Male Role Models

Male role models; a primary concern

My daughter is twelve years old and already has her mind set on a career as a primary school teacher; I have a son of eight who doesn’t. Truth be told, when I was eight, in fact when I was eighteen, teaching in a primary school was not on my radar, yet I spent twenty years of my adult working life as teacher in primary education, I worked with amazing people; creative, dynamic, hysterically funny and deeply committed…most of them were under eleven years old.
We are in the midst of a major recruitment crisis in education and one of the most acute areas of concern is the low number of men choosing a career as a primary teacher; some of the latest research says that less than 15% of all teachers working with children between the ages of 3 and 11 are men. It is not a problem unique to England in the United States of America the figure is less than 10%.
It is crucial that we do not underestimate the importance of good, male role models for our young children. It is during our earliest experiences of school that we develop most of the attitudes that will stay with us through our educational journey.
It is widely reported that there are a significant number of boys in our school system that underachieve, often due to a belief that education is not ‘macho’; that it holds little of importance or value. It is for this reason that we must, as a matter of absolute urgency, recruit a significant number of high calibre male teachers to work in our primary schools. Without these crucial role models, a large number of our boys will continue to feel that education is simply not for them.
As a young teacher, a number of my own friends and family would raise an eyebrow when I told them what I did for a living, one even asked me, how many years I needed to do with the little ones, before I could apply for a promotion to a secondary school! There are many reasons for the lack of interest amongst young men many of which are borne out of cultural mythology. I have had the privilege of working with many world class teachers in my career, some of the very best being male; red blooded, sport obsessed men.
The Government have never really taken the problem seriously as their focus, during most of their time in office, has been on secondary education and attracting enough teachers in that sector. I am not entirely sure that they realise the gravity of the problem or indeed, that if we were able to recruit and retain high quality male teachers in the primary sector, some of the most significant problems around behaviour and underachievement would be considerably reduced.
There are some who will argue that it is a question of salary or lack of it, which is a smokescreen; teachers, whether in the primary or secondary sector get paid on the same scales and start on the same figure which is around £20,000, not a bad salary by anyone’s standard, especially in our current climate. It is true that graduates choosing to teach the core subjects and particularly in the sciences, are often rewarded with ‘golden hello’s’ which can bolster pay.
Teaching, let alone teaching in a primary phase school is just not an aspiration for most. In order to attract a greater interest we must encourage more boys to experience working in primary schools through work placements. We must also encourage male ‘A’ level students to spend time in their local primary schools sharing their knowledge and enthusiasm with our young children, immediately being of great benefit to both. The Government needs to concentrate more funding and resourcing into the drive for male recruitment; we need national male primary teachers to work as ambassadors and role models throughout the country in our secondary schools and colleges. Most importantly of all, we need the media to fulfil their social responsibility and help us to portray the profession and the role of male primary teaching in a positive and encouraging light.
Take it from me; teaching in primary education is a great privilege. I remember a young boy in my first class giving me a present on the final day of the school year. He had chosen it himself. It was a photo frame that had inscribed on it ‘To teach is to touch a life forever.’ What greater job can there be? I just hope that there are enough young men out there who are brave enough to take up the challenge!