A new video from NAEYC (the National Association for the Education of Young Children) offers an engaging look at men in early education.

“Often when males are mentioned as it relates to being in the classroom, they’re often viewed as a disciplinarian,” Alvin Irby says in the video. “You know, someone who’s gonna — who the boys are going to listen to. And I think that there’s so much more to men being in early childhood classrooms.” Irby is the chief reading inspirer at Barbershop Books, a nonprofit effort “To close the reading achievement gap for young black boys by using child-centered, culturally relevant, and high-impact strategies.”

“I think that men bring a sense of wonder to curriculum,” Sandra Lanz, a child development specialist says in the video.

The video, one in a series of recent NAEYC videos, is also featured on the website of MenTeach, a national clearinghouse.

In addition to the video, MenTeach features these two pieces of international news:

– an article from the Scotsman that says:

 “More Scots men will be encouraged to take up a career as nursery teachers and childminders as part of a Scottish Government drive announced today.” Only 4 percent of nursery teachers are men.

– and an article in Nursery World about England notes:

“Currently less than 2 per cent of the early years workforce is male and the aim is to build up a national resource bank to lobby the Government to encourage men to enter the profession.”

It’s all good news because as Claudio Maldonado, director of the Northridge Neighborhood Preschool, says in NAEYC’s video, “…in my experience male teachers have always brought this certain kind of patience that allows kids to really be themselves…”