More Male Educators, Please!

The latest figures are in and the results are staggering - men in the child care sector are scarce and we just can't understand it! There's so much to offer both men and women in this space, so why the disparity? In centre based child care, only 4.1 per cent of the staff are male and only 3.6 per cent of men make up family day care educators. To us, those figures are alarming! If you have any experience with young children, you will understand why men, in this already struggling sector, are so important.

Incredible benefits

For a sector facing severe staff shortages and high demand, it seems unsustainable to only source employees from 50 per cent of the population. For men to be successfully integrated into the child care workforce the sector needs to recognise the unique skills that men bring to child care education and not expect men to provide care in exactly the same way as their female counterparts.

In fact, one of the reasons they should be so highly sought after is because they offer such a unique way of educating with different perspectives. 

Obstacles

In the past, there have been some pretty crazy reasons why centres have distanced themselves from actively seeking men to fill roles in their centres. Some cite parental distrust, some even going as far as ensuring there are 'buddy' systems in place so men are not left alone with children. Thankfully, we have come a long way from those archaic thoughts - and rightly so. 

We spoke to Ryan from Great Beginnings, Gilles Plains about his vast experience in the Early Childhood Education sector and some of the issues surrounding male educators.

"For so many years, the question when coming up against parental reluctance was, 'why do men want to work with children?' And the question really should be, 'why not?'. The early childhood sector is so rewarding, there are so many opportunities to build meaningful relationships with children, their parents, and of course other educators."

We find out about one of these, in particular, a little later on.

"Be Yourself!"

When it comes to any advice Ryan would pass on to men entering the ECEC sector, he passed on a wealth of knowledge only years of experience could deliver. 

"Be yourself and make sure you’re entering the sector with a passion for early childhood education and care. If you're true to yourself, confident and passionate, you will go far. Early learning isn't about playing, it's about educating, learning, teaching and mentoring. Always be mindful of your spoken language as well as body language and how you conduct yourself."

Ryan also suggests finding your village. “It’s important to have support in your centre, for everyone to look out for each other, and to hold each other to professional standards.” 

When looking to overcome hurdles should you come up against them, Ryan suggests a few things. 

"Conduct real introductions. Let parents decide for themselves how to approach the situation. Being transparent is really important and getting a gauge for how they feel is imperative to building healthy relationships with parents."

Mentoring Men in Childcare

Attracting men into the sector isn't easy but retention, in Ryan's case is! Not only has he been with G8 Education for 12 years, he's been in the childhood education sector for 20! He says that the sector needs to attract more men and invest in mentoring and supporting them through. In fact, one of his biggest moments of pride is of his leadership role within G8 for an incredible 10 years, supporting all of the team, not just men but there are two that stand out in his mind. 

"I'm exceptionally proud of all those that I have mentored but there are two men in the sector who are both now incredible leaders - one, a centre director and another, an educational leader. And it is stories like theirs that I enjoy following up on and seeing their progress." 

The Children

Of course, there would be no sector without children and while there have been no doubt hundreds that Ryan has personally cared for over the years, there was one, in particular, that gave us goosebumps. Ryan fondly recalled a story of a child he educated right through their early years, to kindy graduation. That same child was in touch not all that long ago - at age 15 (!!!) thanking him for the time through his early learning years and reminding him of the impact he had on his life.

"It's important to remember the responsibility we as educators have on the children in our care. And to that point, it's important to know the impact," said Ryan.

If that's not a feel good story, we don't know what is! 

The Parents

We might have touched on the parents that have previously shown reluctance but Ryan has mentioned, thankfully, those are few and far between these days. We reached out to a mum with children in care to find out what her thoughts were on having male educators in the room. 

"I feel like male educators are such a rarity - if I was choosing between two similar centres and one happened to have some male educators, I would definitely choose that one. Diversity of all kinds is important to me - I love the idea of my children having different kinds of role models and seeing both males and females in caring roles," says Kate.

"At Mia's new child care I was absolutely delighted when I picked her up and saw all the children sitting listening to a story read by a male educator. To me it felt like a special novelty almost - for the children, it was of course completely normal and they were just so happy, enjoying the story. I don't think male or female matters to them - they will be drawn to an educator for their personality and they way they interact and engage."

We'd love your input!

We couldn't be more excited to hear your stories about men in the ECEC sector. If you are a male educator or have a great story about men in the industry, we would love to hear from you! Get in touch with us at editor@careforkids.com.au

Special mention to Ryan from Great Beginnings for sharing your experieince, insights and stories with us!