Wise and Foolish Virgins
White Women at Work in the Feminized World of Primary School Teaching
By (author) Sally Galman
Not available to order
Publication date:
12 April 2012Length of book:
246 pagesPublisher
Lexington BooksISBN-13: 9780739147733
Wise and Foolish Virgins: White Women at Work in the Feminized World of Primary School Teaching by Sally Campbell Galman asks the question, what does it mean for an entire profession to be numerically dominated by white women, and what is the relationship between teacher preparation and professional feminization? The book tells the story of three very different teacher preparation programs, explores the hopes and struggles of the mostly white, female students in those programs, and opens a window upon the closed world of teacher educators themselves who must straddle multiple worlds and multiple masters. With one foot in ancient allegory and the other in contemporary popular culture, this text addresses the complex ecologies of gender identity and negotiation between student teachers, teacher educators, and policy-makers against the politicized backdrop of pop culture “feminization” and the unique contours of homogenization in the emerging elementary teaching force.
Galman’s data make a strong case for how the association of white, middle-class women with the early childhood and elementary teaching field affects the reality of who enters the field.
The author’s speculative thoughts at the book’s end are intriguing
The book’s main strength lies in its intervention into sexist discourses about teaching and teacher preparation. Galman refuses to denigrate “women’s work” or the feminized nature of early childhood and elementary teaching, and instead celebrates the possibility of resistance within this feminized field.
The book provides a solid analysis of the gendered nature of how young women construct their ideas about the teaching field and their ability to enter the field. It can provide an opening for critical discussions within teacher preparation programs about the role that race, class, and gender play in the students’ paths toward becoming a teacher. These discussions seem sorely needed if we are to change both the current negative discourse about teachers and the demographics of America’s teaching force.
The author’s speculative thoughts at the book’s end are intriguing
The book’s main strength lies in its intervention into sexist discourses about teaching and teacher preparation. Galman refuses to denigrate “women’s work” or the feminized nature of early childhood and elementary teaching, and instead celebrates the possibility of resistance within this feminized field.
The book provides a solid analysis of the gendered nature of how young women construct their ideas about the teaching field and their ability to enter the field. It can provide an opening for critical discussions within teacher preparation programs about the role that race, class, and gender play in the students’ paths toward becoming a teacher. These discussions seem sorely needed if we are to change both the current negative discourse about teachers and the demographics of America’s teaching force.