https://padlet.com/ponybirdmusic/3zuvldfa6ty0h6rh Share your reflections on Padlet about any of the options as follows: Your reflection notes from Big Question One or Two on slide 13. Or a combination of your ideas that came to mind while you were working through this reflection activity about American culture (or education) and gender. Comment on other's posts as you choose. en-us 2023-10-17 16:01:36 UTC 2023-10-17 16:01:59 UTC hello@padlet.com ponybirdmusic https://padlet.com/ponybirdmusic/3zuvldfa6ty0h6rh/wish/2751093168 Over my years of teaching, I have found it frustrating and problematic that teacher culture is highly gendered. Statistically, we live in a reality of a 80-90% white teaching force and the majority of the teaching force is also statistically "female". There are deep historical reasons for this based on gendered politics and gender norms in our society. For example, teaching was one of the few jobs that women were allowed to occupy once the development of the Common Schools expanded in the 1890s. This history still sticks because women have been stereotyped as caretakers more so than men, and more fit to do the labor of rearing children. The political aspect of this is complicated by the wage disparity for teachers. Researchers believe that one reason teachers are paid less in terms of social strata is because teaching is generally considered a "woman's field". This is one reason why it is often a novelty to have a male teacher (in public education). I also found this hard to deal with in schooling spaces where it is mostly women and there is a feminine culture of teaching. I would describe this feminine culture by a few characteristics such as taking a very mom-like role as a teacher, having lots of extras like snacks and decorations in the classroom, being competitive w/other teachers about appearance, weight loss, or participation in the social culture they decide upon. Elementary school may be a spot to locate this culture more specifically wherein Secondary may be more pocketed. This is because Secondary also comes with gendered norms. There are typically more men in Secondary because there is an emphasis on curricular content. Here, the intellectual work is assumed to be more of men's work. Knowing these cultural trends and patterns made it hard for me to find my fit in certain schooling spaces. I had to block out some of the extra expectations and competitions from colleagues and focus on what I felt were my strengths as a teacher with my students. I am wondering if anyone else here has noticed or wondered about some of the things I have mentioned above? What are you seeing? How are you feeling about it?

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