The importance of male role models for young boys was highlighted at a public screening of a Government documentary last week.

Males in Public Education ? a 30-minute film produced by Bermuda Education Strategic Team (BEST) and featuring interviews with 17 male teachers on the Island ? was shown to an audience at Somerset Cricket Club last Wednesday.

Education Minister Terry Lister attended the event, as did Dr. Melvyn Bassett, principal of Sandys Secondary Middle School, who appears in the film.

Two young male teachers ? Vincent Bean from Dellwood Middle School and Levar Bassett from CedarBridge Academy ? also spoke of their experiences during a question-and-answer session after the screening.

Mr. Bassett said he went into teaching because he was aware of the need for positive father figures for young black males, especially in today?s Bermuda, where there is ?drugs, sex, guns, violence?.

He added: ?You hear of these things now but they were deep-seated in our education system when I was in high school ten years ago. We are only seeing the offspring of it now. Boys will cling to their mothers but a young man needs to cling to a man to become a man.?

He said teaching made him realise that female students could also benefit from having more male teachers.

Dr. Bassett told the gathering that he had been a businessman before he became a teacher 36 years ago and had never regretted his decision to change career, despite a drop in salary.

He urged the men in the audience to seriously think about teaching as an option. ?If you are considering a career change, maybe in education, you may be on the right track, in spite of the salary.?

Males make up 18 percent of the teachers in the public school system and the Ministry of Education has launched a campaign to recruit more.

Rhonda Wood-Smith, project manager for BEST, said: ?We are taking this documentary across the Island to encourage men to think about teaching or even about becoming mentors for young people.?