Negotiating a Seat at the Table: Questions to Guide Institutional Involvement

Abstract

In addition to traditional roles, educational developers increasingly find themselves considering their involvement in issues of institutional change. However, this evolution leads to new challenges as educational developers attempt to discern whether and how to be involved in particular organizational change efforts. This chapter provides a framework that can help centers of all types reflect on the broader risks and rewards of institution‐level leadership. Through a series of context‐based reflective questions, the authors hope to promote strategic thinking among educational developers (particularly center directors) and to spur new questions and research as our field continues to evolve.

Educational Development as Pink Collar Labor: Implications and Recommendations

“…To some extent, this advocacy is already happening in the calls to organizational development that have recently gained prominence (e.g., in Schroeder, ), but there is more to be done. Educational developers should think carefully not only about how to get involved in organizational development (Siering et al, ), but also about how to represent the impact and affordances of the work of the field, with increased attention to any gendered connotations and their potential ramifications. If educational developers are to make systemic progress, they must recognize the discursive ways in which they may be reinforcing their own consignment to the margins.…”

“…These have included the field's historical emphasis on working with and making change through the individual instructor; the focus on instructional consultation to the exclusion of other activities; the interdisciplinary backgrounds of practitioners; the lack of consistent training, a specific advanced degree, or a clear path into the field for professionals; the type of scholarship educational developers do (or do not) produce; and the employment arrangements that often have us situated at the interstices of traditional faculty positions and administration. All of these obstacles surely work together in complex ways, and educational developers routinely brainstorm how to overcome them in order to get invited to the proverbial “table” (e.g., Kim, ; Schroeder, ; Siering et al, ), where they can become more involved in the upper echelons of decision making.…”

Place-based Educational Development What Center for Teaching and Learning Spaces Look Like (and Why That Matters)

“…This may seem surprising, as educational developers have often been key players in the learning space initiatives, lending expertise in pedagogy, educational technology, assessment, and organizational change. On many campuses, we (educational developers) have received a seat at the table, joining architects, facilities managers, students, faculty, and other campus stakeholders in collaborative projects (Baepler & Walker, 2014;Casanova et al, 2018;Graham, 2012;Siering et al, 2015). With this study, the researchers sought to turn the tables, so to speak, and apply the collective expertise of educational developers to our own spaces.…”