Men in Childcare and Early Childhood Teaching
Contents:
- Why children need male teachers
- Gender identity and children’s learning
- What the research shows
- The OECE’s position
- What services and managers can do to address discrimination
- What if parents oppose male teachers working in the service?
- Why would a man want to work in ECE?
- Advice for encouraging male youth to consider ECE as a career
- Men’s stories
- Men in ECE scholarships
1. Why do Children Need Male Teachers in Their Early Childhood Service?
According to Dr Sarah Alexander, one of the strongest reasons for involving men in early childhood teaching is simple: ECE should reflect the diversity of the society it serves. Half of all children in early childhood education are boys yet less than 3% of teachers are men. When an entire profession is overwhelmingly female, children miss out on seeing a full range of adults in caring, teaching roles.
Having both men and women in ECE helps break down outdated role stereotypes and expands the choices children see as possible for themselves and others. A gender‑balanced teaching team signals to children that care, learning, and relationships are human responsibilities – not gendered ones.
2. Gender Identity and Children’s Learning
The early years are when children form their sense of gender identity and begin to understand gender roles. The stereotypes they absorb at this age shape what they think they’re “supposed” to like, how they behave, and what they imagine for their future.
If children grow up seeing women doing all the care work and men doing other work, they internalise those patterns. Involving men in early childhood teaching helps interrupt the gender‑based division of labour and gives children a wider, healthier view of who can care, teach, comfort, and lead.
Dr Alexander argues that gender sensitivity is fundamental to the quality of children’s ECE experiences and outcomes. When children see diversity in their teachers, they learn diversity in their expectations of the world.
3. Men in Childcare: What the Research Shows
A wide range of research and professional literature highlights clear benefits when men are part of early childhood teaching teams:
- More variety in activities and interactions: Men’s involvement can broaden the range of experiences for girls and help create a more “boy‑friendly” environment for boys without excluding anyone.
- Greater reflection and diversity in teaching practice: The presence of men often prompts teaching teams to question assumptions and enrich their approaches.
- Different caregiving styles: Some men bring a higher tolerance for active, physical, or “rough and tumble” play, which many children enjoy and benefit from.
- Children see men as caregivers: Boys and girls observe men cuddling, comforting, wiping tables, changing nappies, and doing domestic tasks – powerful modelling that challenges stereotypes.
- Stronger father engagement: Dads can feel more comfortable and willing to walk in the door and participate when they see men working in the service.
4. The OECE’s Position
The Office of Early Childhood Education holds that gender balance is essential for a high‑quality, equitable early childhood sector. Children deserve to see a teaching workforce that reflects the diversity of the world they live in and men deserve to be welcomed, supported, and valued as early childhood teachers. See our position statement on Male Teachers and the ECE Workforce.
We believe that the current gender imbalance in staffing in early childhood services hampers efforts to achieve high quality education and care in the ECE sector.
The Office of ECE
Thank you to TVNZ for allowing us to share the following 2006 documentary with you. It still speaks for the situation today, as there has been little change in the sector and no government policy to address the gender segregated nature of the ECE workforce.
5. What Can ECE Services and Managers Do to Address Discrimination in Staffing?
Every service should take a strategic, deliberate approach to recruiting, supporting, and retaining male teachers. This requires visible leadership from management, backed by policies, practices, and a clear commitment to building a diverse, gender‑balanced teaching team.
Achieving genuine gender balance doesn’t happen by accident – it needs a specific strategy, strong management support, and a culture that actively welcomes men into the profession.
A key part of this strategy is creating safe, no‑blame spaces for staff to talk openly about gender, fears, assumptions, and biases. These conversations help teams move forward together and build confidence in working within a more diverse teaching workforce.
6. What if Parents’ Oppose Male Teachers Working in the Service?
Start by recognising that most parents support having male teachers in ECE. Opposition is usually limited to a very small minority, around 1 – 4%.
When concerns do arise, managers can respond confidently and professionally:
- Explain that gender‑based discrimination is not acceptable in early childhood education.
- Emphasise that children benefit from seeing fair, equitable roles and a teaching team that reflects the wider community.
- Reassure parents that all teachers – male or female – are qualified, vetted, and held to the same professional standards.
If a parent chooses to leave because the service employs male teachers, that is their decision. However, many parents who initially feel unsure often change their view once they see a male teacher interacting positively and professionally with children. Sometimes it simply takes time and trust‑building for past experiences or fears to soften.
7. Why would a man want to work in Early Childhood Education?
Dr Alexander reports that in her research she has found that many of the men who take up early childhood teaching come to it, not as a first career choice, but after working for years at a job they find unsatisfying to them and where they could not make use of their interests and talents.
There are negative consequences for boys and men of not making open to them a full range of occupations and allowing the female connotation to early childhood work to remain. Men are not all the same. No man benefits from having a single form of ‘masculinity’ (of what it is to be a ‘man’) expected of them. Trying to live up to a single ‘masculine norm’ can be demeaning of the interests of different men and of them as individuals.
Continuing occupational segregation and biasing ECE to being a female job hurts women also.
8. Advice for Encouraging Teenage Boys to Consider ECE
Dr Sarah Alexander notes that many young men would enjoy working with young children, but are discouraged by assumptions that early childhood teaching is “not a job for men.” Others simply need meaningful exposure to young children to discover that ECE work is rewarding and that they can build strong, positive connections with children.
Most early childhood centres welcome visits from local high schools. These visits can inspire students to consider ECE as a career and help centres identify potential future staff for on‑the‑job training.
What schools and career guidance counsellors can do
- Invite a male teacher to speak: Hearing directly from a male ECE teacher helps normalise the career choice and provides a relatable role model.
- Ensure ECE teaching is visible at career events: Include accurate, appealing information about ECE in career days and student packs.
- Integrate child‑related learning into the curriculum: Assignments on child development or social studies topics related to ECE help students understand the complexity and importance of the work.
- Present ECE as skilled, challenging professional work: Emphasise the technical, relational, and safety aspects of the role, from supporting children who may have experienced trauma to teaching early numeracy through play.
- Arrange small‑group visits to centres: Sending two or three boys at a time helps them feel comfortable and gives them hands‑on experience with children.
- Work with centre managers on additional opportunities: Projects like helping with building activities, assisting at fundraising events, or supporting outdoor play can spark interest.
- Ensure all boys in a class participate: When only a few boys visit, peers may stigmatise them. If each of the boys are required to visit this normalises the experience and reduces social pressure.
- Discuss expectations before and after visits: Guided reflection helps boys process their experiences and recognise their strengths.
What can ECE services do?
- Make students feel genuinely welcome: Greet them warmly, introduce them to staff, introduce them to children, and help them feel part of the team from the moment they arrive.
- Give clear direction: Don’t leave students unsure about what to do. Offer simple, structured tasks so they can participate confidently.
- Provide hands‑on activities: Suggest practical ideas such as helping children make puppets, supporting a small group activity, or assisting with outdoor play.
9. Men’s Stories
For Joshua McKay, working in early childhood education is something of a family occupation. His wife Sarah is an ECE teacher.
Joshua says his interactions with his two young boys encouraged him to train to work with children.
“Not only do I want the best for our boys but I just enjoy spending time with them and doing great things together like building our mega tree-house in the back yard,” he says.
“They just love this interaction so much that it makes sense for me to work with other children and maybe encourage others to do the same”.
A number of men have shared their stories and you can read these.
10. Men in Childcare Scholarships
Men are more likely to enter early childhood teaching when the sector actively welcomes them. The Men in ECE Invitation Award supports men to begin formal training toward an ECE teaching qualification recognised by the Teaching Council.
If you’re a man interested in becoming an ECE teacher, or if you’d like to help as a sponsor, please contact us and let us know.
