Thoughts about Girls & Science

1) Why do you think girls tend to not consider science as a possible career option?
I think girls tend to not consider science as a possible career option because it is mainly portrayed as male dominated field (embodying the boyhood tree house motto “no girls allowed”). We implicitly reinforce the messages of what type of future career interests our children should have based on the things we buy them/ the activities we facilitate for them. Boys are often active and curious, and playing the “young scientist” through experimenting, repairing, and creating things is often portrayed as activities “just for the boys.” While in the bookstore one day, I actually found a book titled “The Curious Boy’s Book of Exploration” which contains various challenges, puzzles, and experiments for young boys. If girls are not included as participants of science during the younger years, its no wonder that they choose not to consider it as a possible career option when they grow up. This book clearly reinforces the message to both girls and boys alike that science and investigation are only socially acceptable activities for boys. The toys we surround our children with, and the activities we engage them in when they are young, send powerful implicit messages about what types of activities our child “should be” interested in, and what activities are not for them. So the cycle of gender reinforcement continues, and girls are given their Easy Bake Ovens to cook food, and boys are given the rock set to investigate nature.

2) What can you do in your classroom to help girls make more informed choices about science careers?
In my classroom, I think that it’s important to depict science as a career for both males and females. From a young age I would make sure I sent the message that both girls and boys can be “explorers” and investigate how things work. Boys are not the only ones allowed to be curious, and explore the world around them, so I would facilitate and encourage girls to engage in investigating things of particular interest to them. Often girls decide not to pursue careers in science based on a false of lack of understanding of what science is and/or how it works. For this reason, I would concentrate my energies on illustrating an accurate of the nature of science in my classroom. To help girls develop a more accurate image of how science works, I would make a conscious effort to facilitate science-learning experiences that encouraged exploration, creativity, social interaction (group-work), and relate to everyday life. Its up to the individual student whether or not she inevitably decided to choose a career in the sciences, but at least she would have had an opportunity to experience authentic science in which to make a more informed decision about her options.