Open AccessEducational Development as Pink Collar Labor: Implications and Recommendations
Author(s) -
Bernhagen Lindsay,
Gravett Emily
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
to improve the academy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 2334-4822
DOI - 10.1002/tia2.20053
Subject(s) - dominance (genetics) , public relations , collar , emotional labor , service (business) , professional development , political science , sociology , economic growth , management , pedagogy , business , economics , marketing , biochemistry , chemistry , gene , finance
Against a backdrop of other professional arenas, including higher education, this article examines the field of educational development—who we are (mostly women) and what we do (care, service, and emotional labor)—through the lens of gender. While we suggest that educational development may provide a positive counterexample to the male dominance in other higher education professions, we also argue that the common devaluing of women and their labor, well‐documented in other arenas, may contribute to educational developers' "marginal" positions on campuses, our difficulties getting "invited to the table," as well as our challenges in becoming more involved in organizational development efforts. The article concludes with suggestions for how educational developers might take action moving forward.