Averi Beck

Mrs.Rutan
English IV
9 May 2016

6 Things You Need to Know About Girls in STEM (Science, Engineering, Technology,
Mathematics)
When little kids are growing up, their parents tell them that they can do whatever they
want when they are older. They can be a movie star, or a teacher, or an astronaut. They all have
the opportunity to achieve whatever they set their mind to but do they really? Now-a-days, not
every child is growing up with the same encouragement and opportunities to achieve their
dreams. Specifically, little girls dreaming to be scientists. Parents, fellow classmates, and
teachers are putting up walls. They are telling these girls, verbally or mentally, that they arent
meant to be apart of these STEM communities-- that is a boys world. We are teaching our girls
from a young age that they are lacking the ability to think like a scientist (Adams). This
destroys their confidence, rips their dreams apart, and makes them vulnerable to a world of
inequality that we have yet to overcome. These myths and bias are holding girls back (Adams).
Not only are they suffering, but scientific research is suffering, and even the economy is
suffering. Our communities need to start encouraging girls into STEM careers, and realize that
there is plenty of room for more female scientists!

1. What is STEM, and How is it Growing?

In the growing world of technology, pursuing a stem field is becoming more and more
common. STEM is an acronym that stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, and
Mathematics. When most people think of STEM, they typically think of high ranking doctors,
successful engineers, or mad scientists. However, not every STEM worker is curing cancer, or
building a new prosthetic lung. Many of these workers are dealing with some of today's most
pressing issues such as climate change, sustainable energy, and public epidemics (Trutschel).
Because these issues are central to the innovation and improvement of our society, the STEM job
market is growing fast. The US Bureau of Labor and Statistics predicts an increase of
approximately 1.7 new jobs in the U.S. between 2012 and 2022 (Trutschel). With that many
new positions, STEM fields are quickly becoming a common career path for many people. There
are more opportunities than ever in these fields, and people need to start taking advantage of it.
That includes both men, AND women.

2. Girls and Science: Myth vs. Fact

There are many myths surrounding girls and their interest, or lack thereof, in the STEM
fields. Many people believe that girls just aren't fit to be involved in fields like these. One article
by Live Science explores these myths, and discredits them by explaining the reality. One myth
that is commonly believed is that classroom interventions that work to increase girls interest in
STEM runs the risk of turning off the boys (Live Science Staff). The article then goes on to
explain how encouraging girls in the classroom has a side effect of encouraging the boys as well.
When classes are shown images and told stories of women scientists, both the girls AND the
boys get the message that I can do this! (Live Science Staff). Another myth that the Live
Science staff discussed was the idea that most girls are less interested in science than boys are
(Live Science). Even though this may seem like a logical argument on the surface, it really has
no actual backing. Studies show that at a young age as many girls as boys have positive
attitudes towards science (Live Science Staff). If the communities keep perpetuating myths like
this, they are continually running the risk of damaging the future of many little girls; Saying
things such as girls just aren't interested, or integrating more girls would be watering down.
Coursework, is allowing myths to overtake fact (Live Science Staff. If we can make the facts
more prominently known than the myths that currently overshadow them, girls will have a much
better chance of making it into a science field.
3. Equal Opportunity With Unequal Encouragement
A little encouragement, or lack thereof, can greatly impact the future of an individual.
Whether we realize it or not, every word that we say is impacting someone's life choices and
shaping them into the person that they are going to be. This can have great benefits for some
people and casese, but it can have largely negative consequences to others. One physics major
spoke on the subject when she said, I didn't go into physics because not a single
professor.encouraged me to go to graduate school (Welsch). This woman graduated at the top
of her class, but never even made it to an upper level degree program and all because she
wasn't encouraged. Her professors negatively impacted her life, and that is something that can
never be undone. We aren't giving females pursuing stem fields the encouragement that they
need. They are witnessing men receiving accolades and encouragement, all the while they are
being pushed to the side and almost forgotten about. We claim that the United States allows
equal opportunities for everyone, however we are shutting out half of the population from the
growing fields of STEM.

4. Biased Teachers Creating Roadblocks

The term bias is used quite frequently in our culture. It has been used to describe events
in history, or examined in order to establish credibility. However, only recently has it been
emerging in the conversation about teachers and students-- specifically regarding girls vs. boys

in math and science. A researcher from the University of Warwick wanted to explore this
potential bias by studying an elementary school. In the study, students were subject to blind and
non blind assessments in the subjects of math, science, and English (Sunstein). For the blind
assessments, the teachers did not know whose paper they were grading; for the non blind, the
teachers were fully aware of who they were giving a score to. At the conclusion of the study, it
was found that girls scored equal to the boys on the blind tests over math and science curriculum.
On the non blinds however, girls scored significantly lower than boys in these subjects
(Sunstein). Interestingly enough, on the reading tests there was no significant difference between
the genders. For the researchers at Warwick, this was a good measure of sex discrimination in
specific subjects (Sunstein). Because both the blind and non blind tests were gaging the same
thing, it was clear that the teachers opinion of the students was playing a role in their grading
procedure. And it was also evident that this biased opinion only played a role in the areas of
math and science. We rely on our teachers to encourage students, not to put more barriers in their
way. Girls who have biased teachers are much less likely to pursue a career in STEM in the
future (Bernam). We all know that life puts roadblocks in the way sometimes, but should a
teacher really be one of them?
5. Simple Stereotype, or Confidence Crusher?
We are all familiar with stereotypes, however we might not be familiar with how much
they can truly affect people. One giant umbrella of stereotypes that is hanging over many girls in
the world is that they lack the ability to think like a scientist (Richard). Stereotypes like this
don't only have a negative influence on a girls career opportunity, it also has a negative effect on
their confidence as well. One physics undergrad from Yale recalls being emotionally tormented
by the these stereotypes. One student even said to her You're a girl. Girls cant do physics
(Welsh). Statements like that tear at the confidence of girls; think of how hard it would be to
continually tell yourself that you can, when you are constantly hearing a chorus of you can't.
This lack of confidence isn't only observed at the college level, it can be seen in middle school
and highschool students as well. One study by OECD ( Organization for Economic Cooperation
and Development) reveals that girls lack self confidence. In mathematics and science
(Adams). Some girls even experience high levels of anxiety towards the subjects (Adams).
When girls this age are experiencing anxiety and lack of confidence, it can be incredibly
damaging to their personality and moral. They begin to stop believing in themselves; they give
up on those subjects and begin to think that they just aren't good enough. Teenage years are
already some of the most vulnerable and impressionable years of a young girl's life--they begin
to find themselves and their personality. Why are we tearing girls down with vicious stereotypes
surrounding their mental ability before they even have time to form their own opinions on the
subjects themselves? Next time you want to tease a little girl for enjoying science, or make fun of
your friend for being a math nerd, think about how crushing the stereotypes that you are
perpetuating can really be.

6. Wanted: Female Scientists!

In the United states, women earn about 57% of all bachelor's degrees (Trutschel).
However, women only hold about 25% of jobs relating to the 15 STEM fields; the majority of
our degree earners are pursuing careers outside of the STEM realm (Covert). Not only could that
be negatively affecting the women personally, it is also affecting the economy and the scientific
community in general. When these women are discouraged from pursuing a career within
STEM, we-- as a community-- are missing out on the talent and ingenuity of half the worlds
population (Trutschel). Because of the disproportionate relationship between degree earners and
job openings in these scientific fields, the economy is unbalanced and suffering greatly. The lack
of female scientists also brings on the consequence of slowing innovation. Studies show that
lack of diversity in STEM fields limits workplace performance (Trutschel). When a workroom
is filled with people of the same gender or race, they are more likely to think the same and
approach a problem in the same manner. When you diversify the workers, you are able to
perceive a whole new perspective on the project at hand. Female participation in STEM careers
should not only be accepted, it should be encouraged! Introducing more female minds into these
fields would have an incredibly large benefit to the economy and the scientific community. So
attention all future female scientists; not only are you wanted. You are needed!

Works cited
Adams, Richard. "Girls Lack Self-confidence in Maths and Science Problems, Study
Finds." The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 05 Mar. 2015. Web. 17 Mar. 2016.
<http://www.theguardian.com/education/2015/mar/05/girls-lack-self-confidence-math
s-science-oecd-school-engineering>.
Covert, Bryce. "Not A Single Female Student Took The AP Computer Science Test In Two
States."ThinkProgress RSS. Think Progress, 14 Jan. 2014. Web. 4 Apr. 2016.
<http://thinkprogress.org/education/2014/01/14/3160181/test-girls-race/>
Live Science Staff. "Top 5 Myths About Girls, Math and Science." LiveScience.
TechMediaNetwork, 27 Aug. 2007. Web. 17 Mar. 2016.
<http://www.livescience.com/7349-top-5-myths-girls-math-science.html>.
Sunstein, Cass. "Fewer Girls in Math? Blame Biased Teachers." Chicago Tribune. Chicago
Tribune, 23 Feb. 2015. Web. 17 Mar. 2016.
<http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/commentary/chi-girls-math-science-st
em-classes-20150223-story.html>.
Trutschel, Thomas. "It's Time to Unleash Girl's Potential in STEM." The Gender
Imbalance in STEM Is Not Only Bad for Women- It's Bad for the Economy. No
Ceilings, 2015. Web. 17 Mar. 2016. <http://noceilings.org/stem/>.
Welsh, Jennifer. "These Are The 7 Things Keeping Women Out Of Science Careers."
Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 16 Oct. 2013. Web. 17 Mar. 2016.
<http://www.businessinsider.com/7-things-keeping-women-out-of-science-2013-10>.