There are some experiences that are common among marginalized women entering academia. In today’s educational landscape, women, particularly women of color, first-generation scholars, and nontraditional students are often forced to navigate academia without roadmaps. This means it is easy for them to get lost along the way. They don’t know all the shortcuts. They don’t know the players they should look to for assistance. Often, they suffer because they don’t know what they don’t know. When educators make room for these students to share their experiences without judgment and fear they make it easier for these students to succeed. Equity-minded educators should look for ways to foster relational pedagogy and narrative legitimacy.
Relational pedagogy looks at learning as partially a social and emotional process. In this atmosphere educators and students form strong, caring relationships which are an essential part of academic and personal growth. Educators are encouraged to be responsive to students’ emotional needs, cultural backgrounds, and lived experiences. Relational pedagogy is grounded in empathy, the moral responsibility of educators to nourish students, and justice (Hinsdale & Ljungblad, 2023). Narrative legitimacy has to do with giving authenticity, social acceptance, and credibility to a story that is used to claim space, challenge dominant norms, and assert identity. In equity-centered educational spaces, it recognizes that lived experiences, particularly of those from marginalized communities are valid sources of knowledge that deserve a role in shaping institutional narratives.
Breaking it Down to Help Marginalized Women
Some common experiences among women entering academia include imposter syndrome, code switching, mentorship gaps, and the tension between visibility and safety. Imposter syndrome is a constant feeling of self-doubt and intellectual fraud despite evident success that is often experienced by marginalized or underrepresented groups in academic spaces. Code-switching is the practice of switching from one’s own language, behavior, and cultural norms in order to align with that of the dominant culture. It involves experiencing multiple identities in academic spaces. Mentorship gaps exist when women and underrepresented groups experience a lack of consistent guidance, support, and advocacy from experienced professionals in academic environments. The tension between visibility and safety refers to the dynamic where people, particularly marginalized people, being seen in academic spaces may expose people to bias, scrutiny, and harm.
Students who are entering academia need environments where their lived experiences are valued as scholarly knowledge, as legitimate sources of data. Marginalized students entering academia often need educators who recognize the emotional labor and vulnerability they experience when they enter academia. They also need to have educators who understand the importance of culturally responsive teaching which honors their intersectional identities while affirming the fact that there are diverse ways of knowing.
Putting These Ideas to Work in the Classroom
To help students feel safe and welcome in academia, educators can create “entry rituals” where both students and educators share stories about their academic origin stories. This could be done via prompts like “What signs told you that you belonged, or didn’t belong in academic spaces?” Once those answers are received, educators can work with students to design collaborative mapping activities to visualize different types of academic journeys and barriers. Other activities that can be done in the classroom include:
- Academic autobiography journaling
- Mentor mosaics where students identify people who helped them on their academic paths
- Artistic projects like planning murals of signs students wished they had seen along the way
These activities, if done at the beginning of a semester, no matter what the class topic can be a bonding and strengthening experience for students. It will help students battle things like being
first generation scholars, nontraditional students, marginalized students, and navigating academia without a roadmap.
Conclusion
When educators are intentional about creating spaces for women, marginalized students, and first-generation students entering academia to share their stories, a powerful thing takes place. Pathways to belonging, resilience, and transformation are built. By recognizing and acknowledging common experiences like imposter syndrome, code-switching, mentorship gaps, and the tension between visibility and safety, educators affirm for students that these experiences are real things, systemic realities and not a student’s personal failing. When educators use relational pedagogy and narrative legitimacy, classrooms can become healing and empowering spaces. By inviting students to rewrite the academic narrative the students help themselves and students who will follow them. This is how equity is built.
Click here to download a copy of our Reflection Worksheet: Signs We Needed – Mapping Our Academic Entry.
Reference
Hinsdale, M., & Ljungblad, A. (2023, October 18). Relational pedagogy. Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Education. https://oxfordre.com/education/view/10.1093/acrefore/9780190264093.001.0001/acrefore-9780190264093-e-28
Further Reading
The Best Educators Strive to Create Equity-Centered Classrooms
Unlock Your Doctoral Success: Coaching & Resources That Work
Unleash the Fire Within: Maya Angelou’s Lifegiving Wisdom for Educators
About the Author
Dr. Janeane Davis is Founder and Principal Consultant at Janeane Davis and Associates: Educational Consultants. Most of her writing begins at a well-lit desk where strategy meets storytelling and systems take shape around real lives. Her consulting work centers families, scholars, and institutions committed to equity—and she writes to bring clarity to complex questions, especially those often left unasked.
Desk light on. Pages open. Always listening.