Teacher Ambassador Programs as Pyramid Schemes: A neoliberal capitalist tale of the exploitation of women educators' labor within educational technology companies

In this study I inquire into Teacher Ambassador Programs through the utilization of theoretical concepts such as aspirational labor (Duffy, 2017), capital (Bourdieu, 1984; 1986), and cruel optimism (Berlant, 2011). I describe how women are produced to aspire for neoliberal capitalist subject positions, such as the good enough woman teacher (Pittard, 2015). I use this position to illustrate the entanglement between women, aspirational labor, and Teacher Ambassador Programs. From here, I draw comparisons to Multi-level Marketing Programs and Pyramid Schemes to depict how women’s aspirational labor to obtain the position of good enough, is not confined to education spaces. In particular, I depict how all of these programs are cruelly optimistic (Berlant, 2011), luring individuals in through affective promises of capital accumulation (Bourdieu, 1984). Overall, I work to bring to light the exploitative nature of Teacher Ambassador Programs through what I define as the Teacher Ambassador Program Pyramid Scheme.