Nationwide, only about three percent of early childhood teachers are male in the U.S. Experts say this can have an impact on young children whose understanding of gender roles and identity are rapidly forming. Research has found that having access to diverse teachers is beneficial for children. For the youngest learners, it means they are more likely to get exposed to different varieties of play and communication. It also helps them develop healthy ideas around gender.

        “In our world and our society, we have very specific stereotypes (模式化形象) of gender roles,” said Mindi Reich-Shapiro, an assistant professor in the teacher education department of the Borough of Manhattan Community College, and one of the authors of a recent study. “It’s important for children to see other possibilities and other paths they can take.”

        Despite mostly feeling supported by colleagues and family members, many of the male educators surveyed in the study reported facing social or cultural resistance in their careers as early education teachers. Some also reported that there were parents surprised or concerned that their child had a male teacher. And they had been advised by colleagues or other staff not to hug children.

       Reich-Shapiro and fellow researchers made several recommendations to increase male representation in the field. Low pay has long been acknowledged as a major issue in the early childhood field. Over 70% of male educators who said they intended to stay in the early education workforce noted an increased salary was a major motivating factor for them to commit to the career long-term. The report suggests paying all early childhood educators the way elementary school teachers are paid.

        Cities and programs should establish support groups for male early childhood educators and provide mentoring and professional development advice for male educators and their program leaders.

        The authors also suggest that traditional recruitment approaches for early childhood educators “do not address the gender gap in the field.” They recommend providing young men opportunities to work with children through training and volunteer programs, targeting groups of men who are considering a career change, such as fathers.

解析：A。根据题干中的men和commit to early childhood education可定位至原文第四段第三句，该句的intended to stay in the early education workforce对应题干中的commit to early childhood education。该句提到，打算留在早教行业的男性教育工作者中，超过70%的表示加薪是激励他们长期从事这一职业的主要因素。也就是说，想要男性投身早教行业，需要提高薪资水平。A项与此内容相符，Higher pay是对该句中increased salary的同义替换，故A项为正确答案。

错项排除：B项和D项的security和working condition在文章中都无依据，故均可排除。文章第三段中虽然提到男性早教工作者会遇到社会和文化方面的阻力，但并没有说男性工作者需要社会认可就能投身早教行业，故C项排除。