“Intellectual instruction is best left to a man”: the feminisation of the scottish teaching profession in the second half of the nineteenth century

Abstract

This paper builds on the work of Helen Corr concerning the gender division of labour in the Scottish teaching profession. Whereas Corr's focus is on the patriarchal nature of Scottish society, this discussion centres on the interaction of gender and nationality. The nineteenth century saw a crisis of national identity in Scotland, reflected in widespread fears of declining educational standards and the undermining of what was essentially a masculine myth of the democratic intellect. The debate on the state of education in Scotland, and fears of what were regarded as inferior English practices, led to a strong defence of the male-dominated profession, which by the end of the nineteenth century had become feminised in numbers only. Yet although in a subordinate position, the Scottish schoolmistress considered herself to be an essential part of the teaching profession, a partner, albeit junior, in preserving the traditional educational ideal of universality and meritocracy.