In examining the sexual structuring of employment in public education from 1840 to 1980, the following social phenomenon are discussed: (1) socially accepted attitudes on the role of women in the early part of the nineteenth century; (2) the structure of schooling and cultural emphasis upon the "natural" abilities of women to instruct young children; (3) the emergence of male teachers, the reasons they were attracted to teaching, and the reasons they tended to move from teaching to either school administration or other careers; (4) the gradual shift from rural to urban schooling and its impact upon the roles of men and women in the schools; (5) the rationale for paying men teachers more than women teachers; (6) the organization of the school systems and the resemblance of these systems to concurrently rising industrial structures; (7) the impact of the patriarchal society of mid-nineteenth century American thinking and the resulting assumption that women teachers would follow the lead of male supervisors; (8) the differences in life style and behavior patterns imposed by society upon men and women; (9) the impact of World War II on opportunities for both sexes; (10) how shifting cultural values have changed role patterns for both sexes; and (11) the rise of teacher organizations and unions and how they are changing the power structure in education. (JD)