Pedagogy was born in ancient times. Its foundations Gre vocabulary list were laid by Plato, Socrates, Aristotle, Democritus, Quintillian. You do not notice anything? Yes, you are right, they were all men!
The schools are mostly run by women. For some reason, it happened in our country. And not only because of low salaries, but just at some stage of development, everyone somehow decided that education is a woman’s business. But schools were not always women’s territory. Remember the names of Pestalozzi and Ushinsky, Sukhomlinsky and Shatalov – they did not believe that pedagogy is not worthy of men, but, on the contrary, saw in this ministry their future civic duty.
And the heroes of the Russian classics were taken for a walk in the Summer Garden by tutors, not governesses. No, I’m not trying to reduce the role of women, but the fact remains: mothers, nannies, the first teachers, laid the foundation, but in the life of anyone who in pre-revolutionary Russia passed through a lyceum, gymnasium or school, there were men teachers. According to statistics, in those days, the bulk of youth mentors were men. And the government supported the desire of men to go into pedagogy.
Before the revolution, teachers, for example, were exempt from military service. This is despite the fact that at that time men were the overwhelming majority in pedagogy. Our grandfathers and great grandfathers were well versed in education, in the real interests and needs of their state and its people. Under Emperor Nicholas II, the expenses for education were increased sevenfold. No other country of that time, even the most developed and wealthy ones, can boast of such statistics.
It was all a long time ago, and today more and more people try to send their children to study abroad. Why? They say that education is better. Why is it better? Maybe it’s because men teach?
In the countries where we are striving to grow up (USA, Western Europe, Japan), the composition of the teaching corps is clearly divided: there are more women teachers in elementary school and more men in secondary school. Specialists in psychology think it is right: in elementary school a child still needs the care of his mother, who can be replaced only by a woman during lessons. But in high school, most Western psychologists advise to put the reins of power in the hands of men. Men have almost completely “occupied” the schools of Great Britain, a country with a recognized classical education. The reputation of English education has evolved over the centuries, its history begins in the VI century. And today in the most famous educational institutions, such as Eton, Harrow, Rugby, 80% of teachers are men.
Despite the recognized asceticism of English schools, one cannot but recognize the high quality of education they receive. The profession of teacher in England, of course, does not reach the level of the Japanese sensei, but still remains one of the most prestigious. The English are especially reverent about the acquisition of this profession. Each student of a pedagogical university, except for the main classes, is individually engaged by a teacher of pedagogy – “tutor”. Such classes create a stable contact between teachers and students. The tutor attached to the student not only transfers knowledge, but also teaches to think and act independently.
Before that it was mentioned about prestigious educational institutions. In ordinary schools of Europe the situation is not so cheerful. In 2011 in France, for example, many private educational institutions were late to start classes or refused to enroll students at all because they did not fill the vacancy for teachers. In the same year, the U.S. needed 200,000 teachers, and there were only 130,000 graduates with a teacher’s diploma. Unfortunately, the prestige of the teaching profession has been declining recently. This is also evidenced by learning activities for kinesthetic learners statistics, according to which in Germany, students of pedagogical universities are graduates of secondary schools, which are not distinguished by high academic achievements. Due to the decline of the prestige of the profession, the main composition of teachers of ordinary, not privileged schools in Europe, today is actively feminized. However, the same as in our country.