Blokes-in-kindy challenge
SIMON WONG
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Marlborough's only male kindergarten teacher is encouraging other men to "throw the stigma out the window" and join the profession.
Michael Clark, the head teacher at Springlands Kindergarten, said he wanted men to forget about what people might think about them being in early childhood education.
"If it's something you really want to do and something you're keen on, get off your rear and go do it."
Male kindergarten teachers make up only 1.7 per cent of the country's teachers.
Mr Clark is the only male kindergarten teacher in the region, although there is another male teacher working at a play centre.
He said he was more rough and tumble, more forgiving and also louder than his female counterparts.
Mr Clark started at Springlands Kindergarten in term 2 last year and before that was a teacher at Renwick Kindergarten for two years.
Children needed more males as role models in their early education to show them they could choose careers that did not necessarily fit their gender, he said.
Male teachers also brought a different perspective to the table, he said.
"There's a lot of talk about how boys learn and how best to teach boys because, in a profession dominated by women, they don't understand how boys work."
Some people were a bit wary about men working with children at first, he said.
"Historically there have been times where there've been anti-man sentiments when working with kids."
Mr Clark first trained as a primary school teacher before later training as a kindergarten teacher at Massey University.
During that time he was required to do placements at different kindergartens.
"Sometimes you'd turn up for a four-week placement and at the start you'd get that `Ah, yeah, oh, a guy – right'."
Once teachers and parents knew he was married and had young children of his own, they became more comfortable with him as a kindergarten teacher, he said.
Becoming a kindergarten teacher needed to be seen as a viable career option for male school-leavers, he said.
Men needed to have the self-confidence and resilience to "buck the trend" and become kindergarten teachers if they wanted to.
- The Marlborough Express
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Good on you! In today's society children need male role models and respond very positively to males in ECE role there are 5 males in training now in the ECE industry around our Top of the south. You arent the only male in the industry in Marlborough I work with a guy now who is fully qualified and also been involved in Kindy in the area and he is awesome! and well respected part of his centre .
I used to work with a male teacher, and parents, teachers and esp kids loved him. I first thought he was a parent, but no, he was really good. shame 1 of the teachers at another center where he also worked didn't really like it. But good ya dude
Michael Clark is perhaps too young to remember why there are no male kindy teachers - or indeed why there is a shortage of male primary teachers. What he claims is perfectly true. Kids do need male role models. Just as they need cuddles and comfort and don't get these either from males these days - even from their own fathers, because of the hysteria about sexual abuse. Having worked in this area myself, I saw more harm come from the hysteria and from false accusations than from the actual abuse itself - and that's saying something! I was never able to decide whether I felt more anger at the true abusers who cause the trouble in the first place, or the panic stricken mothers who interpreted the most normal behaviour as abuse and caused mayhem as a result. The destruction of lives was and is horrendous. I believe the hysteria is abating - but it will be a long time before men will feel safe working with children.
When my daughter started in kindy I sat in for a couple of sessions to get an idea of how the place operates and how my girl might take to it. I was amazed by the kids reaction to having a guy around the place; I spent most of the time with a small crowd around me competing for my attention to chat, show me things they made etc. I don't think you can put a value on having positive male role models in environments such as this.. Good on you Kindyman!
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Im moving to NZ in the summer, I am a male primary teacher and would definitely teach kindy! Hope I will be able to find something...