The federal government's solution to the shortage of males in the school system is worse than the problem. Diny Slamet reports.

The Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commissioner thinks it's a bad idea. The public and private sector education unions think it's a bad idea. The deans of education at our tertiary institutions think it's a bad idea.

Yet the federal government continues to pursue a course that it believes will be a panacea for the gender problems in our schools, namely, the dearth of male teachers who can provide “role models for boys”.

The government's move to amend the Sex Discrimination Act to allow teaching scholarships to be awarded to male students prompts a couple of questions. Is there any evidence that indicates HECS fees are the reason why men are not studying to be teachers? Has the government taken into consideration the real issues why men are not going into teaching? The answer is 'no'.

The government does not have to go too far to discover what those real issues are. There's the work of academics such as Jill Blackmore, professor of education at Deakin University, and Janet Smith at the University of Canberra, or the findings of the New South Wales government's Stewart inquiry into male teacher numbers.

They have found that men find teaching unappealing because of poor remuneration and conditions, child protection concerns and, despite the general respect accorded to the profession, its low status. In a somewhat vicious circle, according to the Stewart inquiry, the lack of male teachers also discourages other men from joining the profession. These are matters that will not be easily solved by the mere granting of scholarships.

Adapt existing programs

When the Federal Sex Discrimination Commissioner Pru Goward declined the Catholic Education Office's application for an exemption to offer 12 male-only scholarships, she did give the government a few alternatives. “If the government wants more male teachers, there are many programs that could encourage male teacher students without requiring amendment to the Sex Discrimination Act, or introducing a discriminatory scholarship scheme,” she said.

“Successful programs that have worked to allow more women into traditionally male-dominated professions can all be adapted to encourage young men into teaching. For example, sending young male teacher students to [secondary] schools to encourage young men to consider the career, or supporting career counsellors to promote the benefits of a teaching career could be useful beginnings.

“There are any number of alternative programs that are not discriminatory and which do not need a legislative amendment, such as paying teachers more. The simple fact is that young men are not attracted to teaching because they can earn better money elsewhere. As 'women's work', it has never been remunerated properly.”

Child protection issues

There is a pervasive attitude that primary teaching is an extension of mothering, which makes it difficult for many young men to see themselves in that job. But an even more significant issue for men is the fear of accusations of paedophilia. Tony Stewart, the MP that conducted the NSW inquiry into male teacher numbers, has said that child protection issues had to be clarified, because many male teachers worried about touching children for fear of their actions being misconstrued.

A male teacher lamented in one newspaper report how he thought twice about placing an arm around the shoulder of a distressed child. “They talk about being a role model to children, but I can't necessarily role model compassion to them,” he said. AEU federal president Pat Byrne says the focus over the past 15 years on child protection has made it problematic for men entering or already in the profession. “The child protection issue is, in fact, one of the reasons that young men give for not going into teaching, because if they want to be involved, particularly with young children in primary school, they are concerned they will be seen as strange and that something is wrong because that's 'not what men do'.

“It seems to me there are so many other broader societal pressures around the reasons why men don't go into teaching that are completely being overlooked by the federal government's short-term, knee-jerk response,” she says. “This is a ridiculous response that makes it look like they're doing something significant when in fact they are not.”

Role models needed

The rationale for the exemption application by the Catholic Education Office (CEO) was to increase the number of male primary teachers so that boys would have male role models. The CEO believes that having access to male role models would help improve the “substantive equality of boys and girls in primary schools.”

But even if more men were interested in becoming teachers, they do not, in and of themselves, necessarily provide good role models for boys. What characteristics of 'masculinity' are desired for young boys and what are the characteristics that these boys are thought to be lacking that role models can provide? Those who have worked with gender education say that expecting male teachers to provide role models, without professional development and the skills and training to engage boys in thinking about gender issues, could reinforce traditional and undesirable notions of dominant masculinity.

And, while on the subject of role models, Byrne wonders why the federal government is quiet on the lack of female role models in leadership positions in schools and education departments and in the subject areas of science, maths and IT? “We have concerns that the focus in this debate on men in primary schools simply reinforces the existing difficulty that there are still comparatively few female role models in promotional positions,” she says.

In Victoria, for example, while 83 per cent of primary classroom teachers are women, 55.4 per cent of primary principals are men. To many, the reality of a male principal in charge of an overwhelmingly female staff presents to children the archetypal model of gender and power.

Mary Bluett, branch president of the Victorian AEU, told The Age newspaper that there was often a strong expectation a male teacher would aspire to become a principal. “If you are a male over 35 and not a principal, there are questions about you,” she said. This pressure on male teachers to leave the classroom to seek promotion and the converse reluctance of women to do the same has also exacerbated the shortage of male teachers.

Not a parent substitute

Byrne wonders what Federal Education Minister Brendan Nelson means when he talks about role models for boys. “They are certainly getting male role models in promotional positions. But if what he's talking about is that boys don't have fathers at home and need male teachers to provide those fatherly role models, then I reject that it's the role of teachers to do that.”

Byrne says teachers are there to provide essential development, learning, guidance and inspiration for their students and are not to be regarded as substitute parents. The wider social issues of single-parent families, absent parents, youth suicide, violence and crime should not be considered solely the responsibility of teachers and schools.

“There is a wider societal problem out there as to how men and women are interacting with their children once their relationships break up. So what they should be focusing on is working with those men about how they should be relating to their children. It seems to me that is where you would target your attention, rather than thinking the school will pick up and deal with yet another social problem,” she says. “Too often I think teachers are expected to solve every social ill.”

Sexism and homophobia

According to Senator Brian Greig, the Democrats spokesman on sexuality issues, there is a more odious sentiment driving the role-models-for-boys debate. In an article in The Age newspaper, Senator Greig wrote: “Scratch the surface of these arguments and what you really find is good old-fashioned sexism and homophobia. The unstated concern about boys being raised by single mums, living in lesbian households and taught by female teachers is the notion that this produces an “effeminisation” of males, and the fear it may lead to homosexuality itself.

“The myth of the 'overbearing mother and distant father' as the cause of male homosexuality is alive and well. Thus, the 'crisis in masculinity' is little more than a diversionary debate that hides what more properly might be regarded as the real crisis of masculinity. That is, many men's general anxiety about homosexuality and discomfort with female authority.

“Neither Howard nor Latham have expressed any concern about girls being raised by dads or girls not having a balance of male teachers in the classroom. Neither Howard nor Latham has expressed any concern about the glass ceiling for women in the workplace, nor the low numbers of women found in areas such as science, engineering or politics.”

Although the Catholic Education Office has now said it will offer an additional 12 scholarships to women, the government's zeal in pursuing the legislative amendment has left many in the equal opportunity field baffled.

Less protection

The president of the NSW Equal Employment Opportunity Practitioners' Association, Juliet Bourke, says her organisation would support the government's plan to boost low male teacher numbers—by means other than changing the Sex Discrimination Act. But the government would need to signal an equal commitment to redressing the very low representation of women in other occupations. Bourke hopes the government's spotlight on male under-representation in one industry will help highlight women's under-representation across most industries, pointing to the fact that women hold only eight per cent of senior positions in the ASX 200.

“From a policy perspective, one of the ramifications of the government's action is that it sets a precedent for winding back the operation of the Sex Discrimination Act,” she says. “Generally the scope of discrimination laws are seen to be constantly increasing to give greater protection to people. What this amendment is doing is actually reducing the ambit of the legislation, which is contrary to general policy.

“What concerns us most is that there's no assurance that making the amendment will in fact achieve the outcomes that the government is proposing. We would certainly want to encourage talented men and women into teaching. Single-sex domination of any area isn't desirable, but the real issue here is the way change is going to happen,” she says.

“Amending a piece of legislation is a very knee-jerk reaction that purports to show a government is doing something. But the issues are really much deeper than that and require long-term solutions.”

Goward says the amendment, if successful, will mean that, for the first time, government can “legislate for a quota, for affirmative action”. Speaking on ABC radio in March, Goward said providing male-only scholarships might not attract more men into teaching, but may mean that those boys who were already interested in doing teaching would now get scholarships to do it, where once they did not.

“Once you start talking about affirmative action and you legislate for it in Australia, then you would start to talk about affirmative action for women as professors, affirmative action for all sorts of areas where there is a shortage—still of women —including, of course, in politics. You might have to offer extra pay to women to get them to do parliamentary work.

“My view is that merit, fair go and equal opportunity is the best way to do it. It's the fairest way to do it and it stops men resenting women,” said Goward. “Australia's always prided itself on the merit principle and on sticking to it, and you wouldn't be surprised if a lot of other people felt this was not fair to them, to their daughters and to their interests…why have we had to do this before we've explored some other options?”

That is a very good question.

DINY SLAMET is a freelance writer.

Web: See the AEU website for submission material and further resources on Boys' Education and Male Teacher Strategy at www.aeufederal.org.au/Women/index2.html