Will male teachers salvage Chinese boys’ masculinity?

Teacher, who imparts knowledge and educates people, is regarded as the most glorious profession in the world, but there exists a historical dilemma—a lack of male teachers. Male teachers are scarce among the public schools worldwide, including the United States, but the gender imbalance is especially pronounced in China, where women occupy four out of five teaching positions in urban areas, according to a study by Beijing Normal University in 2012. And the shortage is the most severe in kindergarten and preschools.

肩负教书育人的重任，教师被誉为天底下最光辉的职业。然而，这个职业正面临一个历史性难题——男教师匮乏。尽管，全世界公立学校教师的行列中都缺乏男性，包括在美国。但这种性别不平衡在中国格外突出，根据北京师范大学2012年的一项研究，在城市地区，每五个教师岗位，有四个是由女性担任。其中，幼儿园和学前班是男教师短缺问题最严重的地方。

Worried that a shortage of male teachers will produce a generation of timid, self-centered and effeminate boys, Chinese educators are working to reinforce traditional gender roles and values in the classroom, according to New York Times. 

中国教育者担心缺乏男教师会造就一代怯懦、自我中心、娘娘腔的男孩，他们努力在课堂上巩固传统性别角色和价值观。

Mr. Lin, one of a handful of male sixth-grade teachers at a primary school in Fuzhou, China, begins his history class with a lesson on being manly. He has made a habit of telling stories about ancient Chinese men who built the Great Wall with their physical effort in his history lessons. And in a nod to chivalry, he prods boys to apologize to girls when they get into fights. "Men have special duties," he said, "They have to be brave, protect women and take responsibility for wrongdoing." 

小林是福州一所小学六年级教师中屈指可数的几位男教师之一，他的历史课就以如何表现男子气概作为开始。上课时，他喜欢讲一些故事，比如在中国古代，男人们为了修建长城付出了辛勤劳动。为了宣扬骑士精神，在班上的男女生发生冲突时，他也敦促男生们向女生道歉。"男人要有担当，"他说，"他们要勇敢，要保护女人，要为自己的错误承担责任。"

In Zhengzhou, a city on the Yellow River, schools have asked boys to sign pledges to act like "real men." In Shanghai, principals are trying boys-only classes with courses like martial arts, computer repair and physics. In Hangzhou, in eastern China, educators have started a summer camp called West Point Boys, complete with taekwondo classes and the motto, "We bring out the men in boys."

在黄河边上的郑州，学校要求男孩子们签署保证书，行为举止要像"真正的男人"。在上海，校长们在尝试开设专门的男生班，教武术、电脑维修和物理之类课程。在中国东部的杭州，教育者开办了名为"西点男孩"的夏令营，开设跆拳道之类课程，还有这样一句营训："我们把男孩变成男人"。

Education officials across China are aggressively recruiting male teachers, as the Chinese news media warns of a need to "salvage masculinity in schools." The call for more male-oriented education has prompted a broader debate about gender equality and social identity at a time when the country's leaders are seeking to make the labor market more meritocratic.

中国的新闻媒体也发出警示，学校需要"抢救男人气概"，与此同时，中国各地的教育官员正在积极招募男教师。在中国领导人致力于让劳动力市场更加注重人才的时候，增加男性化教育的呼声已经引发了一场关于性别平等和社会认同的广泛讨论。

It also reflects a general anxiety about boys in Chinese society. While boys outnumber girls as a result of the longstanding one-child policy and a cultural preference for sons, they consistently lag in academic performance. Some parents worry about their sons' prospects in uncertain economic conditions, so they are putting their hopes in male role models who they believe impart lessons on assertiveness, courage and sacrifice.

这也反映了中国社会关于男孩的普遍焦虑。由于长期的计划生育政策，以及传统文化对男孩的偏爱，中国的男孩远多于女孩，但他们的学业表现往往相对落后。有些父母担心儿子们在不确定的经济环境中的前程，于是寄希望于男性榜样力量，认为这些榜样可以教会男孩魄力、胆识和牺牲精神。

The view that there is an overabundance of female teachers that has had a negative effect on boys has led to a backlash. Parents have accused schools of propagating rigid concepts of masculinity and gender norms, and female educators have denounced efforts to attract more male teachers with lavish perks as sexist.

这种认为女教师过多，对男孩产生了负面作用的观点自然引起了反对。有家长指责学校宣扬关于男性作风和性别规范的僵化概念；也有女性教育者抨击以丰厚待遇吸引更多男教师的做法，认为这是一种性别歧视。

In Fuzhou, a city of two million, colleges and universities have come under fire for relaxing admission requirements and offering full scholarships and teaching jobs to young men.

在福州这个人口200万的城市，高校正在遭受抨击，因为它们对年轻男性放松了录取标准，并给予他们全额奖学金和教学岗位。

Ms. Xue, a student at Fujian Normal University, wondered why women should not get similar benefits to enter traditionally male fields. "If women go into architecture, shouldn't the government give them a free education too?" she said, "Why should men get this benefit?"

福建师范大学的学生薛同学不明白，为什么女性进入传统上属于男性的领域时，不能得到类似的优惠待遇。"如果女性进入建筑领域，政府也会给她们免费教育吗？"她问，"男性为什么能得到这种优惠？"

In some schools, teachers said the large number of female educators, especially in lower grades, had a positive influence on students. "We have a more intuitive sense of children's needs," said Ms. Li, a kindergarten teacher in Fuzhou. "It isn't the responsibility of schools to teach boys to act like boys. It's the responsibility of parents."

一些学校的老师们也表示，众多女性教育者对学生们有着正面影响，特别是在低年级。"我们对孩子们的需求有更本能的察觉，"福州的一位幼儿园教师李女士说道。"教育男孩要像男孩的样子，这并不是学校的责任，这是家长的责任。"

Chinese education officials, for the most part, appear to disagree. In some districts, school officials have pressured local officials to intervene, saying students are underperforming because they lack male role models. Boys consistently trail girls on college entrance exams, and disparities in academic achievement emerge as early as third grade, according to a study by the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences in 2012.

对此，大多数中国的教育官员似乎并不赞同。在某些地区，学校领导者呼吁地方官员介入，声称学生表现不佳原因在于缺乏男性榜样。根据上海社会科学院2012年的一项研究， 在高考中，男孩的成绩往往落后于女孩，并且，男女生之间的这种学习成绩差异从小学三年级就开始出现了。

In recent years, education officials in Fujian, Guangxi and Jiangsu have created incentives for male teachers, arguing that men bring an energetic style that appeals to boys.

近年来，福建、广西与江苏的教育官员也开始采取措施，为男性教师创造激励机制，称男性带来一种活力充沛的风格，对男孩们很有吸引力。

Still, it is not clear that children derive academic benefits from studying with teachers of the same sex. In 2008, a study of 9,000 11-year-olds in Britain found no tie between male teachers and higher academic performance among boys.

然而，跟随同性别老师学习是否能够提高儿童的学习成绩，这一点并不清楚。2008年，英国在9000名11岁的孩子当中展开研究，没有发现男教师授课与男生取得更佳学习成绩之间存在关联。

Shanghai No. 8 Senior High School began an all-boys program for 60 students in 2012 with the goal of "reviving the masculinity" of its male students by offering courses in etiquette, coding and wilderness survival, among others. Xiaohao, a senior at the school, said he did not think China faced a masculinity crisis in its classrooms. But he said boys felt more confident when they took classes together. "In classes with female students, we might not dare speak out," he said, "When it's just boys, we feel much freer."

2012年，上海八中高中部为60名学生开设了男生班，并为他们额外开设礼仪、编程和野外生存课程，目的是让男学生们 "恢复男子气概"。该校高中生小豪说，他不觉得中国学校面临男子气概缺失的危机。但他说，男孩子们在一起上课时会感觉更自信。"和女生们一起上课时，我们可能不敢有话直说，"他说，"但如果班上都是男孩，我们就觉得自由多了。"

Sun Yunxiao, a researcher at the China Youth and Children Research Center and the author of a book on education titled "Save the Boys", said that Chinese students were increasingly distant from male role models, including their fathers. "Children need both female teachers and male teachers for their development," Mr. Sun said.

中国青少年研究中心研究员孙云晓是教育类书籍《拯救男孩》的作者，他表示，中国学生与男性榜样角色愈来愈疏远，包括他们的父亲。"孩子们在成长道路上既需要女性教师，也需要男性教师，"孙云晓说。

A major obstacle to luring more men into teaching is the modest wages paid to educators in China, which is the same as elsewhere in the world.

阻挠更多男性进入教育行业的一大障碍是中国教师菲薄的薪资（和世界上其他地方相同）。

In 2013, the average salary of a teacher at a public school was about $17,000, according to government statistics. While Chinese law dictates that teacher pay should not fall below the salaries of other public servants, enforcement has been inconsistent, resulting in some teachers seek out higher-paying positions in other fields.

2013年，根据政府统计数字，公立学校教师的平均年薪是1.7万美元。中国法律规定，教师薪资不得低于其他公务员的薪资，但这项法律的执行情况并不稳定，有些教师为了较高的薪水就跳槽去了其他领域。

Of the million or so kindergarten teachers and instructional aides across China, about 60,000, or 6 percent, are male, government statistics show. Retention of male teachers is a serious challenge in China, and many male educators complain that they are lonely and disrespected.

根据政府统计数据，中国有约100万名幼儿园教师或教学助理，其中只有6万名是男性，占6%。在中国，留住男性教师是一个巨大的挑战，很多男性教育者抱怨自己感到孤独和不受尊敬。

Jiang, a first-year student at Fujian Normal University, said many of his friends and relatives were confused when he said he wanted a career in teaching. "They asked, 'why would a man want to be a teacher?' " He continued, "They think men should be ambitious, and that it's so stable and bland to be a teacher."

福建师范大学大一学生小蒋说道，他的很多亲戚和朋友听说他想从事教师职业，都表示很不理解。"他们问，'你一个男人为什么要当老师？'"他继续说道，"他们觉得男人应该更有野心，教师这个职位太稳定，太平淡了。"

Even on campus, the students are mocked for their career choice, Mr. Jiang explained, and some are stereotyped as gay or effeminate.

小蒋还表示，即便在大学里，这些男生们也会因为自己的职业选择遭受嘲笑，有些人用同性恋和"娘娘腔"之类刻板印象看待他们。

However, some people say that a shortage of male teachers should not be blamed for a lack of masculinity in schools. They argue that having a masculine father is more important than having a male teacher. As the sayings goes, like father like son, whether a boy can be masculine depends not on whether his teacher is a man or woman. 

不过，也有些人认为，男老师紧缺并不是男孩缺少男子汉气概的唯一因素。中国有句俗语，有其父必有其子，不能光从老师是男的还是女的这个简单的角度来看。

Influenced by the proclamation that women hold up half the sky, women have gained a higher economic position and tougher personality nowadays. The social media also have a bad impact on the health of children. Today, there are too many TV plays about the imperial harems and eunuchs. Anyway, it's not a single-factor social problem. Efforts from education, family, society, government and media are needed to make our boys men. 

如今，受到"妇女能顶半边天"的思想的影响，女性的经济地位越来越高，个性也很强势。在塑造孩子们健康的素质方面，除了社会和政府的责任，媒体的影响也很大。中国电视剧里的后宫戏、太监戏也有不好影响。要让男孩变成男人，各方的努力都很重要，比如教育、家庭、社会、政府和媒体。

What measures should Chinese schools take to overcome difficulties and recruit enough male teachers? Will male teachers help boys to regain their masculinity? Welcome to our discussion!

究竟中国学校能否破除重重阻碍招到更多男教师？男教师又是否真能帮助学校解决男学生男子气概缺失的危机呢？欢迎你加入讨论！

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