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Men in ECE teaching

Men are largely absent from the early childhood teaching profession and the OECE’s position is that the current gender imbalance is unacceptable (See About Us).  We offer the Men in ECE Invitation Award, we advocate that government sets a target of 10% ECE qualified male teachers in the ECE workforce before or by 2030, and request that the Ministry of Education review teacher recruitment and retention and put in place policies that support incentivising services to engage male staff and subsidise access to field-based training.

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Men in early childhood teaching
Men changing nappies. Nappy change table for infants at early childhood centre

Men Changing Nappies in ECE: Safety, Rights, and Best Practice

This article explains why male teachers must be able to carry out all caregiving tasks, including nappy changing, and sets out how men can respond…
what kind of teaching style do you adopt with young children?

Men in Childcare and Early Childhood Teaching: Why Male Teachers Matter

Why children need male teachers, how gender identity shapes their learning, what the research shows, and how services can address discrimination or parent concerns. It…
Men In Early Childhood Education National Summit. Minister Chris Hipkins standing centre. Dr Sarah Alexander (organiser) seated front left.

Our Position on Teacher Gender and What we Have Done

The OECE's position on teacher gender. Our position on teacher gender is that men must be recruited into early childhood teaching as well as women.…
Early Childhood Qualified teacher supporting infant feeding with baby bottle.

National Report: Time to Involve Men in Early Childhood Teaching – are Men Wanted and What Contributions Can They Make?

Time to Involve Men in Early Childhood Teaching The Findings of a National Survey. Report Published 2012. Prepared by Dr Sarah Alexander. Alexander, S. (2012)…
boy girl blue pink gender

Ministry of Education Unconcerned About Gender Imbalance in Early Childhood Education Teacher Workforce

Teacher gender diversity is not on the Ministry of Education policy agenda for early childhood education. August 25, 2016. Wellington. New Zealand Police attempts to…
men teaching

Men Who Teach Young Children NZ – Dr Sarah Alexander Speech

Men Who Teach Young Children NZ. ECE Symposium. Wellington, 15 August 2016 * Before giving some background to the main issues and challenges that lie…
the importance of touch as part of caregiving and teaching children

Men Who Teach Young Children, Israel – Dr David Brody Speech

Guest speaker: Dr David Brody (Israel), author of "Men who Teach Young Children". Introduction by Dr Sarah Alexander (NZ). The Symposium was held on 15…
Dr Sarah Alexander at Men In ECE International Conference Berlin

NZ Represented at International Men in Early Childhood Education Event

There was NZ representation at the International Conference "Men in Early Childhood Education and Care" held in Berlin in September 2012.  Dr Sarah Alexander represented…
male early childhood teachers and teacher supply in NZ

Proceedings of the 8th National Summit on Men in Early Childhood Teaching and Care

EC-Menz Summit Theme:  “Lifting the Lid on Gender Issues in Early Childhood Education” Held 7th-8th March, 2014. Wellington City, New Zealand. Conference Mihi Whakatau /…
Joshua McKay, NZ

How to Achieve 8% Male Early Childhood Teachers – The Example of Norway

Male Teacher Target in Norway. By Dr Sarah Alexander. April 21, 2013. In Norway children aged 1 - 6 years attend the same institution (not…
boys and girls happy

Differences in Interactions and Behaviours of Male and Female Teachers with Children

Do Men Teach Differently? February 28, 2013. Prof. Dr. Holger Brandes from the University of Applied Sciences in Dresden, Germany, along with Markus Andrä, Wenke…
male students stood behind this board to have their picture taken for voting on Facebook for the best male diversity model for ECE

A Successful Campaign to Get More Men into ECE

Campaign to Get Men To Take Up Early Childhood Work. By Dr Sarah Alexander. February 27, 2013. As money was available for use on gender…
teacher support and teachers meeting

A Short History of Men’s Involvement in Childcare and the Characteristics of Men in ECE Teaching

Who are the Men in ECE Teaching? In this paper the following data and analysis is presented on who are the men in ECE teaching: An…
male teachers and children playing and learning in sandpit at early childhood centre.

Men at Work: Sexism in Early Childhood Education. NZ Teacher Report

Sexism in Early Childhood Education. By Sarah Alexander, Lance Cablk, Adam Buckingham, David Butler and Russell Ballantyne. Published in 2006. Wellington. This report provides a…
managers

SET Early Childhood Research Folio Paper

What is it like to be a male in one of the few occupations which has not experienced a significant change in gender balance in…
early childhood teacher with infants

“A Few Good Men or a Few Too Many?”

The Original Massey University Research Study of Male Teachers (1997) "A Few Good Men or a Few Too Many? A study of Male Teachers" by…
child climbs tree with teacher at early childhood centre

‘Of Puppy Dog Tails, Sugar and Spice’: Gender Inequality and Discrimination in ECE

Of Puppy Dog Tails - Article published in the journal Delta 49(2), pp. 405-416, 1997. This paper reviews how equal the opportunities for men in…
What is Quality Early Childhood Education?

Teaching – A Women-Only Profession? NZ Annual Review of Education

Teaching - A Women Only Profession. The statistics on teacher gender show a continuing downward trend in the participation of male teachers across secondary, primary…
boys play friends achievement

Proceedings of the First Men in Early Childhood Teaching Summit in NZ

Below is an outline of the Contents of the published proceedings of the very first Men in Early Childhood Teaching Summit in New Zealand, called…
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