GIRLS and women remain “desperately underrepresented” in STEM programs from early school years right through to tertiary education despite significant investment and targeted programs, the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering (ATSE) says.
The scathing assessment follows last week’s release of draft recommendations into the Department of Industry, Science and Resources’ Diversity in STEM report.
The review – commissioned to address systemic and structural barriers limiting STEM participation – acknowledged that the current system was falling well short of expectations.
New data from the STEM Equity Monitor showed women made up just 20 per cent of people with STEM qualifications.
The data also indicates a widening career aspiration disparity with girls half as likely as boys to seek a career in the field of science, technology, engineering and maths.
Minister for Industry and Science said he wanted to hear the “uncomfortable truths” behind the review.
“We know there is a huge amount of work to be done to boost diversity in the STEM fields,” he said.
“But that’s why we appointed this expert independent panel.
“We want them to tell us the uncomfortable truths and suggest possible ways to address this issue.”
Sally-Ann Williams, Chair of the Independent Panel and CEO of Cicada Innovations said: “The only way to achieve our ambitious goals in STEM is to have a truly inclusive STEM ecosystem.”
ATSE CEO, Kylie Walker, said her organisation was pleased to see a call for centralised coordination and a national strategic approach.
“A whole-of-system approach that unflinchingly and collaboratively addresses cultural and systemic barriers will be critical to smash the factors that are holding women and diverse people back, and provide whole-of-lifecycle support to bolster diverse participation in STEM-powered jobs,” she said.
The National Skills Commission predicts STEM jobs will grow at almost twice the rate of non-STEM jobs by 2026.
Dean of Studies at Glasshouse Christian College, Rob Steffler said he didn’t see a huge imbalance in the STEM study choices at school, but acknowledged that career, university and further study options may not see the same level of balance between boys and girls. He said he felt our regional location was not a barrier to STEM study uptake with an accessible network of industry and academia available.
“A key question here is how do we get young people exposed to these industries and aware of the various opportunities that can exist. I think as educators we have a responsibility to encourage our young people and in this case young women to access and be exposed to as many opportunities as possible to engage and learn, whether through innovative learning opportunities, university collaborations, field trips or engaging classroom environments,” Rob said.
“Young people and our young women need to see opportunities to learn, and as teachers if we see opportunities or connections that can assist in leaning growth we should be seeking to share those opportunities and encourage that interest,”
Beerwah State High School’s Head of Science Department, Paul Schneider, said he was seeing a gradual shift to a more balanced uptake of tertiary and career interest in more traditionally male dominated STEM industries such as engineering.
He said diversity was essential to the ongoing success of STEM innovation and said it was good to see government initiatives supporting more women towards STEM based research and careers. He added that it was up to schools as well to keep finding new and innovative ways to engage students.
“As educators we are moving away from the traditional ‘board, chalk and talk’ theory-based teaching to more practical applications that encourage learning,” he said.
“For example, our year 7 students are learning principles of maths, physics and industrial design by creating a model car using our new 3D printer which supports our science team and other projects.
“We also engage our students through practical application in Digital Technologies and areas like robotics.”
The review’s recommendations are contained within four themes:
Improving leadership and governance; addressing culture and community attitudes to break stereotypes and increase visibility of career pathways; supporting life-long learning in STEM; and changing how STEM workplaces attract and retain underrepresented employees.
Feedback on the draft recommendations is being sought and can be found here: consult.industry.gov.au/diversityinstem2/draft-recommendations
To read more from our education feature in this week’s edition, visit https://issuu.com/glasshousecountrynews/docs/hinterland_education_august_2023?fr=sNjlkMjY0MjQyODM .