Vested Interest
newbie
Posts: 16
Reg: 02-08-06
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 04-29-09 08:29 PM - Post#84368
Does anyone else wonder why it seems that the administration will not hire men into the Principal or Assistant Principal positions at the elementary schools? I know there are men applying, even former AISD Assistant Principals, but they just don't seem to have a chance. The principals we have now are all wonderful and I am not saying they should not be there or that they should be replaced. I just think there should be a few more men in those positions. Four new principal positions were announced today and none of them were men.
Edited by Vested Interest on 04-29-09 08:31 PM. Reason for edit: No reason given.
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Pollyanna
enthusiast
Posts: 1039
Reg: 08-16-04
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04-29-09 09:36 PM - Post#84377
In response to Vested Interest
Hmmmm . . . this is the same thing women were saying about men, oh about what, 40 years ago?
Good job ladies!
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V-Girl
enthusiast
Posts: 2709
Loc: Allen, TX, US
Reg: 07-12-01
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04-29-09 09:40 PM - Post#84378
In response to Vested Interest
Not sure, but when I was a kid I went to Rountree and my principal was Mr. Marion. He was great and helped my family through some difficult times.
Crazy doesn't even begin to cover it. 
Will work for shoes!  |
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sco
enthusiast
Posts: 2671
Loc: allen,TX USA
Reg: 10-26-02
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04-29-09 09:53 PM - Post#84381
In response to Vested Interest
From what I have seen most principals are former teachers. At my daughter's elementary school there is exactly one male teacher. It doesn't take a genius to do the math and see that there are likely to be more female principals. I think the real question is why more men aren't attracted to teaching jobs.
In an unscientific survey of the AISD website I found 1 male principal and 3 assistants at elementary schools. I found 4 male assistants at the middle schools. I didn't bother looking at the high school although I happen to know the head principal is male.
Edited by sco on 04-29-09 10:10 PM. Reason for edit: No reason given.
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FB247
newbie
Posts: 17
Reg: 01-05-09
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04-30-09 10:34 PM - Post#84491
In response to sco
There needs to be more positive male role models in all of our schools.
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Brewer
enthusiast
Posts: 1289
Reg: 06-02-07
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04-30-09 10:41 PM - Post#84494
In response to FB247
I second that!! The first male teacher I saw at my son's school needed to tuck in his shirt,comb his hair and put on something other than sandals. These folks need to understand that our kids do sometimes look up to them and see them as role models. B
A good plan violently executed now is better than a perfect plan executed next week.
-GEN George S. Patton
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rclark
enthusiast
Posts: 800
Loc: Allen, TX
Reg: 01-16-08
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04-30-09 11:02 PM - Post#84496
In response to sco
... I think the real question is why more men aren't attracted to teaching jobs. ...
I think there is a real pressure to get men out of elementary education, mostly from parents that don't trust them. Also, given that a male teacher is one accusation away from having his life destroyed, I'm not surprised that few men are attracted to teaching.
Two plus two equals five, for sufficiently large values of two.
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ChrisH
enthusiast
Posts: 375
Reg: 07-30-08
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05-01-09 08:50 AM - Post#84504
In response to rclark
Very well put and I do believe your onto something.
My wife has an old friend that taught at a school in Dallas. He was having issues with a few kids listening in class and the next thing he know, he is getting in trouble because 2 of those particular kids went to the counsellor and said he was sexually harassing them.
There was a big investigation and he two girls finally confessed they lied, but he was still suspended from teaching during the investigation.
He is no longer a teacher.
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bigsis
member
Posts: 25
Reg: 05-13-08
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05-01-09 04:57 PM - Post#84575
In response to ChrisH
I also suspect that many males do not teach because the pay isn't enough to support their family, especially if they have made the choice to have the mom stay home. I don't think the issue is males don't want to teach, it is they can't afford to teach. Also, usually the males that do teach, their ultimate goal is administration because the pay is higher.
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Retired 1
enthusiast
Posts: 1168
Reg: 02-20-02
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05-01-09 07:21 PM - Post#84596
In response to bigsis
Very true. It's mostly about the money. Look at the tradition and evolution of teaching. The mothers are the nurturing adult and teachers of our societies and that's where it all started. Over time we've had males enter the mix...which is good.
I like where the starting salaries are now but they don't have healthy pay scales. The pay range between starters and ones with 10 or 20 years is a joke. Pay more...
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lynn
member
Posts: 79
Loc: Allen
Reg: 03-08-05
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05-02-09 11:59 PM - Post#84708
In response to Retired 1
The pay range between starters and ones with 10 or 20 years is a joke. Pay more...
Thank you for that comment. It is something that needs to be addressed soon, before we lose many more veteran teachers.
We have had effective male principals in Allen over the years. I have often wondered the same thing I wonder about male teachers: how do they support their families?
I don't have any statistics to back up my opinion, but my feeling is that it is financial limits and not AISD's hiring limits that keep the number of male administrators to a minimum.
Maybe someone can come up with an effective plan to change that. Until then, we have excellent leadership provided by the principals that we have now, both women and men.
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DrivinTooFast
enthusiast
Posts: 1353
Reg: 02-20-08
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09-16-09 03:11 PM - Post#95303
In response to lynn
As a male, there is no way I would take a teaching job. The chance of getting falsely accused is too great.
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Aolain
enthusiast
Posts: 1196
Reg: 11-13-06
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10-10-09 07:32 PM - Post#97211
In response to DrivinTooFast
Before I got my Ph.D., I considered teaching in secondary education. A friend of mine in law enforcement said this (edited for content):
"I would not do it, all it taks is one of those little B123456s to accuse you of something, and it is all over; you are guilty until proven innocent."
Good advise!
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Mrshu_1
newbie
Posts: 2
Reg: 04-07-10
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04-07-10 12:24 PM - Post#108412
In response to Aolain
I'm a male elementary school teacher. It is true that there are not many men that teach in the lower levels. From my experience in talking to other men teachers it all basically came down to the fact that they didn't want to teach the young ones. All teachers, especially male teachers, have to be mindful of everything always, but I have never worried about being falsely accused of anything much. It has been my experience that parents have not worried about their children having a male teacher either. Of course if parents had issues with their kids having a male teacher I know they would not share them with me, so I’m basing my conclusion on the fact that men teachers, for the most part, are the most requested teachers among parents. I have had parents camp out over night at a school to try to get their kids in my class. So I really think that is more comfort level of the age most men prefer teaching. As another poster said, when you have mostly women teaching in elementary schools, you will more than likely see women in the positions of principal. That is my two cents. It may not be typical. I’m an elementary school teacher, who stopped teaching for a few years here to be a Stay At Home Dad. So things that I do second nature are not the typical things that a lot of men do. However I would not trade being an elementary teacher or a Stay At Home Father for anything else.
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texmomma
enthusiast
Posts: 485
Reg: 10-02-06
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04-07-10 04:32 PM - Post#108424
In response to Mrshu_1
Thanks for posting your perspective. We need more teachers (and dads) like you, I think our kids would be so much better for more male presence in the schools, especially since so many kids today don't have that in their homes for one reason or another.
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civicminded
Community Guide
Posts: 9256
Loc: Lone Star State
Reg: 04-24-02
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04-07-10 08:37 PM - Post#108431
In response to texmomma
I would like to teach, and enjoy my opportunities as an instructor these many years. I'm good with the younger set and would hope to be there someday if I get enough college. Unfortunately that is why some of us can't "sub" either.
I would not speak for other dudes, though my many friends and family in teaching might understand....that working with the older ones, one might be more tempted to get their attention the way they do not get at home, and the PC police might boot us out, haha. So I applaud the males that do participate. Schools like in Scouting, are about education and not discipline, so somewhere we must educate parents about discipline. It's absolutely critical to preparing the learning environment. Even the fun parts of the learning atmosphere benefits from structured program and objectives.
Happy to know an example that was my sixth grade teacher in Mesquite, and spent time in Allen ISD as the "super" before returning to Mesquite. He exhibited male leadership often enough to set some good examples.
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