gender benders

One thing that hit me as i was reading page 2 of todays TOI edition - the article on ideal teacher - is the fact that all the 10 bachchas, whose high opinions were printed, referred to the teacher as a 'She'. thats not a bad thing :D
"The ideal teacher should not scold me. She should tell stories. She should make the lessons interesting" and so on...every one of the 10 kids, from grade 1 to grade 10, said it as it is!
And my thoughts started to fly. The english language does not genderize objects like french.
that being said, just imagine > Teacher = female, Chef = male, General Doctor = male, Gynecologist = female..the stereotyping continues. But in recent times, arent we talking about the gender benders decreasing, almost disappearing? or is it now?
i have had the privilege of having been taught by 5 he-teachers. and believe me, they were on par with the she-teachers. and yet they are a minority. is it a profession many opt to ignore?

and how is it that a woman cooking at home is not elevated to any high status nor paid a whopping sum, yet a man cooking at any hotel - from 7 stars to no stars - is given the status of a 'chef' with benefits and a handsome package thrown in (in most cases that is :D)
mom, if you ever get to read this, you are my 7 star chef!