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Choosing to Teach: Perceptionsof Male Preservice Teachers inEarly Childhood and ElementaryEducationJames C. Stroud a , Lawrence L Smith a , Lenore T. Ealy b &Rosemary Hurst aa Ball State University , Muncie, Indianab Carmel, IndianaPublished online: 07 Jul 2006.

To cite this article: James C. Stroud , Lawrence L Smith , Lenore T. Ealy & Rosemary Hurst(2000) Choosing to Teach: Perceptions of Male Preservice Teachers in Early Childhoodand Elementary Education, Early Child Development and Care, 163:1, 49-60, DOI:10.1080/0300443001630104

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Early Child Development and Care, 2000, Vol. 163, pp. 49-60Reprints available directly from the publisherPhotocopying permitted by license only

© 2000 OPA (Overseas Publishers Association) N.V.Published by license under

the Gordon and Breach Publishers imprintPrinted in Singapore.

Choosing to Teach: Perceptions of MalePreservice Teachers in Early Childhood andElementary Education

JAMES C. STROUD1, LAWRENCE L SMITH1, LENORE T. EALY2

and ROSEMARY HURST1

1Ball State University, Muncie, Indiana2Carmel, Indiana

(Received 6 April 2000)

Despite documentation of shortages of male teachers and numerous efforts by schoolofficials to recruit more male teachers (Cohen, 1992; Wood and Hoag, 1993), thepercent of men teaching in American public schools (elementary and secondary) hasdeclined during the past twenty-five years. (NCES, 1997). This is widely seen as aproblem, especially given assumptions and research findings about the importance ofpositive male role models for children, particularly those from single-female-parentfamilies and inner-city boys (Holland, 1991; Griffith, 1991; McCarthy, 1995; Vroegh,1976; Canada, 1998). The reluctance of men to choose teaching as a career has beenascribed to low salaries, stereotypes of male and female roles, perceived lack of statusof teachers, and highly publicized sex-abuse cases (Cohen, 1992; Banas, 1992; Banas,1993; Wood and Hoag, 1993). Recent informal surveys indicate that enrollment of menin collegiate early childhood and elementary education programs is on the rise. Thisis a welcome indicator of growing interest among males in pursuing teaching as acareer. Further exploration of this interest can help us understand how to recruit moremen into the profession. The authors report the findings of interviews with male pre-service teachers, exploring reasons for their choice of early childhood and elementaryeducation and their attitudes toward the traditional reasons cited for male avoidanceof teaching careers. Finally, they present recommendations for recruitment strategiesfor male teachers.

Key words: Early childhood, male teachers, pre-service, perceptions

BACKGROUND

In recent years, increasing attention has been paid to numbers of males in theteaching profession in the United States. Reporting statistics from 1961 to 1996,the 1997 Digest of Education Statistics indicates that the number of men teachingin public schools has declined from 34.3% in 1971 to only 25.6% in 1996 (Table69). The numbers do not change significantly when private school teachers arecounted. The Digest reports that in 1993-94 approximately 73% of the nation's 2.5

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million public and private school teachers (K-12) were female. In elementaryschools, males are even a rarer breed, hovering around 11-12% of the elementaryteaching force.

The 3:1 ratio of female-to-male teachers (9:1 in elementary schools) has beenviewed by many as a serious problem. Overwhelmingly, those concerned about therelative shortage of male teachers take their departure from assumptions that thepresence of male role models is important for the social and emotional developmentof male children. In the late 1960s, when the call for male teachers began to beincreasingly heard, there was little empirical evidence to support assumptions aboutthe positive impact of male teachers on boys, especially those without fathers.Subsequent research has both endorsed the assumption (e.g., Dawson, 1971) andconcluded that there is little evidence that male teachers have a significantlystronger influence on academic achievement (Gold and Reis, 1978; Vroegh, 1976).

Though differences of scholarly opinion on the impact of male teachers onacademic achievement of students persist, social commentators and journalists haverecently picked up the call to increase numbers of men teaching in elementaryschools (Griffith, 1991; Banas, 1992; McCarthy, 1995). Whether or not gains inacademic achievement can be immediately measured, there is a growing consensusthat the presence of male teachers is desirable for the positive socialization andgender development of male children, especially those in their earliest years offormal schooling.

Elementary administrators, too, have begun to seek more male teachers. Griffithreported on an effort by administrators in schools in the Washington, D.C., areato recruit more men into elementary teaching. This recruitment effort and otherslike it throughout the country have been stimulated for the most part by educators'desires to counter the influence of the fatherlessness experienced by rising numbersof their students. Educators' perceptions that the widespread condition offatherlessness has a negative educational impact is not limited to urban centers suchas the District of Columbia. A recent survey conducted in South Dakota found that98% of elementary school principals responding to a survey on the status of maleelementary school teachers saw a need to encourage more males to teach inelementary grades. Among comments received from principals were concerns aboutsingle-parent homes (Wood and Hoag, 1993).

Public concern with rising numbers of single-parent families (usually headed bya female) has generated increasing debate throughout America over how to lowerdivorce and illegitimacy rates and increase the numbers of children living with bothparents. David Blankenhorn has written that "the most urgent domestic challengefacing the United States at the close of the twentieth century is the re-creation offatherhood as a vital social role for men." Blankenhorn reports that since 1960, thepercent of children living apart from their fathers has risen from 17.5% to 36.3%in 1990. This epidemic of fatherlessness has corresponded with an unprecedentedlevel of violence in our society, and an increase of over 200% in the number ofmale prisoners since between 1960 and 1990 (Blankenhorn, 1995).

One recommendation emerging from the Second National Summit on Fatherhoodsponsored by the National Fatherhood initiative in June 1998 was that schools hire

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CHOOSING TO TEACH 51

more male teachers and counselors. In his "Twelve Proposals" to accomplish neededsocietal change, Blankenhorn also attends to the role of education, advocating thedevelopment of "all-boys' residential schools with lots of male teachers" (Blankenhorn,1995). Blankenhorn's proposal echoes that of Spencer H. Holland, who has conductedresearch on the needs of black male students as a special population. Holland hasreemphasized the role of male elementary teachers in promoting the social andemotional development of black male students:

Although Black male students at all grade levels are at-risk, it is during theprimary years that a child's whole attitude toward the educational enterprise isestablished. And it is no longer a matter of conjecture that many, if not most,students who drop out of the educative process often do so emotionally andpsychologically by the end of third grade (Holland, 1991).

like Blankenhorn, Holland champions the creation of all-boy classes taught bymale teachers and believes that such educational innovations are imperative forinner-city Black males in the primary grades. He emphasizes that the key to thisapproach will be "the recruitment and funding of minority males who will majorin elementary education and then return to teach in inner-city school (Holland,1991). Likewise, in a compelling account of growing up in the South Bronx duringthe social decline of the 1960s, Geoffrey Canada also urges the importance oftraining mentors for inner-city youth who understand the challenges that the boysface. Canada writes:

"If we are to save the next generation of young boys, they need to be connectedto men so that they see examples of the possible futures they might live outas adults. At the same time, we have to be careful that we do not go charginginto children's lives without being properly prepared for the different way theysee the world. It's as much an issue of class and culture as of race" (Canada,1998).

The recognition that the availability of more male role models for young childrenmay help ameliorate a wide variety of social problems as well as provide helpinghands, one-by-one, to the most at-risk students has become so widespread that avariety of programs have been launched to get more men involved in elementaryschool activities. In 1993, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundationawarded a $50,000 grant to help develop a Child Development Associate trainingand credentialing process for young men seeking to become teachers in CookCounty, IL. The program focused on engaging low-income Black and Hispanic menas teacher aides in Head Start in order to expose them to early childhood educationas a possible career. In 1993, the Families and Work Institute published a book titled,Getting Men Involved: Strategies for Early Childhood Programs, that provides numerousideas and resources for engaging men in activities with young children (Familiesand Work Institute, 1993).

A first response to this growing demand among principals, journalists, socialanalysts, and even parents and teachers for more males in elementary teaching is

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to ask why the numbers of males teaching are at their current rates. The currentdomination of women in the education of children has not always been the case.In pre-literate societies and agricultural societies, men are typically involved in day-to-day educational activities with young children. This began to change with theadvent of industrialization, which resulted in fathers working away from home forlong hours six or seven days per week (Hewes, 1995).

Formal education, too, has traditionally been a domain in which men have hada profound role. Throughout much of Western history, tutoring was a commonlivelihood for educated men (their charges, of course, were overwhelmingly maleas well). Friedrich Froebel (1782-1852), the German founder of the modernkindergarten, discovered a vocation in teaching in his early 20s after working asa surveyor, a clerk, a secretary, and an architect. Froebel found great enjoymentin working with young children, and when he established his own school hired othermale teachers to staff it. Nevertheless, while men have largely predominated aseducational theorists and reformers — consider, for example, Locke, Froebel,Pestalozzi, Mann, Dewey, Postman, and Goodlad —women have tended to outnumbermen as classroom teachers in America, especially in the elementary grades. Thishas been attributed to the belief of many in the nineteenth century, includingreformers such as Horace Mann, that women embodied the moral virtues and weretherefore particularly well suited to cultivate the moral character of their students.The feminization of the American classroom seems to have been completed duringthe Civil War, when male teachers left for the battlefields (Hill, 1996).

If the decline of men teaching can be attributed in part to the impact ofindustrialization and economic specialization, both of which increased in pacefollowing the Civil War, the ongoing social transformation we are now experiencingas we move from the industrial age into the information age may offer opportunitiesfor men once again to find success and significance in working with young children.Telecommuting arrangements and the increase of private consulting opportunitiesdue to corporate downsizing and outsourcing are making it possible for more mento return to the home as the primary base for their economic activity. Many menin our society are currently exploring ways to bring greater integration of theirfamily and career values. Increasing exposure to their own children in the homeand a growing demand for men to play a greater role in family and communitylife may lead more men to relish the idea of pursuing a first or second career inteaching.

While we can hope that societal changes will gradually enable more men todiscover the great enjoyment and satisfaction that can come from working withchildren, we must also pay attention to factors that have prevented more men frompursuing careers in early childhood and elementary education. Deborah Cohenenumerates four primary obstacles to the choice of teaching as a viable career formen: stereotypical assumptions, low salaries, perceived lack of status, and publicfears stirred by high-profile sex-abuse cases (Cohen, 1992). Perceptions that womenare better nurturers than men have been compounded by sex-abuse cases, and bothhave caused male teachers to exercise great caution about responding in-kind tothe hugs that young children tend to lavish on and seek out from their teachers.

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CHOOSING TO TEACH 53

David Hill has recently described the challenge of Bert Morgan, a kindergartenteacher in Nashville, Tennessee:

He's always aware that an innocent show of affection could be taken the wrongway by a student and reported to district officials, which could mean the endof his teaching career. "That's a constant back-burner thought that you keepwith you," he says (Hill, 1996).

The need for such caution and the knowledge that they are scrutinized morecarefully than their female counterparts may dissuade many men from choosingto work with younger children. Morgan, however, has chosen to endure the scrutinyand is proud of his work (Hill, 1996).

Morgan acknowledges that salary and status issues are a concern. With 22 yearsexperience and advanced degrees, he himself is near the top of the pay scale forteachers, but he acknowledges that pay for starting teachers would make it difficultfor a young man with a family to make ends meet. Unlike many female teacherswho enjoy the summer month's caring for their own children, male teacherstypically seek out summer work to supplement their pay (Hill, 1996). While newinitiatives for more summer professional development programs for teachers and12-month schooling would supply both male and female teachers access to year-round work, it is unlikely that school budgets will immediately reflect thecorresponding increase in teacher pay that would make these changes possible.Many male teachers resolve the salary and status dilemma by quickly moving fromthe classroom to higher-paying administrative positions that also convey moreresponsibility and status. In 1993-94, 65% of public school principals in the U.S.were men (NCES, 1997).

Despite the obstacles men face when entering teaching careers, more men arebeginning to choose to teach. Recent studies of males entering teaching as a secondcareer reveal that most are arriving in the classroom with a strong sense of purposeand commitment. Many have traded financial gain for the personal satisfaction theyhope to achieve through teaching, but they bring with them from their various firstcareers a professional approach that may have a positive transformative influenceon the nature of teaching. Men entering teaching as a second career in particulartend to experience the change as an opportunity for challenge and adventure, andthey are determined to succeed with their students. Nevertheless, men enteringelementary schools often experience the greatest challenge in understanding howthey "fit in" in the strange new environment of women and children, and theyrequire ongoing support in identifying expectations and perceptions of their rolesand in reflecting on their experiences (Freidus, 1992).

ORIGIN OF STUDY

The present study was motivated by the confluence of two primary factors: awarenessby the authors of the growing demand for male teachers and thus for a need to

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understand more fully the motivations of men entering teaching as a professionand the recognition of a trend of increasing enrollment of male college studentsin early childhood and elementary education programs.

The authors sought to understand current trends of increasing male enrollmentin early childhood/elementary education by interviewing male majors in order toidentify factors that may help universities support these trends. The informationgleaned from this study may also be of assistance in helping elementary schoolsachieve greater success in recruiting and retaining male teachers in the classroom.

OVERVIEW OF STUDY

The purpose of this study was to identify factors influencing the decisions of malesto choose teaching as a career as well as to identify expectations and attitudesof pre-service male education majors toward their future work. Interviews wereconducted with twenty-eight male early childhood or elementary education majorsin their junior year at Ball State University. Students at the junior level werechosen for this study because they have had sufficient pre-service classroomexperience to decide whether to remain in the education program. Those educationmajors who sign up for the junior-level practicum course have a high likelihoodof completing their degree programs and entering classroom teaching. All studentsin this group were enrolled in the junior practicum course at the time of theinterviews.

The interview asked each participant to identify:

• family background (one- or two-parent family, family members who are teachers),• reasons for choice of major (was education a first choice? Why? If not, why the

change? When did you make the decision? Who influenced the decision?),• expectations of teaching career (What age students do you want to teach? What

factors made teaching an appealing career? What are your ultimate careergoals?),

• obstacles experienced as a male education major, and• perceptions of differences in career experiences for male and female teachers

(Do you believe your classroom role will differ from that of females? Do youbelieve your role will be perceived differently? Do you believe you will have aneasier time than a female in obtaining a teaching position?)

INTERVIEW FINDINGS

Family Background

Almost two-thirds (18) of the interviewees came from two-parent families. Of theten who were raised by one parent, all were raised by the mother, and only oneindicated the decease of the father. Fifteen of the interviewees had no family

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CHOOSING TO TEACH 55

-Ball State University

-Indiana University ofPennsylvania

-University of Wisconsin-Whitewater (degreesawarded)

1987 1»8» 11(1 1992 1993 1994 199S 1998

Figure 1 Trends in percent of male enrollment in elementary education at selecteduniversities (1987-1996).

members who were teachers; thirteen indicated that they did have teaching familymembers (9 elementary, 1 early childhood, 1 special education, and 2 secondary).

Reasons for Choice of Major

Family influence on choosing a teaching career was significant. Seven intervieweesindicated that a parent or other relative (children, grandparent, sibling) hadinfluenced them to become an early childhood/elementary teacher. The predominantinfluence, however, was exerted by other educational professionals in the students'lives (counselor, 1; teacher, 12; principal, 1). Ten of the interviewees reported thatthey knew in high school that they wanted to become early childhood/elementaryeducation majors; five indicated that they knew before high school. Nine decidedduring college. One student discovered an affinity for teaching during a substituteteaching experience, and one made a career change to teaching after becominga father.

Eleven of the interviewees reported that early childhood/elementary educationwas their first choice of major in college. Seventeen changed their major in college(previous majors included computer science, sports medicine, secondary education,physical education, business, mathematics, chemical engineering, telecommu-nications, architecture, psychology, and journalism.) Changes in major wereinfluenced by a desire to make a difference in the lives of children, advice of anotherperson, difficulty of previous major, desire to avoid problems of junior high/highschool age students, experiences with children (substituting, coaching). Reasonsgiven for choosing early childhood/elementary education included enjoyment/desire to help children (9); career opportunity (3); time off in summer (1); NOTfor the money (1).

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Expectations of Teaching Career

Eight interviewees indicated a preference for upper elementary; eight for lowerelementary; eleven had no preference, and one preferred early childhood.Preferences for upper elementary were mainly supported by a desire to work withchildren already reading and writing who can do more and understand more.Preferences for lower elementary emphasized creativity and enthusiasm of youngerchildren as well as their freshness (some students indicated desire to avoid attitudeproblems of upper elementary children). When asked which factors made teachingmost appealing as a career, interviewees gave a wide variety of responses: seven saidmaking a difference/influencing children; six said working with and helping children;four said being a role model; two said providing a good education; three sawteaching as a respected job; two cited the variety of the job; one said the opportunityto coach, and two said having the summer off. Ultimate career goals in educationincluded administration (12), college professor (6), classroom teaching (4), coaching(3), guidance counselor (1). Two interviewees interested in college teaching alsoexpressed a desire to start their own school. One student of those identifyingadministration as a goal also indicated an interest in educational policy development/Secretary of Education.

Obstacles Experienced as a Male Education Major

Seventeen interviewees indicated experiencing no obstacles. Eight indicated typicalcollege challenges (money, time, certain courses, scheduling). Only two identifiedpersonal or gender-related issues: one indicated that another person's perceptionmade this a difficult major; one acknowledged that being male was an obstacle. Oneidentified children's problems (e.g. ADHD) as an obstacle.

Perceptions of Differences in Career Experiences for Male and FemaleTeachers

Twenty-two students indicated that they did not feel that they were treated difTerendythan females in dieir education program. Four indicated that professors seemedmore willing to listen to males and called on diem more often in class. Two perceivedonly slight differences. Eighteen students indicated that dieir role in the classroomwould be different from that of females; nine did not diink this would be die case;one said possibly. Nineteen interviewees believed that dieir roles would be perceiveddifferendy from diat of female teachers by other teachers, administrators, parents,and children. Twenty-diree interviewees believe diat diey will have an easier timethan female counterparts in obtaining teaching positions. One said no, diatqualifications were die defining factor. Four echoed diis concern diat good teachingrather tiian gender or race should be die defining qualification.

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CHOOSING TO TEACH 57

DISCUSSION

The concept of role modeling and/or mentoring emerged as a central themein the findings of this study, both in students' choices to pursue a career inteaching and in their expectations of their own roles in the lives of children.

The most significant factor for students choosing education as a career seems tobe the influence of a professional educator (teacher, principal, counselor) whoserved as a role model or mentor. Several interviewees were able to identify oneteacher in particular as a role model as well as what that teacher did that was worthyof imitation. There seemed to be little indication that male teachers made a biggerimpact than female teachers. One student recalled his seventh grade teacher insocial studies: "She really had a knack of grabbing somebody, and I liked that a lot.Being a motivator for someone else." Another cited a high school math teacher:"He made it worthwhile going to class. He's the type of teacher you could respect.You could go there and you knew what you were going to be doing."

For many of the interviewees, another person's encouragement and recognitionwas influential. One interviewee was approached by his high school principal whoacknowledged both the student's talent with children and the need for maleteachers: "My principal came up and he said, 'I notice how you handle this individual(a special education student), and you may want to look into going into [educationor special education].' He talked about how there was a need for males to bein that, so I kind of started thinking about it after that." One student wasencouraged by his mother, who recognized his aptitude for working with kids.Another referred to his experience as a cadet teacher as a senior in high school.The classroom teacher with whom he was placed "gave me a lot of encouragementto become an elementary school teacher and showed me how enjoyable it wasand things like that."

The importance of role modeling emerged again strongly in the questions aboutthe roles of men in teaching. The reluctance of men to choose teaching as a careerhas traditionally been ascribed to low salaries, stereotypes of male and female roles,perceived lack of status of teachers, and highly publicized sex-abuse cases (Cohen,1992; Banas, 1992; Wood and Hoag, 1993). Nevertheless, few of the studentsinterviewed expressed much concern about such issues. Foremost among theirconcerns was doing a good job teaching, and most saw being male as an advantagein this career.

While most of the men indicated that they had not experienced significantobstacles being a male in a traditionally female degree program, a majority alsoindicated that they believed that being male would set them apart from femaleteachers. The interviewees all declined to draw any sharp differences between theirteaching ability and that of females, but the majority acknowledged that they wouldhave an additional role to play that female teachers do not. Most believed that thisdifference would not be related to curriculum and teaching issues, but would berelated to sociological influences.

There was broad awareness of the sociological impact of single-parent familiesand the corresponding need for male role models for young children. One interviewee

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then doing pre-service teaching in an urban district stated that "close to 90% ofmy kids or more in my class live with their mom and don't have a male role model,and if they can see a male every day doing something positive with their lives, thenhopefully that will [help]." Another expressed acceptance that "I'm probably goingto have a few of the trouble makers who diey diink need a male role model to helpthem out... I think they're going to think I'm more apt to handle it than somebodyelse."

Several interviewees acknowledged that males are generally perceived to be morestrict disciplinarians and that this perception is part of the expectation that theyserve as male role models. Some expressed reluctance to give into this stereotype:"Parents will probably want me to be a disciplinarian, when I perceive myself as moreof an educator." One student saw great irony in the perceptions others have of maleteachers: "Because I'm a male, 6'1", 190 lbs... I personally can come across as a veryintimidating person, but when actually, I'm more of a clown. That's going to throwa lot of people off if you've never seen my teaching style."

A few of the men expressed an awareness of challenges facing male teachers,including societal perceptions. One student reported, "I don't know how I'm goingto be perceived by the parents right now.... The only thing I diink some parentswill look at and say, 'Why is this guy here where it's traditionally females, did hehave a purpose?' They may be skeptical."

While most of die men did not raise the issue, one interviewee did elaborate onthe perceived concern about males touching children. "I noticed in my studentteaching experience that kids are really affectionate. That is one part that I thinkabout, I'm affectionate, too, but that was always on my mind about touching thekids.... my teacher, she was a female, she would hug the children, and I just didn'tfeel very comfortable with that, so I developed a high-five type thing and adaptedthat way. I think that may be typical for males to do for that reason."

A question left unexplored by this interview was the relationship between thepresence of role models and the interviewees' ultimate goals in education. Whilemany of the interviewees acknowledged that more male teachers are needed, onlyfour of the students expressed a desire to remain in classroom teaching throughouttheir career. The others indicated a desire to move at some future time intoadministration, counseling, coaching, or college teaching. Each of these jobs havetraditionally had proportionally more males than classroom teaching, and thusthere are more male role models for men pursuing diese positions. Nevertheless,the move to administration or college teaching may also be perceived as a typicalcareer padi for teachers who are interested in climbing the organizational ladder.Discovering whether this ambition is more prevalent among males than femaleswould be an interesting complement to the present study.

RECOMMENDATIONS

The increasing enrollment of men in early childhood/elementary education programsis a welcome change to recent patterns of decline among male classroom teachers.

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There is widespread recognition that there is a need for an increase in male teacherswho will serve as role models for students. Less attention has been paid to the roleof male teachers as role models for future male teachers, but this factor should beincreasingly considered and explored. Men choosing to enter teaching do notindicate that male teachers influenced them more than female teachers did.Nevertheless, based on the sample interviewed in this study, the majority of maleschoosing careers in education tend to express a significant preference for movingbeyond classroom teaching. The eventual presence of more male role models inthe classroom may influence male career goals and thus encourage more men toremain in classroom situations.

While increasing numbers of male classroom teachers may be several years downthe road, there are measures that can be taken now to facilitate the entry of meninto teaching. In recent years, there has been favorable publicity about maleteachers in major newspapers and editorial writers have cited the need for malerole models in teaching. Such publicity efforts should be increased in order tocounter public perceptions that women are most effective in working with earlychildhood and elementary age children. In addition, public community forumssponsored by Boards of Education could increase awareness of the need for malerole models. Such programs could encourage volunteerism among fathers as wellas introduce successful male teachers to parents.

While publicity and public forums can work to change public attitudes, educatorsthemselves need to make a more concerted effort to recruit male teachers. Currentteachers, principals, and high school and college career counselors need to be awareof the influence they have on the career choices of young men. Many maleschoosing to pursue teaching as a career make that decision in high school, often,as a result of having a very stimulating teacher or having a natural aptitude forteaching recognized and encouraged by a professional educator. Career counselorsat both the high school and college levels can encourage men by avoiding stereotypicalassumptions about male careers and recommending education as a viable careeroption to men as often as they do to women. In addition, education majors shouldbe sought out as ambassadors to prospective freshmen, and colleges of educationshould develop marketing strategies and materials carefully designed to attract menas well as women to education degree programs.

References

Banas, C. (1992, July 10). Where male teachers are rare. The Chicago Tribune, p.2D4.Banas, C. (1993, February 2). Male teacher shatters stereotypes. The Chicago Tribune, p.2Dl.Blankenhorn, D. (1995). Fatherless America: Confronting our most urgent social problem. New York, NY: Basic

Books.Canada, G. (1998). Reaching up for manhood: Transforming the lives of boys in America. Boston, MA: Beacon

Press.Cohen, D. (1992). Why there are so few male teachers in early grades. Education Digest, 57, 11-13.

(Condensed from Teacher Magazine, 1990, 2, 14-15).Dawson, P. (1971). Fatherless boys, teacher perceptions, and male teacher influence: A pilot study. (Final

report, Project No. O-I-096). Monmouth, OR: Oregon State System of Higher Education. (ERICDocument Reproduction Services No. ED 048 616).

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