Monday, June 8, 2009
Week #4 Eureka Moment
I work in an elementary school. As many of us may know, elementary schools are basically dominated by female teachers. Now at this particular school I did my internship with in high school and also my college field work. All in all, I have been there for nine years now working with many different women of all ages, creeds, ethnicities, etc. In so doing, one would think I’d accumulate a greater understanding of the female mind. However, this is very untrue. In fact, during the past nine years I have become even more confused, but it’s okay, I’ve learned to accept it. Meanwhile, I have been able to note the various behavioral differences among the two sexes. One that stands out is the group social dynamics among women that don’t necessarily share the same age and views. And in that, I have noticed that in comparison with the small group of male teachers, the women are much more competitive in the workplace, grade/unit settings, etc. than the males are. Additionally, when it comes to administrative dealings, I also noticed that women seem to take issues much more personally. In contrast, in the workplace the males are more laid back and less competitive. And then during out-of-school activities like community sports or fund raisers, it is, of course, the men who become the competitive ones. This doesn’t take anything away from anyone’s ability to teach, it is all relative and everyone I work with is very talented and devoted. I’m sure this can probably translate to other occupations as well, but I was wondering if anyone could comment on possibly the origins or reasons behind this? Or even to disagree.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I have worked in three different school settings. Two of which were alternative school,run by male principals, and the one I am at now is a charter school with a female principal. Most of the students that I come in contact with are from the inner city of Trenton. What I have discovered is this population is very emotionally challenging. Considering females are stereotyped as caring, I find it ironic that the schools run by males seemed to be more in touch with staff and often recognized how emotionally exhausting our jobs were. On several occasions when the kids had half days, the staff was allowed to leave after the kids were gone. The principals would inform us of a job well done and to take the time to rejuvenate.
ReplyDeleteI am finishing my first year at this charter school and not once have I heard anything positive about our performance. This has proven to be the hardest job I have had as an assistant and have been made to stay on half days, only to kill time. I believe that our principal understands how stressful our jobs are, but enjoys the control she has over us and when reading your blog it brought to mind how I have witnessed this control issue in other jobs when it came to women.