Feminization of primary education is a phenomenon that occurs in all of European countries. In recent years, when we are at the European level speaking about gender equality and advantages of mixed gender teams, lots of calls for more men in primary education is appearing. At the NGO level, various campaigns or activities focus on attraction more men into schools. At the governmental or political level come up different strategies how to raise the number of men in the feminized education. This need of having more male teachers is reflected in primary education in the Czech Republic too and it is supported by media and political elites. In the feminized environment of primary education works the idea that we need more “right male models” and men which are already here are considered as unique and exceptional. This idea is connected with the specific type of thinking that female teachers need to be accompanied by male teachers because female collectives are seen as not such helpful (and sometimes potentially harmful) without the presence of men. Is the need for more male teachers well-founded and not gender biased? The other and nontrivial question is, when we are asking for “right male models” in schools, what type of masculinity we are looking for. This paper focuses on the issue how we deal with masculinities and femininities in the primary education policies. Paper is based on qualitative research that includes the participant observation in elementary schools and interviews with different governmental and NGOs representatives of the primary education system of the Czech Republic.
