Men in Early Childhood Education Incorporated (NZ)

EC-MENz THIRD ANNUAL SUMMIT

“Creating and maintaining a male friendly environment in ECE Centres”

Dunedin, New Zealand, Saturday/Sunday February 14-15 2009

For more pictures of the 3rd Summit go to the Image Gallery

©EC-MENz inc.(NZ) March 2009
With grateful acknowledgement of the sponsors for this Summit.

The Third Men in ECE Summit was well attended, with representatives from most regions. A noteworthy and welcome aspect was the attendance of a significant number of women, and representatives from the MOE, ECE Training Establishments and Centre owners. This confirmed the growing interest and concern about this area from an increasingly wide population within the ECE field.

A valuable aspect of this Summit, not covered by the report was the valuable networking, camaraderie and sharing of ideas which occurred outside the main format of the Summit.

A special thanks to the City of Dunedin for providing the magnificent venue in the very centre of the City.

We all went away with our minds buzzing with ideas and a new resolve to tackle them.




The Summit began with a mihi whakatau which set the spiritual tone for the next 2 days and placed the focus on  our purpose being for the benefit of children, first and foremost.

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Welcome address from  Russell Ballantyne, President of EC-MENz inc.

Russell welcomed our guest speakers and outlined some of the events of the last year, including the frustration of a lack of the necessary funding to achieve some of our goals set at the last Summit. However, the long awaited approval of EC-MENz inc as a charitable organization has now freed us to apply for funding in the future. He expressed our continuing disappointment that there seemed to be a lack of will at the top to actively target the recruitment of men into ECE, particularly in the light of current international practice showing this to have very successful outcomes.

“I also am very cognisant of parental views on this issue and ask where do their needs be met?  What Choices do parents have in our early childhood education system to have their child taught by a male?  Where do they take their children to build affective relationships with men? The answer is “nowhere”, as this is not catered for.  Our own Curriculum states, throughout its underpinning principles, that children will develop relationships with adults – not only women but men – but again where in our centres does this happen?”

Russell recalled that one of the objectives from the 2008 Summit was to appoint a part time CEO to attend to the day to day operations of our organisation and to provide a continuous link to our members and the ECE sector.  With the possibility of funding being raised this year this has become a possibility, whose importance has been emphasised over the year by the amount of work required of a small committee who have many other obligations. He warned that there was no point in having a CEO without an active and committed membership to provide focus in order to “truly address the inequalities that face our children and their families/whanau in terms of gender models and programming choices”.

“It is from our actions that ECMENZ will be measured and it is action that will put more men into the sector to grow the skill bases, talents and experiences of our early childhood teachers. So the question each and every one of you should be asking is what can I do to make it better?”

 

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Richard made it very clear after introducing himself, that there were things he couldn’t tell us, “I don’t know”, or wouldn’t tell, “not yet official policy”. His approach was good-humoured, sympathetic to our agenda, and highly informative.

He showed us the statistics which indicated why, until recently, a big surge in the birth rate had dominated planning for ECE.

The Ministry’s estimate is that NZ will need another19000 child places (400 centres) in ECE to maintain current rates of participation and also bring Maori & Pasifika rates up to same level of participation. This trend, however, has now been equaled in priority by the challenges presented by the sudden economic downturn. This is beginning to impose a climate of fiscal restraint across the ECE sector. Therefore, although the Government objectives stated below remain paramount, achieving them will require an interesting juggling act.

Current plan:

•      Enhancing “20 Hours ECE”

•      Teacher shortages

•      Reducing staff ratios

•      Reducing bureaucracy and regulations

•      Boosting participation

 

Enhancing “20 Hours Free”

•      Keep existing subsidies and fee controls

•      Remove the 6 hours a day limit

•      Include Playcentre and Kohanga Reo

•      Include 5 year olds (along with 3 and 4 year olds in the present scheme)

 

Tackling teacher shortages

•   Enhance the EC teaching degree with a series of modules that will:

•   Promote working while training

•   Allow qualified English speaking foreign teachers to qualify after intensive 6 week programme

•   Allow Montessori, Steiner and Playcentre qualifications to count towards the degree

 

Reducing staff ratios

•   Increase the adult/child ratios for U2 from 1:5 to 1:4

•   After 2012 sessions for the U2 in teacher led EC centres are staffed by at least 50% qualified teachers

 

Reducing Bureaucracy & Regulations

•   Remove unnecessary regulations over time

•   For example, we will drop the requirement for early childhood centres with more than 50 children to have more than one licence

 

Boosting Participation

•   Work with community groups, private centres, home-based providers and local government

•   Develop local solutions that meet the needs of the EC centres in our communities

 

What does this mean for Men in ECE?

Men in ECE (October 2008)

 

The number of Male teachers in ECE has doubled in the last 7 years, but because the total number of teachers has increased, the proportion of male teachers remains little changed.

As was pointed out from the floor, an increased demand for ECE teachers combined with increasing unemployment provides an ideal time for recruiting men into the field as they look for upgrading or changing their skills to enable them to work in relatively secure employment. Richard agreed, but pointed out that in the current economic climate, any initiatives would need to be carefully formulated to fit into the current objectives, as there was likely to be little discretionary funding from the Ministry.

Richard’s personal impression, garnered from close contact with other policy makers in the Ministry, was that the time was ripe for a large increase of entry and participation of men in ECE, not only in New Zealand but over a large part of the world. The EC-MENz target of 10% in 10 years may well be achievable, but it would be an incremental movement gathering pace as that time progressed. “There’s a tipping point when a society’s priorities achieve a critical mass, and there is a sudden flip-flop in attitude, rather like the anti-smoking campaign.”

Richard encouraged us to continue to strongly advocate our mission. We are being heard and noticed. There is a strong level of support for us out there. He and his colleagues at the Ministry will support us as fully as they are able within the constraints that they are given.

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Ron was our keynote speaker. We had chosen him because of his initiatives in his home center and State to increase the participation of men working in ECE. Also as a representative at the 2008 Working Forum on Men in ECE in Hawaii, he would be able to share some of the insights he gained there.

During his self-introduction he shared with us how, although he was involved with ECE for 30 years, it was only when attending the previous World Forum in Kuala Lumpur that he had realized that in order to involve men in ECE in his Center and Region, that he needed to make a personal commitment and take action to make this happen.

Ron accompanied his presentation with some great stories and examples to illustrate his points. He pointed out that the organization of preschools in his native Manitoba differs somewhat from New Zealand, being primarily charitable organizations supported by and regulated by the Provincial Government. Employees can range from fully trained teachers, untrained assistants and those in ongoing training. However, he felt that the points he wished to cover would have universal relevance. His own Centre is the largest in Manitoba and is home to over 300 children cared for by 12 male and 32 female staff. Programs include Nursery School, Infant, Pre-School and School-age programs, an extended hour program and a Christian Pre-School Unit.

The April 2008 statistics for Manitoba showed that out of 5685 in the ECE workforce, there were 257(4.5%) men, and of these only 49(0.85%) were trained teachers. Returning from the World Forum on ECE in Malaysia, Ron began to wonder “Where are all the men?” They certainly weren’t applying for the positions he advertized for his centre. Thinking about this he came to the conclusion that men would look at his adverts and automatically assume that they were aimed at women. For 27 Years he had taken a generic gender neutral approach to recruitment which had never produced a gender balanced workforce. In May 2008, Ron placed a newspaper advertisement in the General Category and not in the Early Childhood section.

It read:

“Looking for a few good men with the courage to work in Child Care. Discovery Centre believes gender balance is good for young children. Interested? Call Donna or Ron at…”

“To my astonishment we had 30 men inquire about the job. I was stunned and overwhelmingly pleased to know that in Winnipeg there were more men than I could have imagined interested in this line of work.”

As a result Ron now employs 12 men on his staff of 42.  This success led Ron to look at other issues facing the recruitment and retention of men in ECE.

• He set up a support group for men in ECE in Winnipeg, who meet regularly to share stories, build friendships and support each other in the struggles that men as a minority group can face in their places of employment. On most occasions they also invite their female counterparts to join them in order to have a more balanced and full discussion on the issues of men in ECE.
• He piloted a Canadian MECE “Club 2-10” All 57 club members are Centre Directors who have committed themselves to doing everything in their power to employ at least 2 men by the year 2010.
• He shared his vision with the Provincial Government which led to the province of Manitoba writing into their “Family Choices – Five Year Agenda for Early Learning and Child Care” the goal of improved efforts to recruit men in ECE
• Developed a brochure that gives some visibility to the MECE issue in Manitoba.
• Joined the leadership team that planned the World Working Forum on Men in ECE in Hawaii in 2008. This team continues to provide leadership for a fledgling international movement to encourage more men into the ECE field.

 Ron proposed a number of strategies to create a male friendly environment and to recruit more men:

Creating male-friendly environments:

• Review policies to make sure that they are gender neutral and use language free of gender bias.
• Set the tone that men are welcomed and supported, especially if you are the director.
• Avoid assigning roles only based on gender
• Think about your own attitudes and what you can do to be more accepting of men in the field.
• Match male staff with mentors
• Encourage participation with support groups, networks or mentoring outside the centre.

Recruiting more men:

• Make active recruiting of men a goal
• Write ads aimed at men or that include “men encouraged to apply”
• Put ads in columns or publications read by men.
• Offer incentives to staff who recruit male staff.
• Encourage male work-experience placements from your local High School
• Target men changing careers.

 

There followed an interesting and positive discussion between Ron and the attendees regarding the perceived “feminization” of ECE. Attitudes towards, and expectations of children of both genders tend to be viewed from a female perspective, and  which have been so thoroughly established that they are assumed to be the only way.

Some of these approaches were challenged strongly during this discussion. They were revisited and covered again more fully in the general discussion sessions he following day.

Ron concluded his presentation by exhorting us to continue with our work with renewed enthusiasm and focus. He hoped dearly that one day he would see a similar network to ours in pace in Canada one day.

Ron challenges Richard Walley of the MOE

Ron presented EC-MENz with an Inukshuk, a model in glass and stone which represents the traditional Inuit waymarkers.

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Issues that impact on men in ECE- a group discussion

•   Elements of risk in children’s play

Male staff tend to encourage and be more accepting of children being involved in risk taking activities. “Yes, they might get hurt. That’s part of learning. Our responsibility is to see that they don’t get injured!” Playfighting and rough play is acceptable within the context of definite rules for physical and emotional safety being set and respected.

 

• Active play.

Men tend to be more encouraging of active and sports play. Should competitive play be encouraged? Physically active play tends to encourage children to discover their own limits within their play. Male staff should be given opportunities to discuss and contribute their perspective to changes within the indoor and outdoor environments

•   Superhero play and gun play.

    Everyone (men and women) in the group put up their hands when asked if they had ever played pretend gun games as a child. Children need heroes. Is Superman any worse than Barbie? Our play         policies seem to stem from the anti-war movement of the 70’s. Some centres allow gun games but have clear and established rules for pretend weapon play. Submit articles to the Education Gazette         around gun play

•   Policy/rules around touching etc

        Can some national policy be established about acceptable touch, changing procedures etc., so that all centres have an official basis to work from?

        We could look at Ron Blatz’s touch policy as a model.

•   The term “staff” should be used more strategically – male staff and female staff sends the message that the centre is gender balanced

•   Use of appropriate language in centres between staff/teachers

•   Feeling of “not being accepted” or alienated/isolated

•   Parent contribution and input is important

•   Gender balance within centres should be the focus

•   The view of men within society – violent, no positive role modelling etc.

 

 

 

Proposed dates for next summit:

AUT – 2010

Feb 13^th – Feb 14^th

 

2009 AGM for EC-MENz Inc.

A quorum was declared and the Annual General Meeting was held.

Minutes of the AGM, reports and election of offices are available here

 

Discussion - Open Forum

What are the key things we need to achieve this year?

Strategies for 2009

•   Funding/Fundraising

We need to obtain substantial funding to achieve our objectives. How will we do this? Need to have proposals for specific objectives costed in order to apply for funding. Now we have charitable status this should prove easier to achieve but economic situation will provide a challenge.

•   Fundraising must be a priority to:

  Allow EC-MENz to fulfil objectives and be present at conventions, 

working parties

 

• CEO

Workload on committee is too great, with their other full time commitments. A part-time CEO would co-ordinate and initiate EC-MENz projects. Would need to be paid via funding from EC-MENz. Committee to discuss and come up with parameters, pay and hours.

 

•   Develop EC-MENz stationery, letterhead, business cards etc.

 

•   Develop Men in ECE internationally

Continue to develop our co-operation and visibility in the ECE field worldwide.

The website is a vital instrument in this.

 

• Institutional Membership

Create a membership category for Institutions such as KA, Te Tari Puna, ECC, NZEI,  ECE Trainers and Centre Managers to develop relationships with them and to keep them informed.

 

•   Develop advertising for EC-MENz (pamphlets, billboards, notices in Education Gazette, Childspace Magazine, etc.) Our own magazine?

 

•   Own website – forum,

            Continue to develop and promote ecmenz.org as our primary interface with the world and with members. Need to transfer ownership of the domain name and website hosting from David to     EC-MENz now that we are incorporated. Look at Facebook as an extra option.

•   Attend National and International Conferences to have an EC-MENz presence and input

 

•   Develop a charter

 

• Career promotion.

 Target individual schools Careers nights. Develop relationships with their careers advisors and get info to them. Target Regional career days –eg. Otago Careers Month, May 2009 and work         experience days – eg APPROACH Learning Centre

 

• Recruitment and Retention in Training

Establish and develop links with training providers in each region, request information about what strategies they have found successful (or not) for recruiting men into ECE training.

 

•   Become involved in Centre Of Innovation Project with Ministry

• 2010 EC-MENz Summit:
  

 

• Develop inventory of local research

Contact Sarah Farquhar to try to find out how we know who is doing what in terms of men in ECE.

•   Acknowledging the employers

Ensure that we send acknowledgment and thanks for any support and employment initiatives by employers.

 

 

 

Making our centres more “male friendly” - consider the following reflective questions:

 

• Does the centre celebrate the role of men in the lives of young children?
• Are male and female teachers encouraged to be who they are with their inherent differences encouraged to celebrate their diversity?
• Are male teachers introduced to new parents and visitors in a positive way?
• Does your centre display pictures of men in early childhood both as fathers and teachers?
• Does management consult with male employees over policy /pedagogy such as “touch”, “physicality of play”, and what constitutes “authentic learning”?
• Does management consult with male employees over the “learning environment” in terms of learning preferences and experiences e.g. construction, technology and emphasis on outdoors?
• Are males encouraged to bring new ideas to the teaching team and to share their learning preferences?
• Does management expect the same of all employees in the teacher role such as toileting, changing, application of sunscreen, opening and the closing of centre and comforting children?
• Does the staffroom reflect both men and women in its provision of space and reading materials?
• Is gender similarity/differences openly discussed in staff meetings?
• Is there an open-ness to being accountable to one another for gender limitations imposed upon each other?
• Do we treat men and women the same in terms of expectations of behaviour including the objectification of the opposite sex?
• Does our policy make specific reference to both male and female teachers so that prospective parents expect male participation?