Non-Tenure-Track Faculty, Institutional Constraints, and Pedagogical Approaches

• In Event: AERA Poster Session 1
  In Poster Session: Division J Poster Session: Faculty, Curriculum, and Teaching 1

Abstract

This work aids our understanding of how non-tenure-track faculty matter with regard to undergraduate student success. Although non-tenure-track faculty comprise the majority of college and university instructors (AAUP, 2016), this population is rarely studied empirically. We analyzed a decade of peer-reviewed research and utilized Holland et al.’s (1998) concept of ‘figured worlds’ to inform our findings. As institutions increasingly rely on a contingent teaching workforce, this study importantly highlights non-tenure-track faculty members’ positionality as related to institutional constraints and pedagogical approaches. We identify themes in recent scholarship, note gaps in the field, and call for more pointed research to better address how non-tenure-track faculty affect various stakeholders, impact institutions, and shape academia writ large.

Authors

• Jennifer Burke Reifman, University of California - Davis

• Jill Huynh, University of California - Davis