Social Lives
Author- Neasa Boyle- Researcher in the ALL (Assisting Living & Learning) Institute, Department of Psychology, Maynooth University.
It has been well documented that STEM learning is the key to societal growth and economic prosperity considering STEM graduates are becoming more sought after, the benefits of effective STEM education may extend past those who wish to pursue STEM careers. STEM prepares students to adapt to any industry, by enhancing in skills problem-solving, adaptability, and creativity. However, despite these clear advantages, female students are significantly less likely to participate in STEM in school or continue these subjects into 3rd level education. This is particularly true for female students from lower socioeconomic areas.
In Ireland, we see girls in DEIS (disadvantaged, or, delivering equality of opportunity in schools) schools are particularly under-represented in STEM. According to an OECD report less than one-third of engineering and one-fifth of computer science undergraduates were female. Additionally, at age fifteen, only 4.7% of female students compared to 18% of their male counterparts showed interest in STEM, even amongst the highest achieving pupils.
The need to belong and feel accepted, is of the most basic human needs considered necessary for our wellbeing. The need for belongingness and feeling of being accepted also applies in the educational settings; students wish that they fit in and belong to a group. In a study by Freeman, Anderman & Jensen, 2007, it is suggested that if a student feels estranged from their peers they are more likely to perform poorly in assessments, would lack motivation and may potentially leave their studies. Additionally, when young women fail to see a representation of their, ethnic, cultural, religious, or socioeconomic group within their fields of interest they may feel their presence is unwanted thus excluded. This feeling of underrepresentation in turn leads to fewer women pursuing such fields of study which, consequently, decreases the availability of female role models to young girls in the future, creating a vicious self-fulfilling prophecy.
Many young women lack the opportunity to experience science and technology, both in the home and in educational environments. From my own experience I observed that young girls are encouraged to engage in social/caring games (i.e., Playing with dolls), meanwhile boys are encouraged to engage in computer games and construction puzzles (i.e. Lego). This lack of early exposure to STEM activities from a young age could reinforce gender stereotypes, that science, computers, and technology are for boys, not girls. Hobbs, 2013, suggests that within the school environment, particularly secondary education, teachers are often left to cover the three main sciences (Biology, Chemistry, and Physics), due to teacher shortages. This “stretch” of a teacher’s abilities to cover subjects they may not have specialized in previously, can leave them feeling unqualified and less confident teaching. Additionally, in some areas where there are shortages of teachers/resources some schools are unable to provide the three basic sciences at the secondary school level, preventing students from even exploring the subject and further inhibiting the chance of any meaningful connection being made for students to the sciences.
Getting a good education is a key component in creating opportunities for disadvantaged individuals/families- however, children that come from disadvantaged backgrounds often do not have access to take STEM classes in school, which immediately places them at a disadvantage to their peers when moving forward into third-level education. It has been reported that students from disadvantaged backgrounds who gain entry into third-level education report feeling as though they don’t belong. It is nevertheless documented that despite all the conflicting sociological barriers and stereotypical beliefs about STEM education , students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds albeit their lower rates of entry in third-level education gain more from education than other students.
For young women studying in typically male dominated fields representation of women can be a key motivator, having access to good role models can give young girls the belief that “If she could do it, why couldn’t I?”. To combat this lack of representation for girls in STEM, firstly, we need to broaden their concept of what fits in STEM as opposed to depicting a message that it is exclusive to ‘others’. To entice girls into choosing STEM we should be using representations of individuals from every gender, religion, ethnicity, background, and disability. According to a study by Locks et al., 2008, positive interactions with diverse peers led to a greater sense of belonging for students transitioning into college.
To combat the decline of young women gaining an education in STEM, Katriona O’Sullivan of the ALL institute, alongside College Connect have developed a programme that offers an opportunity for young women from a band 1 DEIS secondary school to develop STEM skills/knowledge and become educated on the benefits of and pathways into 3rd level education.
With science and technology classes provided by a member of Microsoft DreamSpace and college advice provided by College Connect, the young women are provided with the information needed to find interests in STEM and make decisions about their educational future. These students are also supported by student mentors, these are 5 young women enrolled in the university who have similar backgrounds as the young women in the study. Having this interaction with female role models who the girls can connect with.
The project aimed to empower young women from backgrounds and communities underrepresented in STEM, to provide them with the information to make choices about their potential futures in STEM and allow them to engage with STEM in a way that was not previously available. Additionally, the participants will be provided with a certificate of participation from the ALL Institute, which they can use in the future when applying for college courses, as a show of the skills they have gained.