have spoken to many teachers over the years and have received mixed feeling on the subject.
As a man, I am looked at with praise and with suspicion. For every five
individuals that praise me for my desire to work with small children, there is one that seems to believe that I have more unsavory motives. This whole process has got me thinking however, about why it is such a dynamic emotional feeling for a man to be a teacher, when women have been doing amazing things in classroom for generations. I admit to wanting to do my best, but I, at this point, am nothing extra special. What bothers me is that gender roles have been so solidified that we praise one gender for doing something that another gender has successfully managed for years. If we are to ever reach equality then we must lend a helping hand to those that need to be pulled up from obscurity as well as down form pedestals.
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