"THE MEMBERS OF OUR PROFESSION ARE PREDOMINANTLY FEMALE"
"Most of us early childhood professionals prefer to confine our sights to what seems possible, rather than face the pain of what Longston Hughes called 'a deferred dream' (Carter, 22)." We, women shouldn't have to feel this way. Do you think men in our profession feel the same way? Do they feel more able to receive the recognition and resources in our profession? Do they face the pain that every struggling female teacher faces?
Our profession may be undermined, but if we feel as passionate as we should towards our profession we, the teachers, should be doing something about it, shouldn't we? YES, I think we should. We should be taking a stand, especially for our children. I mean isn't this the reason why were in this profession, for the children? To take a stand for the children! To be advocates for the children?
Aren't we for the children as well?
We are women, we make up majority of this profession. Why should we have to play by the rules and go according to only what is offered? Why cant we receive the resources and recognition we deserve? Instead we have to go out and get it on our own. Maybe that's why women are fit best for this profession. We're doers, we go out and get what we want when we want it. When I needed a close line that would fit on a child's table I went out and used my own resources, my husband, to make me a close line. When I needed beach supplies and sea creatures I went to my community for used beach toys, and I asked the fishermen to supply me with some catchable sea creatures. When I need to laminate a poster, I went to my sister to use her large laminator. I used my own networks, and I plan on extending my networks in order to get the resources and recognition I need.
"And in a world where resources are controlled by predominately male priorities, (Carter, 22)."
We are in a society where we are equal, and I understand that we may not be viewed as equal. This shouldn't stop us from fighting for resources and recognition. We should put ourselves out there. Yes, we have been fighting, but we should continue to fight.
We chose this profession it didn't chose us. We knew before hand that our pay isn't great, and that our resources may be a struggle to find. We should continue to expand our networks, work with our communities, and learn from our children's families.
I enjoy this profession and that's why I'm in it.
I aspire to become "A teacher!"
This is our profession!
Written: September 16, 2013
I enjoyed reading your posting because of all the good pictures with comments you had as well. I think the same as you that when it comes to our profession, we as teachers seem to love it considering it's pretty much a 24/7 job. Like you mentioned how you go to your sister's to borrow her lamination machine, go to the beach to collect beach items or go to the store to buy something for a project. These are all things relating to your classroom yet we do them on our own time.
ReplyDeleteDo you think that men could appreciate us more if they were put in our shoes? Yes our profession is mostly women, but there are men too. At some of my HCC classes, I've seen 2-3 boys in my classes and I thought,"Wow I give them credit." I think that because not only are they boys, but they must love kids as much as I do in order to this. I'm doing my practicum II at the Leeward Community College Child Care Center and there's a man teacher. I really do look up to him because he's really good at what he does. The children don't treat him differently based on his gender and they absolutely love him. I think that because this profession is mainly women, we also have to consider equality. Women can stand up for what they believe in and we as teachers just need to keep doing what we're doing and make the best out of it for the sake of our children.
What does it say about society when Educators beg for more resources and materials but rarely ever get them and entertainers receive thousands to millions of dollars for an eighth the time? Due to the amount of dedication in which most teachers posses the text forced me to ask myself, many materials found within the classroom where purchased by the teacher herself and most likely her personal time went into organizing and prepping her classroom. The text encourages us to ask ourselves when do I say enough is enough? Children deserve the highest quality items? I work hard, when will I receive proper recognition? Do I speak up and say something? but what? to who? How can I organize my actions towards creating a personal stance within the ECE community?
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