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Did you know that fewer women choose STEM subjects (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) to study at University? In the UK women make up just 25% of STEM graduates. The percentage of female graduates across the disciplines is as follows:
· 15% of Engineering
· 19% Technology and Maths
· 38% Maths and Computer Studies (STEMwomen.co.uk).
Fewer girls select optional subjects at GCSE such as ICT, Computing and Statistics. In post-compulsory education this gap widens further with a massive drop off with only 35% girls choosing STEM subjects after GCSE versus 80% of boys. This means there is also a shortage of female role models in STEM. In 2017, only 23% of the core STEM occupations were women (Bailey, 2018). Having more people in roles that ‘look like us’ is a key way of encouraging more women into the disciplines (STEMwomen.co.uk). More role models, support from parents, better access to information about job opportunities and encouraging more girls to continue with STEM subjects are all ways of helping address this disparity and shortfall (Comptia.org, Bailey, 2018). This is crucial as we move into the 4th Industrial Revolution with the increased demand for STEM skills.
Currently my eldest isn’t enjoying Science at school, which is worrying when she talks about having a career as a Vet or Paramedic. So, to role model, provide parental support and as a way of encouraging an interest in STEM for both my girls (age 13 and 11) I took them out of school for the day, away from structured learning and the national curriculum and headed to a field in Sussex! It’s not as random as it sounds, I had been planning this for months given what I know about women in STEM. Off we went to support and explore all that was on offer at ‘The Big Bang Fair South East 2019’ held at Ardingly Showground and organised by STEM Sussex.
The Big Bang Fair is a STEM fair which takes place across the country from Liverpool to Birmingham (NEC) and in between. STEM Sussex organise our ‘local’ fair and are part of the University of Brighton. STEM Sussex try to engage school children across the county in STEM activities. In 2017/18 over 63,000 kids were involved with activities organised by them. Their aim being to ‘enthuse the next generation of scientists, technologists, engineers and mathematicians’ (STEMSUSSEX.co.uk). Not having been before, we didn’t know what to expect.
The girls’ school does a great job in so many areas, they have just put on the most AMAZING school production of ‘We Will Rock You’ at a local theatre, they have weekly water sports, computer clubs, book groups, you name it and there’s likely to be something to engage your darling 11-16 year old (and those with kids this age will know how tricky this can be!) However, the school doesn’t attend the Big Bang Fair South East, despite it being half an hour away and featuring many local and national employers. I had to get an authorised absence and the Head of Science commented that ‘it’s full of school kids running around..but the 3 of you will have a good time..’. This didn’t fill me with much hope.
My objectives of attending the Big Bang Fair were to:
· show that STEM is fun and interesting
· raise the girls’ awareness of the diversity of STEM careers
· demonstrate the accessibility of STEM careers
We arrived just after 10am and headed to the signing in tent to get our maps, check what demos we’d signed up for and then unanimously agreed we had to go see the border force dogs first. The hounds demonstrated their skills in finding contraband hidden in bags and we got to pet one too (our 15-year-old lab died nearly 3 years ago now and not a day goes by without missing her). After the demo, we stopped by the Sussex Police stall and attempted to identify forensics at a crime scene. This led to an interesting discussion with the girls about studying forensic science, the competitive nature of some degrees over others and how it can be beneficial for promotion prospects to have a degree before entering the police force. We met a female Asian police officer working as a Positive Action Recruitment Lead; she and I exchanged Twitter handles and she recommended an Asian female engineer to follow too. We chatted about the importance of networking and connecting with people who look like us whilst the girls took their own finger prints.
After watching Ian B Dunne’s show, who introduced the audience to robots (a cat that he’d programmed to meow and shake its head and some weird crow) and static electricity (I learnt that to avoid your heart stopping if you get a shock, you should put your hand in your pocket) we wandered around the different stands, talking as we went. We stopped at the McLaren stall and the girls got to hold Fernando Alonso’s helmet and Lewis Hamilton’s steering wheel from the F1 car he drove for them. It was here that we learnt STEM is becoming STEAM, with the A standing for Arts because of the importance of interdisciplinary teams of the future; engineers, designers, creatives, accountants working in teams to deliver the organisation’s mission and products. I was able to relate to the significance of this as an advocate of interdisciplinary learning supporting students on the Open Programme - which enables students to ‘pick n’ mix’ modules to create a personalised and individualised pathway. This can be Arts and Science or Education and Maths for example.
Our favourite part of the fair was the simulation ambulance where Mark the Paramedic, spent half an hour talking to us about careers in Paramedic Science. He explained the importance of work experience, the different career paths available and talked about the new Paramedic Apprenticeship; this being one of the main things my eldest took away from the day. For me, we were rewriting stories.
The Big Bang Fair South East was a hit with us and with all the children who visited with their schools over the 2 days. It was well organised and well attended with 13400 visitors. There weren’t school children running around; there were well behaved, polite and engaged young people exploring the importance and opportunities of subjects and future careers in STEM. Encourage your school to attend. Not every child has parent’s like us, that will seek out additional learning opportunities and cheekily ask for an authorised absence to do so. If we’re to level that playing field and widen access, address inequality in gender, ethnicity etc. we need to expose our children to the possibilities and help them curate their stories – the stories of the future.
Bailey., R., 2018, We all need more girls in STEM, Data Science Campus
Women in STEM https://www.stemgraduates.co.uk/women-in-stem