World News

We could be seeing dads working as educators and more kids benefiting from contact with men if Dean Severinsen has his way.

Less than 2% of staff employed at childcare and kindergarten centres are men, and men are even scarcer in licensed home-based ECE.  

Many children in NZ spend little or no time in the company of a responsible male adult.  Few Dads get the opportunity to spend meaningful periods of time with their own children.

As a follow up to the great meeting we had in June with our friends from Ontario I submit this summary of the work they are doing and encourage you to follow the links that lead to great material.

A Sault Ste. Marie/Algoma District Campaign

A campaign to attract more men into childcare in Surrey has seen unprecedented interest, it has been revealed.

Since the campaign was launched by Surrey County Council (SCC) in April, almost 100 men have made inquiries to the local authority about getting involved.

Thirty-seven men recently took part in an information session given by staff at the Early Years and Childcare Service, the first time any men have attended such an even in Surrey.

A website set up to give men information on working in childcare has also attracted more than 3,000 visitors.

If you think only women are interested in teaching kindergarten kids, it's time to think the opposite.

More than 10,000 men in East China's Jiangsu province have reportedly applied for a five-year training program to teach in preschools. But the program, conducted by three normal colleges in Nanjing, can only enroll 300.

In the wake of the many sexual allegation cases that rocked the nation involving teachers and students, male teachers from various schools on the island participated in a one-day seminar hosted

by the Bahamas Union of Teachers (BUT) yesterday to share their concerns about the profession.

The State Government wants more male teachers in classrooms amid concern many boys are lacking role models.

Only one in five state primary school teachers is male, but new figures show the tide may be turning. Education Minister Bronwyn Pike said  that men were responding to special programs to recruit teachers.

"Male teachers are crucial role models for school-aged children and I urge all men to consider teaching as a career path," she said.

We enjoyed a great EC-MENz Summit in Peel Forest, Canterbury, New Zealand, deep in the wild country, this time. We had an emphasis on the different approaches that men can bring to the education of highly active children, encouraging managed risk-taking among children, and exploring the natural environment from a child's view.

Aspley Early Learning Centre director Susie Bell has been overseeing some innovative staffing since arriving in October.

The centre has two male staff members, Brian Bugden and Tristan Bell-Blissner, who are proving a big hit with the children.

Ms Bell said having male staff was unusual for the childcare sector but she said it had become a selling point at Aspley, which caters for more than 100 families.

We have had four Summits in Wellington, Christchurch, Dunedin and Auckland. This year we are going to be slightly different and have it at Peel Forest in South Canterbury.

[MenTeach: There are several interesting websites available in Europe that are in English reports Dr. Tim Rohrmann who works in the Coordination office men in ECE out of Berlin, Germany. Check out several of the sites - you'll find some exciting new work!]

[MenTeach: See what other community organizations are doing to recruit more men to teaching].

As a self-employed joiner, Co Down man Patrick Coulter used to spend his working life organising sub contractors and chasing clients for unpaid bills. Now he earns a wage from, among other duties, icing fairy cakes, putting plasters on knees and telling stories.

Primary school children risk facing a lack of adult male role models, as fewer than 20 per cent of primary school teachers are male.

While the number of female primary school teachers continue to grow, it appears male educators are a rare breed.

Mark Osborne, from Immaculate Heart Primary, is one of only two male teachers at the Leichhardt school.

Fewer than one in five students studying teaching in the state's universities and TAFEs are male as the exodus of men from schools worsens.

South Australian Tertiary Admissions Centre figures for 2009 show there are 152 males (or 19 per cent) and 650 females enrolled in teaching courses.

Chu Hoang Tung's parents were very surprised to see a man teaching their son's class when Tung entered the fifth grade at Le Ngoc Han Primary School.

Tung's mother Nguyen Thi Thoa says she had never seen a male primary school teacher when her older daughter, now a university student, was in school.