Many assume that someone’s ability to work and perform certain jobs is based largely on their gender, since there may be a higher percentage of certain gender in specific jobs. Specifically, teaching tends to have more females than males, leading to the belief that women are more apt when it comes to leading classrooms. This however, is not true because there are plenty of female teachers who do not create a comfortable learning environment, and there are many male teachers who are known to be extremely welcoming and friendly.
Many assume that since the majority of teachers are female, they are more qualified. For example, Zippia revelas that 71.1% of all educators are women, but only 28.9% are men. These statistics lead people to believe that since there are more female teachers than that means that they are better at their job. This is not the case because it all depends on how the teacher was taught their ability to put the students first. Studies have shown that there are more male doctors than female ones and even though this might be true, it does not mean that women are less capable of doing their job.
Some may say that male teachers are more strict and harsh when it comes to supporting students and female teachers tend to have a better temper and are more professional. Dr. Fatima Islahi and Dr. Nasreen, from the Aligarh Muslim University, discuss how male teachers are known to be more strict towards students whereas female teachers are more flexible. ¨Female teachers were reported to be more supportive, expressive, nurturing, informal and open toward students. Male teachers, however, tended to be dominating, exacting and exercise greater control.¨ It is assumed that women have a natural nurturing nature when it comes to dealing with students´ problems. This separates men and women and causes students to have an automatic preference.
It is true that some male teachers are strict and not as well-liked but there are also many female teachers who are known to be stern and lack leniency. A quality cannot be pinned on a certain group of people because of their gender. A couple of trending teacher qualities cannot define a whole gender of highly proficient and respectful ones. For example, a well-liked and respected male teacher at Thunderbird is Mr. Unsworth, who teaches AP and regular U.S. History. A junior who takes his class describes him as funny and interesting.
¨He lets everyone be involved, and by calling on people randomly he allows an environment that can be relaxed, as well as interesting. Students need to listen in order to retain information, and he makes it so that students can be heard and be involved in class conversations.¨ Mr. Unsworth allows students to feel comfortable, heard, and prepared in his class. He is a perfect example of a teacher who puts his students first, even though this is a quality often mistaken as not belonging to male teachers.
In all, no one should judge a teacher’s ability to perform well based on their gender. The teacher’s qualifications and teaching skills should dictate someone’s final thoughts on them.
