Becoming a (male) foundation phase teacher: A need in South African schools?

Abstract

This paper reports on a case study of male foundation phase pre-service students who were among the first cohort to specialise in the foundation phase since the inception of the programme at one South African university. The students reported on their experiences of teaching in a female-dominated field and their views about their preparedness to teach in the field. This qualitative study is interpretive in nature. Using purposive sampling, eighteen students were sampled from a population of twenty. Data was generated through focus group interviews and then analysed and categorised. The patterns across categories showed that the pre-service teachers had faced an unwelcoming environment in the schools at the outset, but that this changed over time. Some parents were negative about male teachers in the foundation phase. However, the pre-service teachers were able to work hard and show that they can work with foundation phase learners. The study concluded that male students who enter foundation phase teacher education programmes need a lot of encouragement to boost their self-confidence and to realise the important role they can play in working with young children in a country where many young learners grow up in fatherless homes.

Motivation to become a Foundation Phase teacher in South Africa

“…Of the respondents, 95.6% were female as noted in previous research (Hofmeyr & Hall 1995;Mashiya 2014;Mukuna & Mutsotso 2011;Petersen 2014). The feminisation of the teaching force at Foundation Phase level is underpinned by the idea that teaching in the Foundation Phase is equated to 'childcare' (Petersen 2014:1).…”

Demystifying foundation phase teaching: Male student teachers’ motivation to enroll for B.ED. degree in foundation phase at a rural university

“…The Foundation Phase (FP) is dominated by a large proportion of women while men continue to shun positions to teach young kids (Petersen 2014;Mashiya 2014). Several scholars have documented the existence of gender related choices with regards to choosing to become a Foundation Phase teacher as well as the stigmatisation that goes with teaching in FP classes (Mashiya 2014;Jungert et al 2014;Drury 2008;Mukuna and Mutsotso 2011;Petersen 2014;Sumsion 2005;Lagabrielle et al 2011). Interestingly, being a teacher in primary school is perceived as a low status or simply "a woman's job" (Akyeampong et al 2011, 30).…”

“…Bhana and Moosa (2016)'s study found that male pre-service teachers were more comfortable teaching learners in higher grades and equate that to having a higher status profession better than teaching in the Foundation Phase. Mashiya (2014) shows that vast number of male student teachers encountered a lot of unwelcoming environments from both the principal teachers, parents as well as some learners during their practical teaching due to the fact that FP teaching is often equated to "childcare" (Mashiya 2014, 25). This would suggest that men who decide to teach at the Foundation Phase do so carrying with them a stigma of being abusive to female kids or simply risk being labelled homosexuals, sexual predators and paedophiles, frightening or scaring children, and being bad caregivers of young children.…”

“…This would suggest that men who decide to teach at the Foundation Phase do so carrying with them a stigma of being abusive to female kids or simply risk being labelled homosexuals, sexual predators and paedophiles, frightening or scaring children, and being bad caregivers of young children. Mashiya (2014) indicates how student teachers who choose Foundation Phase teaching often come across continuous skepticisms, funny criticism and degradation from fellow students who are specialising in other phases regarding FP teaching choice, communities where student teachers come from and where they do their practical teaching and or their actual teaching after graduating (Mashiya 2014). Moreover, the Foundation Phase teaching profession is given very little status in South African society (Gallant 2012).…”

“…The reasons why these male students decided to enroll for Foundation Phase degree seem to echo sentiments by Petersen (2014) who indicates that FP has always been dominated by females. This is attributed to stereotypical beliefs that FP is a childcare phase and a low-status job where teachers are responsible for looking after infants (Drury 2008;Mashiya 2014;Deacon 2012). UNESCO Bangkok (2004) highlights that men often suffer from socially-constructed gender stereotypes that force them to put on a mask of being "tough" and being the "breadwinner".…”