How fish climb trees : illuminating the experiences of academic mothers in South Africa

Abstract

The title of this contribution emerged from the truism that academic mothers seem to do the impossible. Mothers spend a significant amount of time and energy on parenting, often exceeding the hours of a normal job. When adding the responsibilities of an academic portfolio, it is not surprising that the wellbeing and mental health of academic mothers are constantly hanging in the balance. The COVID-19 pandemic redirected our attention to the importance of general wellbeing, but specifically for women who need to manage work, household, and childcare responsibilities. Using semi-structured interviews, this interpretive empirical exposition shines the spotlight on the experiences of four women in higher education in South Africa who have had to manage childcare in addition to their academic work. Using Crenshaw’s notion of intersectionality, the paper highlights how women are “taxed” for choosing to have children and pursue academia. Through centering their voices, this contribution advocates for taking sensitive discussions out of the bathroom and into the boardroom. It discusses the importance of creating enabling environments for these academic mothers through education, sensitive policy-making, realistic goal-setting, empathetic HR practices, and changing how we think about the value of what mothers do.