Chinese male early childhood education teachers’ perceptions of their roles and professional development

ABSTRACT

This study explored male teachers’ perceptions of their roles in early childhood education and their beliefs about their own professional development in shaping their careers. Although the participants’ experiences are strongly influenced by strict gender roles in China, they appear to be consistent with the experiences of men across the globe. The findings from this study add to the limited scholarship in China while also contributing to global scholarship related to men who teach in early childhood education. The focus of this study was on professional development. Like many teachers, participants in this study actively engaged in professional development. However, their reasons for selecting and participating in professional development activities revolved around advancement rather than improving their teaching. The findings implicate reframing professional development for both women and men with an emphasis on the improvement of teaching as well as for professional advancement.

KEYWORDS:

• Early childhood education
• male teachers
• gender
• professional development

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1 In China, kindergartens refer to institutions that offer preschool education to children from ages three to six years. ‘Kindergarten’ and ‘preschool’ are used interchangeably in the Chinese ECE context.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Yan Yang

Dr. Yan Yang research interests include early childhood teachers’ professional development, men in early childhood education, and professional learning community in early childhood education. She is a faculty member inthe School of Early Childhood Education at Shanghai Normal University Tianhua College.

Delores E. McNair

Dr. Delores E. McNair is a faculty member in Benerd College at the University of the Pacific in California where she has served since 2006.