Emotional labour demands in enabling education: A qualitative exploration of the unique challenges and protective factors

Students in enabling programs bring richness, diversity, and complexity to the teaching and learning environment. They are often from under-represented backgrounds, have experienced educational disadvantage or disruption, belong to multiple equity groups, and face academic and non-academic challenge...

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Main Authors: Crawford, Nicole, Olds, Anita, Lisciandro, Joanne, Jaceglav, Megan, Westacott, Marguerite, Osenieks, Lesley
Format: Journal Article
Published: 2018
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/80706
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author Crawford, Nicole
Olds, Anita
Lisciandro, Joanne
Jaceglav, Megan
Westacott, Marguerite
Osenieks, Lesley
author_facet Crawford, Nicole
Olds, Anita
Lisciandro, Joanne
Jaceglav, Megan
Westacott, Marguerite
Osenieks, Lesley
author_sort Crawford, Nicole
building Curtin Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description Students in enabling programs bring richness, diversity, and complexity to the teaching and learning environment. They are often from under-represented backgrounds, have experienced educational disadvantage or disruption, belong to multiple equity groups, and face academic and non-academic challenges, including mental ill-health. This pilot study explored academic staff experiences in teaching and supporting students in enabling programs. Using a collaborative autoethnographical approach, four members of a multi-institutional research group wrote first-person reflections in response to guiding questions. From generative and reflective discussions, different themes arose. A major theme was the high ‘emotional labour demands’ of teaching a vulnerable cohort, with both positive and negative effects on staff. Other major themes included: the diversity of emotional responses and coping strategies; the complex, sometimes contradictory, role of the enabling educator; the importance of communities of care and support; and the impact of witnessing students’ transformations. Within these themes, the challenges, rewards, and protective factors, which mitigate stress among enabling educators, were identified.
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institution Curtin University Malaysia
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spelling curtin-20.500.11937-807062021-01-07T07:46:47Z Emotional labour demands in enabling education: A qualitative exploration of the unique challenges and protective factors Crawford, Nicole Olds, Anita Lisciandro, Joanne Jaceglav, Megan Westacott, Marguerite Osenieks, Lesley Students in enabling programs bring richness, diversity, and complexity to the teaching and learning environment. They are often from under-represented backgrounds, have experienced educational disadvantage or disruption, belong to multiple equity groups, and face academic and non-academic challenges, including mental ill-health. This pilot study explored academic staff experiences in teaching and supporting students in enabling programs. Using a collaborative autoethnographical approach, four members of a multi-institutional research group wrote first-person reflections in response to guiding questions. From generative and reflective discussions, different themes arose. A major theme was the high ‘emotional labour demands’ of teaching a vulnerable cohort, with both positive and negative effects on staff. Other major themes included: the diversity of emotional responses and coping strategies; the complex, sometimes contradictory, role of the enabling educator; the importance of communities of care and support; and the impact of witnessing students’ transformations. Within these themes, the challenges, rewards, and protective factors, which mitigate stress among enabling educators, were identified. 2018 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/80706 10.5204/ssj.v9i1.430 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ fulltext
spellingShingle Crawford, Nicole
Olds, Anita
Lisciandro, Joanne
Jaceglav, Megan
Westacott, Marguerite
Osenieks, Lesley
Emotional labour demands in enabling education: A qualitative exploration of the unique challenges and protective factors
title Emotional labour demands in enabling education: A qualitative exploration of the unique challenges and protective factors
title_full Emotional labour demands in enabling education: A qualitative exploration of the unique challenges and protective factors
title_fullStr Emotional labour demands in enabling education: A qualitative exploration of the unique challenges and protective factors
title_full_unstemmed Emotional labour demands in enabling education: A qualitative exploration of the unique challenges and protective factors
title_short Emotional labour demands in enabling education: A qualitative exploration of the unique challenges and protective factors
title_sort emotional labour demands in enabling education: a qualitative exploration of the unique challenges and protective factors
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/80706