Any FTMs have experience with student teaching, etc?

[GabrielJames]

Okay, so I'm currently getting my master's in TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) and it requires me to do observations at different schools in the area and to, eventually, student teach. My question is about presentation. I have been dressing in male clothing for ages, even before I came out to myself. It's only been recently that I've started sporting a male haircut. My hair's gotten far too long for me and I was hoping to get it cut soon but I want to cut it shorter than I had before so that it won't grow out as quickly. My worry is that there will be a problem with a "girl" going into a school with a "short back and sides." I don't want to cause an issue but I don't feel comfortable with longish hair. Have any of you done observations and/or student teaching? Did you have any issues with your gender presentation? Thanks!

[Aussie Jay]

I did student teaching at one stage.

I had short back and sides - like #1 and a little bit to spike up on top. I wore male clothes but at the time years ago was not binding and was still living as female.

I never had any probs because of the way I looked - hair, clothes or otherwise. Think people never knew what to think of me!! Maybe the other teachers were too scared to ask!! The only things I encountered was the kids - as I taught 5 year olds and primary school aged kids. And I think we can all guess they don't have any internal sensor of what and what not to say!

So I got a bunch of 'are you a boy or a girl?' questions and at the time I said a girl (because at the time that's how I was living) and that was that... Though a few did say 'are you sure?' - there's another clue!! 

Pretty much though kids are just honest and they question things that don't fit what mum and dad has told them - like short hair = male and long hair = female. Be prepared for that but go as yourself dude.

From your avatar you look more male to me - but I haven't heard you talk or seen you bound etc... At work I get he'd about as much as I get she'd so... Get your quals and bugger off I say - you'll probly never see any of them again.

[Al James]

Did work experience in a school once and like Jay it was the kids who questioned me. Still i was a lot younger then so the other teachers were probably just being nice to me. But as long as you look neat and tidy the length of your hair or clothes you wear shouldn't be a problem even if it makes people wonder

[GabrielJames]

A) Thanks so much for your reply. This is incredibly helpful. I'm observing with high school students but they aren't your average bored-with-life hate-the-world teenagers. They're students who have moved to the states from places like Nepal and Haiti and they're so much easier to deal with than other high school students I've run into. I don't think they'll have a problem, I just didn't want to confuse them. This makes me feel much better.

B) "From your avatar you look more male to me..."<--This is the best thing I've heard all day. I'm so self-conscious because I'm not binding yet (haven't had the money to buy one yet, but soon) and I've had to deal with a lot of "she" and "her" lately. That just made me feel so much better about myself.

[Devin87]

I student taught during my "try-to-be-feminine denial time", but I'm substitute teaching right now and I'm hoping to eventually get a teaching job (I'm a little scared to take my transition further because of that).  There are a lot of really masculine-looking female teachers in our district.  The pixie cut seems to be the standard among teachers, so short hair is accepted and I know a few very butch lesbian teachers in the district with hair shorter than mine, so I guess I'm in a good district for it.  The boys tend to love me-- most of them have never had a male teacher if they're below grade 4 or 5, so they immediately gravitate towards me and start taking guy stuff.  The tomboys treat me like a hero and the girly girls tend to just ignore me, although I did spawn an interesting discussion in kindergarten the other day about what "girls clothes" are.  I was wearing clothes made for a female, but with a very masculine edge and the girls at the painting table ended up having a long discussion about it.

[aydan_boy]

Too young to have any job experiance, period, but if i go with what my siblings are saying, then i have a good idea of what kids are going to be good with. My two youngest sibs are grade 6 and under, they think the world of anyone as long as the teacher is nice. I find that my bro actaully gets along better with teachers despite the fact that they'r actually "female" when they have male chararistics. Its more comfortable for him. There usually too young to understand it fully anyways. And plus, short hair is IN for teachers nowadays, for all genders. Its middle school students that are harsher, and more uncomfortable with teachers. Most of the kids in my old class found it creepy to have a gay teacher, nevermind a trans. Unless they beleived u to be a guy, they'd probably see u as a lesbian which is equally uncomfortable to the majority of them. Not to say u dont look like a guy. U look male looking from what i can see in ur pic.

I say u should cut ur hair however u please though. Who gives a crap what they think? You'll only see most kids for a year or two anyways.

Maybe the middle school part is just from what i've seen...

[tekla]

Who gives a crap what they think?

Well you should care a lot about whoever is doing the evaluations, good evaluations make your career, bad ones sink it - particularly when it comes time to get that first job.  And for a lot of things the feelings of the students are just as important as those of the supervising teacher.  I'd play it as conservative as you can as all that training you've done is pretty much on the line at this juncture.

[GabrielJames]

The thing that helps me sleep at night is that if I want to get a job in the district I'm observing at, the woman in charge of hiring ESL teachers is a lesbian and I had her as a professor, so I can at least count on her to be understanding and supportive.

[Cindy]

I hope this doesn't sound trite.

I teach at University level and am quite accepted by most students. Although I am getting negative feedback from some Islamic males (and no it is not racially motivated, rather a problem with dominant females.).
The major responsibilty any teacher has is to the student. If your dress, sexuality, etc affects the student's learning process, then you have to deal with it instantly. OK University students can be taken through cycles of acceptance of social isues, as a totally legitimate part of their education; but kiddies can not.

Kiddies question everything, and they should! You need to address their learning to what is important to them at that development stage. Your sexuality and presentation needs to be neutral. You need to come across as comfortable, supportive and as the teacher. Don't fret the sexuality. It doesn't, or shouldn't matter. Teachers, Drs etc wear a 'uniform' of neutral clean clothing. Why? So they blend in to the psyche of the people we deal with. We do not want to distract from our verbal output.

Cindy

[tekla]

As I'm sure Cindy will also say, anyone who hires anyone else does it for one reason - that they are the best person they can find for that job.  The more underlying deal is, I only hire people who make me look good.  To that end, nothing else matters, friendship, how much they need the job, how much I might want them to have the job.  It's a simple 'are they the best suited to this situation' because if you are not hiring those people, you're not going to be hiring for long. 

You are there to teach them something.  Nothing else.  Stick to that, and do everything in a manner that would best implement teaching them something.

[myles]

I taught in an after school program, 2 years as female and then this year in a class as male. I taught a lot of the students as female then male. They were in first grade and really could care less. When I was presenting as female they all called me MR. M&&&& and I just laughed, now I am just Mr. Myles. What mattered more was if I was doing a good job. The teacher I work with (volunteered, for 2 years) was more than willing to stand up for me in front of the parents, school board or anyone because she loved having me in her class and saw me as an asset and not a liability. Your job performance should count more than your gender so just focus on that and I think you will be fine.
Myles

[Lex]

Sounds like you've gotten a ton of advice already, but I figure I'll put my two cents worth in anyway =P

I student taught at the school I just graduated from.. so it's kind of a different situation entirely.
Small backround story- I attended an alternative high school for my senior (and about a semester past senior) year. The school also has a program for jr. high students who have been expelled from a public school in the area.
ANYWAY
After I graduated, I was offered a job aiding with the jr. high... so for one, I already knew the kids and when I first met them, I was already mid- transition.

At first the kids thought me to be male and treated me as such.. then they heard everyone else at the school refer to me as "she" and caught on a little more. A few of the kids asked the "are you a boy or a girl" question, but I would just say something like "why does it matter? or.. "really, you don't know?" because I had a decent "friend/teacher" kind of relationship with them and we all picked on each other. lol.

Anyway, I'd say not to worry about it too much. Just be you and do what you are there to do.

Good luck!
Lex