Feb. 5: Daredevils in school

"Manly teachers make better role models"

This headline immediately infuriated me, but after reading the accompanying article, I think it was just a poor choice of headline; the article doesn't exactly support that statement. Still, aren't we a civilized society? I guess maybe New Zealand isn't; a grade school principal there says "male teachers are more daring." Whatever.

I take offense at this for several reasons.

1. I'm a teacher and I don't think I'm less effective because I'm female
   
2. Katie has a male teacher this year and although I think he's awesome, I don't think he's better because he's a dude
   
3. I hate stereotypes like this. Like, "white people can't dance" (though in my case it's true) and "Asians are smarty-pantses" (my husband is the most forgetful, absent-minded, non-technical guy I've ever known--though he is good at math... never mind)
   
4. Aren't copywriters supposed to catch blatantly sexist statements like the one in this headline and CORRECT them, not WRITE them???

I now step off my overly zealous soap box. I need to go write a non-daring lesson plan anyway.