Girls Can Code
It is Never Too Early to Start the Conversation
As a professor in a STEM career path, programming, I frequently ask my female students “How did you become interested in this career?” The answer seems to center on one fact - “My parents exposed me to computers when I was younger. As I became more and more interested they helped me understand there was a career in this.”
This early introduction to computers helps my female student overcome another observation I see - girls feel like boys have been ‘engineering’ or ‘coding’ for a long time. The stereotypical comment “Boys play with LEGOs and robots, and girls play with dolls and tea sets” seems to support this observation. So, how do we address this lack of females entering into STEM careers? I propose we start at home.
This webinar addresses some of the obstacles we must overcome with regards to leveling the playing field between girls entering STEM and boys. Next, the traits girls demonstrate that make them more than qualified to succeed in STEM are identified. Finally, steps are provided which parents can follow to impact their child’s participation and performance in STEM careers.