The Future of STEM is Feminine

ACCORDING to statistics presented by the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) in 2019, only two in seven engineering students are female and only 41 percent of students taking Itrelated courses are women.

Moreover, women make up only 43 percent of STEM enrollments – and mostly in non-engineering or non-it fields. This has been attributed to the fact that at a young age, girls have been conditioned to believe that they do not belong in STEM courses and that only men can do it.

Moreover, this gendered stereotype leads to a lack of female role models in the STEM field, which further reinforces the stereotype. However, as humanity’s understanding of gender progresses and becomes less rigid, young girls are now more open to choosing a STEM course, and their talents must be nurtured.

This is where the advocacy, Girls for STEM, enters the picture. Created by Nina Marie “Chin Chin” Bernabe, the advocacy aims to “cultivate potential in mathematically inclined girls into choosing a STEM course and career in the future.”

Personal experience

ACCORDING to Bernabe, a Year 11 student from the British School Manila, this advocacy stemmed from her personal experience as someone who witnessed the harmful effects of the stereotype first hand in her school.

“I particularly choose to focus on grade 5 to grade 6 students because in my personal experience, this is the stage where a girl discovers what she is passionate about and what she is strong at,” she said.

The advocacy aims to benefit mostly “financially challenged girls” who are interested in Maths and Science through three key steps, which are start them young, spot and support, and activate their skills. In order to do this, the advocacy aims to provide these young girls with a network of support from fellow STEM inclined girls, teachers, parents and other educators. This will be achieved by building an online platform that will allow people access to an online platform of likeminded individuals who will guide them on their journey and at the same time dismantle the gender stereotypes of the field.

Three types

ACCORDING to the Girls for Stem website, the network they are creating mainly consists of three types of people- the “Little Sisters”, the ‘Big Sisters” and “Spotter” or “Nurturer”.

These “little sisters” are the pre-teen girls who are considering taking STEM courses. As they are young and impressionable, it is vital that they are exposed to people who made it through STEM courses and are thriving in STEM based careers. They are at an age where they are becoming their own person, and as such need guidance and support from the people they care the most, such as parents and teachers.

Parents and teachers fulfill the “spotter” and “nurturer” roles, as they are the ones who typically first notice a girl’s interest in STEM courses. They are responsible for encouraging and fostering that interest and, if possible, guide the child as they figure out which specific STEM course they wish to take. They also encourage girls to “pay it forward” to their younger peers.

Older, usually high school aged girls in the advocacy are known as the ‘Big Sisters”. These are girls who have chosen and are currently taking STEM tracks. Their primary objective is to be a “relatable role model” towards these young girls and “inspire seeds of growth” in them. At the same time, they also form their own subcommunity that supports each other and sharpens their skills in STEM.

Success stories

THEY are success stories in the making that encourage the upcoming generations of girls to follow their dreams of being in a STEM course. Moreover, they serve as mentors and examples to young girls that they can be feminine and be into STEM courses at the same time.

Though it may take some time, this advocacy and many others like it are working to break down gender bias in STEM courses and push more women into the engineering and technology spotlight.

As Chin Chin promptly puts it, “In a society infested with weeds of systemic prejudice, we will nip gender stereotypes in the bud and nurture a status quo where girls are at the forefront of STEM. We will foster an environment where girls can empower girls through mentorship & social learning, where instructional materials and activities that promote STEM are within girls' reach, and where STEM educators and experts can both inspire and advance the growth of girls.”