CFP URL: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfLWXVVp0E0u2tg33N0wSv4PKYSOk9_YOVYvJD9T4vth_mpug/viewform
Chutes and Ladders: The Hidden Curriculum that Makes or Breaks Academic Careers
Our follow-up book to The PhD Parenthood Trap will be an edited volume highlighting aspects of the hidden curriculum - the unwritten set of rules that help or hinder academic success. We are soliciting proposals for chapter contributions for this book from individuals of all academic ranks and institutions, and disciplinary fields. We especially welcome proposals from women+ and scholars from historically excluded groups. Please share this survey among your students, colleagues, and networks. Proposals submitted by May 31, 2022 will be given priority. If you have questions, please contact us by email: Leah.Windsor@memphis.edu and crawfokf@jmu.edu
Project abstract
Why do some people seem to effortlessly succeed in college, graduate school, or as faculty - and why do many others struggle? The answer to this can be found in a phenomenon called the “hidden curriculum” - the unwritten set of rules of the game in academia that can determine who finds and climbs the ladders, and who falls through the chutes. The “hidden curriculum” is part of the academic safety net that increases resilience, persistence to matriculation, and success in academia at all levels. In our book, The PhD Parenthood Trap, we introduced the concept of Academic Chutes and Ladders; the notion of chutes and ladders recasts the “leaky pipeline” metaphor to acknowledge the nonlinear paths many academics take from undergraduate studies to the rank of full professor, if they do not take one of the many exit points that occur prior to attaining that rank. If academia is a game, the “hidden curriculum” is the secret map showing where the pitfalls are, how to avoid them, and how to advance through to the next level. In this volume we explore the hidden curriculum as seen through the lens of undergraduate and graduate students, international students, scholars on the job market, non-tenure track faculty, junior and senior faculty, scholars who are also primary caregivers, LGBTQIA+ and BIPOC scholars, women+, and first generation scholars. We recognize that few scholars fit neatly into just one of the categories we cover in these chapters. People have multiple identities, and we acknowledge how intersectionality amplifies bias and discrimination of historically excluded scholars. Scholars who hold multiple identities face multiple obstacles and encounter more chutes - and fewer ladders - in their academic career. We hope that the contributors to this volume provide a comprehensive picture of the systemic changes needed to best serve all scholars and to support institutional missions of diversity, inclusion, and equity in a way that makes academic success - whether defined as matriculation and degree attainment, tenure and promotion, or other career achievement milestones - more accessible for everyone.
Project timeline
- Spring 2022: Solicit contributors
- Fall 2022: Notify contributors of acceptance
- Winter 2022/2023: Chapters due
- Spring 2023: Revisions/edits from contributors due
- Summer 2023: Completed manuscript submitted
CFP URL: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfLWXVVp0E0u2tg33N0wSv4PKYSOk9_YOVYvJD9T4vth_mpug/viewform
