Anonymous #1 2w

I’m an elementary school teacher and it’s such a shame to me the lack of male teachers. Kids should be able to grow up with a person that they can relate to. Many boys in my classes would benefit from having that male role model to help them

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Anonymous #1 2w

- boys and men’s educational successes are declining, starting from lower academic and behavioral expectations which morph into a more individualistic approach, less ability to focus, lower resiliency, fewer short-term goals, and less emphasis on collective responsibility/growth - global/national struggles within the economy (safety nets, affordability) and society (mental health, community) reduce the impact of growth/success, worsen inequality, and creates distance from achieving goals

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Anonymous #3 2w

Also as someone in stem there are countless programs to make stem appeal more to women, at industry level, college level, and pre college levels. Maybe not as much as we should have but it’s definitely there.

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Anonymous #2 2w

I am also a teacher! I’ve taught social studies with both middle and high schoolers. To preface, social studies is traditionally a subject that girls perform better in. Nevertheless, I agree. There’s a concerning lack of engagement, discipline/drive (some from parents and admin), and proactivity. Like you said, there’s a gap in involved male role models (teachers, coaches, etc) but there’s also sometimes a lack of respect and credibility given to female teachers from male AYA students.

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Anonymous #1 2w

Generally speaking, issues with engagement, discipline, or grit aren’t isolated to male students and are an issue across the spectrum. However, there is much less stress on academic intelligence for boys and more dismissal of behavioral and social issues. I’ve read a couple of books discussing why boys are falling behind, yet most of the solutions proposed demand time/resources that teachers aren’t equipped with. I wish I had time for individualized instruction with every student, but I don’t.

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Anonymous #1 2w

I don’t know when role models changed from your soccer coach, your neighbor’s dad, your teacher, or your grandpa to dropshippers, podcasters, oligarchs, and fitness influencers, but the lack of a close, connected, and truly inspiring role model (regardless of gender) is damaging the confidence, motivation, encouragement, and tenacity of many young people, including myself at times. I value the individuals in my life who are encouraging, trustworthy, supportive, and helpful.

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Anonymous #3 2w

I think the interesting and frustrating part of this is that many of these fields were almost entirely male-dominated until the last 5-10-50-100 years, just being debased as cultural norms change, seen in nursing, education, even secretarial work (being a bookkeeper/accountant used to be “manly” because they were more financially responsible). Things like law, public relations or communications, medicine, and social sciences (psychologists, anthropologists) were also almost entirely male fields.

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Anonymous #1 2w

When many of these jobs either grow or shrink in income and value, the swap happens. Even jobs like computer programming were once dominated by women until it became an increasingly prestigious, lucrative, and important profession (1960s-70s). I do think that there can be some degree of marketing or social appeal that would address the lack of men’s interest. I just don’t know if it addresses how we’ve gotten here, whether it be the distaste for a “woman’s job” or lack of interest in a field

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Anonymous #1 2w

My point is that you can both study it rhetorically and socially as a trend AND simply address the current issue, which is that we need more men in these fields. The latter requires marketing the jobs to men and I think that’s just fine.

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Anonymous #3 2w

Which, again, I’ll point out that we do for women in stem all the time. That too is worth a discussion about why it is that way, but practically speaking we can and should focus on getting the people into the jobs we need them in,

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Anonymous #3 2w

In.*

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Anonymous #3 2w

I agree with both of your points! If I can ask, though, do you think the marketing to women has made it less appealing to men? Also, it’s my understanding that stem jobs have the appeal of being well paying, prestigious, and reliable careers. Do you think something about that has changed, potentially contributing to the lack of men’s interest? What kind of marketing do you think would be effective? I know #womeninstem definitely had her moment ‼️‼️

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Anonymous #1 2w

In stem you mean? I think there’s a general issue with men falling behind in school which points to stem being increasingly woman dominated. I’m sure there’s lots of study’s about why men are falling behind, I don’t really know the reason myself.

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Anonymous #3 2w

I think there’s definitely still interest for men but they’re falling behind anyway

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Anonymous #3 2w

And marketing for what specifically?

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