Once again, the email in my inbox is from a man. Over the course of the morning, I have had 10 men tell me they can definitely write me something really great for the magazine. I have had 10 more men pitch me wild and wonderful ideas that are completely inappropriate for our audience. And I have received two memoirs from men of more than 10,000 words.

There is only one email that has come from a woman. The idea she pitches is extremely timely, her explanation of it is excellent and she can deliver it on time, without ego, in two weeks.

These are all teachers, in a profession where females outnumber males by three to one. So why are all the men pushing to get their name out there, while so few women are doing the same?

Here’s another example. I commission our book reviews. Over the past year, I have managed - with not inconsiderable effort - to get equal numbers of women and men to review. But I always have to ask; I never have women putting themselves forward to review in the same way that men do.

But any feelings of satisfaction of having achieved a happy balance are dashed in an examination of the authors of all those books: they are overwhelmingly male.

This discrepancy between the sexes is often put down to confidence: men have more bravado, more belief that what they say may be interesting to others (sometimes despite plenty of evidence to the contrary) and crucially more belief in their own abilities.

A recent study of undergraduates found that women are more likely than men to underestimate their own intelligence. The typical male was more than three times as likely as the average female to judge himself more able than the person working next to him. And students who had high opinions of their own talents also reported taking a prominent role in group assignments.

Persistent stereotypes

The phenomenon is not just confined to taking the lead in teamwork. Men also seem to seek out confirmation of their status more readily: I write, therefore I am…a great teacher or leader.

So why is this so?

Partly, time is a factor. Female teachers will cite the pressures of family and work more often than men. This would suggest stereotypical gender roles in the home (and at work) still persist, despite the hope that they would have been overcome by now. The man feels he can take time out from family or work commitments to write, the woman feels she cannot. How many times do you hear women say they feel they can’t be great parents and great teachers? And how many times do you hear men say the same?

There seems, too, to be a fear among women of how their writing may impact their school, or their position within it.

Partly, this is due to an unwillingness to single themselves out as being any better than anyone else and partly a desire to be more collegiate, to not get the school in trouble.

There is also the fear of the flak they might receive, especially on social media. And rightly so, when women get treated so much more harshly.

Despite schools being so female-dominated, it’s surprising how much male-orientated work practices still prevail. Does that make women less willing to put their heads over the parapet? Are they just plain tired in a job that seems to be taking over their entire lives? We have some advice that may help, and yes, ironically, it does come from a man.

I do not claim to know the reasons for any of this. But what I do know is that we need to see more women speaking out, having bold opinions and steering the conversation.

Females make up 74 per cent of the teaching profession; let’s make it feel that way.

Ann Mroz is the editor of Tes