Influence of gender roles in maintaining discipline amongst male teachers in South African schools

Bongane  Hlatshwayo

doi:10.38140/ijspsy.v4i1.1067

Authors

Bongane Hlatshwayo

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.38140/ijspsy.v4i1.1067

Keywords:

Feminine, Gender roles, Masculinity, Teachers

Abstract

Discipline is South African rural schools is perceived as a vast masculine challenge that most male teachers find hard to bear. This study states that the majority of male teachers’ stress that the teaching profession has enormously become a ‘feminized’ therefore, male learners suffer due to a lack of male role models. This simply shows that masculinity is somehow centered on homophobia. Male teachers are therefore, forced to enact all manner of exaggerated masculine behaviors and attitudes to ensure that no one get a wrong idea about them within the classroom. The study intends to focus more on the real impact of maintaining discipline among male teachers. Therefore, the qualitative study shows that the impact of gender roles within classrooms highlights the inequalities of both male and female teachers within schools. Interviews were conducted in one of South African schools. The four participants, two female teachers and two male teachers) were selected to take semi-structured interviews to generate concrete data. The collected data (findings) shows that the male teachers to fear being exposed as feminine. Male teachers are actually afraid of being powerless. They should live up to standard to seek approval either in the workplace or often classroom, and this lead them to severe consequences. They end up being humiliated in the classroom or workplace.

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