ADVANCING WOMEN IN ACADEMIA AND RESEARCH

Transcription

1 ADVANCING WOMEN IN ACADEMIA AND RESEARCH Genevieve Adukpo (PhD) University of Cape Coast Cape Coast University of Cape Coast

2 OUTLINE Women in Academia and Research ( WAR ), who are they and what are their roles? Barriers /Challenges confronting WAR Opportunities and supports especially for young women in academia. Share my story briefly Group activities

3 Women in academia and research ( WAR ) : Who are they? The Guardian; Higher Education Network /

4 Women in academia and research ( WAR ) : Who are they? Dr. Fatou Soro Ouattara of the Association of Women Researchers in the Ivory Coast (AFEMC-CI) works in her laboratory at the Institut Pasteur in Abidjan. REUTERS/Thierry Gouegno

5 Women in academia and research ( WAR ) : Who are they? Female Researchers Working in the Fields

6 Working with research team

7 Role of Women in Academia and Research Teaching Researching Writing of research books and articles Even though women are slowly closing the gender gap in business and management, women in academia continue to be severely underrepresented in the higher-ranking faculty positions, especially in of science and engineering. This is growing concern regarding the lack of women in senior positions in the academia

8 Representation of women in academia Young women scientists leave academia in far greater numbers than men They even opt out of academia after they have completed their PhDs They choose between a career and a family. Some even prefer working with the Research Institutions and other establishments like NGO etc Yet they contribute a lot to national development through their teaching, research and collaborations

9 Low representation of female academia in University of Cape Coast Gender profile of Faculty members in University of Cape Coast % male 18% 125 female

10 Low representation of female academia in UCC 45,00 40,00 35,00 30,00 25,00 20,00 15,00 10,00 5,00 0,00 Educ. Stds Agric. & Nat. Sci. Full Professor Health & Allied Sci. Hum. & Legal Stds Dis. Educ. (CoDE) %M %F 35,00 30,00 25,00 20,00 15,00 10,00 5,00 0,00 Educ. Stds Senior Lecturer Agric. & Nat. Sci. Health & Allied Sci. Hum. & Legal Stds Dis. Educ. (CoDE) %M %F 35,00 30,00 25,00 20,00 15,00 10,00 5,00 0,00 Educ. Stds Assoc Professor Agric. & Nat. Sci. Health & Allied Sci. Hum. & Legal Stds Dis. Educ. (CoDE) %M %F Educ. Stds Agric. & Nat. Sci. Lecturer Health & Allied Sci. Hum. & Legal Stds Dis. Educ. (CoDE) %M %F

11 Profile female faculty members in UCC Assistant Lecturer 41 Lecturer 29 Senior Lecturer 10 Assoc. Professor 2 Professor

12 Leakages of women in academia Statistical information shows that, at nearly every stage of an academic career from securing a tenure track position to achieving associate and full professor status married women (both with and without young children) leak out of the academic pipeline at a very high rate.

13 Academic pipeline for Women Graduate school entry PhD receipt Assistant Professor Associate Professor Full Professor (Tenured) Leak!!! Leak!!! Leak!!! Leak!!! Women with babies Women married Women Women Water level of Women climbing the academia ladder

14 Why women leave academia? Young women (scientists) leave academia in far greater numbers than men for three reasons. (i) the characteristics of academic careers are unattractive (ii) the impediments they will encounter are disproportionate (iii) the sacrifices they will have to make are great.

15 Malala Yousafazi, 2011 Address to the UN

16 Barriers /Challenges Woman in academia and research encounter some challenges and are confronted with certain barriers. Balancing teaching, research and family life Discrimination Stereotypes in the society, the media, and families can make progress difficult There are few successful female role models due lack of mentoring. Even if there is, formation of relationship is impeded by interruptions related to family or caretaking roles. Competition at all levels; from publishing, sitting in committees, promotion, presenting at conferences. Successful female professors are perceived as displaying masculine characteristics, such as aggression and competitiveness

17 Barriers /Challenges cont. Balancing research and family life

18 Why women leave academia? "I love being a mother and I love being with my children but equally a job as an academic is a demanding job. So I need try hard to balance these tasks She is a researcher, teacher and a mother of two young children she has this to say: it is challenging to juggle the roles of being a mother, teacher and a researcher.

19 Discrimination There is still a lot of discrimination against female academics, especially the younger ones Some forms of discrimination. Gender Discrimination Pregnancy and maternity discrimination Sexual Harassment

20 Gender discrimination Gender discrimination cases are as old, expansive and varied in nature. It is the practice of treating a group of people differently based (unfair treatment) upon their gender (male or female). Some Female faculty member were told that they would encounter problems along the way simply because they are women, that is, their gender working against them.

21 Pregnancy and maternity discrimination Pregnancy discrimination occurs when expectant mothers are fired, not hired, or otherwise discriminated against due to their pregnancy or intention to become pregnant. In one of the institutions in Ghana, female faculty members who went on maternity leave were denied of their risk allowance. Meanwhile the male colleagues enjoyed their risk allowances while on annual leave.

22 Discrimination by sexual harassment Under the Equality Act 2010, Sexual Harassment is classified as a form of discrimination which is unlawful. This means you can take action in the civil courts. Sexual harassment is unwanted behaviour which you find offensive or which makes you feel intimidated. Sexual harassment can include: sexual comments or jokes, physical behaviour, including unwelcome sexual advances, touching and various forms of sexual assault, displaying pictures, photos or drawings of a sexual nature, sending s with a sexual content etc.

23 Opportunities and supports (especially for young women in academia) Mentoring, Networking and Collaborations Effective Policies and Programs: like gender policy would help in facilitating gender equity in recruiting, retaining and advancing women faculty. Equal opportunities for women and men in research. Flexible working hours and providing on-site child care facilities Providing specific support like, family-oriented support funding conferences and workshops activities of female academia Value contributions made by female academia such as teaching, administration and outreach work. [The system put too much emphasis on prominently published papers (publish or you perish) or large research grants.]

24 Mentoring WAR (peer mentoring and by role models) The institutions should establish mentoring and networking programs Lack of mentoring, among other factors, has been reported to contribute to the disparity in the progress of women faculty. Create mentoring programs to support junior faculty- Institute professional networking opportunities for women Facilitating Peer mentoring bring a positive impact on the academic skills and manuscript writing for junior women faculty.

25 Carol Black and Asiya Islam Higher Education Network the guardian More than 50 senior Cambridge academics called on the university last week to change the way it appoints staff because the current system favours men and stops women reaching their potential. In a letter, the academics who include heads of colleges and departments said a wider range of contributions such as teaching, administration and outreach work should be valued. The current system puts too much emphasis on prominently published papers or large research grants.

26 My story

27 Group exercise 1) What must I do as a woman in academia? 2) Why women leave academia? Would that affect the universities and why? 3) To what extend do Women in academia and research experience gender discrimination 4) Is it a curse or a blessing to teach at the university as a woman? Explain

28 Conclusion Advancing ourselves as women in Academia and Research: build self-confidence promote ourselves Work hard to reach the top realise that we can do whatever they want. must not give up when there is a stumbling block Women must know that: The Reward for HARD WORK is MORE WORK.

29 References Manjit Dosanjh and Logeswari Ponnusamy, 2016 GWI Webinar: Women in Science Women in Science: gender equality is not yet fulfilled, Horizon Magazine, The EU, Research and Innovation Feminist Africa 8: Rethinking Universities I, Issue 8: September 2007 Feminist Africa 9: Rethinking Universities II, Issue 9: September 2007 Barriers to women leaders in academia: tales from science and technology, Studies in Higher Education, Volume 41, Issue 3, 2016 Research Group Linkage Programme, Alexander von Humboldt Foundation,

30 Thank you