Gender gap in STEM education and career choices: what matters (original) (raw)
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This study focused on predisposing factors of females to STEM education, expected career choice for females, and strategies for change. Random sampling was used, and (10) 10tertiary institutions were selected among the eleven (10) tertiary institutions within the area of study. All the students within the selected tertiary institutions constituted the population of the study. A total ofthree Hundred (3000) students were selected from ten tertiary institutions in the Port-Harcourt metropolis,which constituted the sample of the study. The instrument for data collection wasa quantitative-structured questionnaire. The questionnaire consists of (24) twenty-four items with (3) three sections to reflect the three areas of focus of the study.Content and face validity were employed, and a reliability index of 0.75 was achieved after a trial test.Descriptive statistics and mean ratings were deployed. Among others, the main predisposing factor is that females are not favourably considered when it comes to employment, expected career,and educational choice. This accounts for the significantly reduced female interest in STEM. Parents, society, tradition, and culture were identified as critical drivers of this gender discrimination. Females, however, should be allowed to pursue their choice of career whether or not in STEM. Findings also revealed that strategies for changeare; rewards, incentives, grants, and subsidized education for females in STEM.
Gender Differences in Determinants of Students’ Interest in STEM Education
Social Sciences
Despite the government’s call for students to pursue science, technology, engineering, and mathematics in the era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR), the gender gap in STEM education is still of significant concern in South Africa. This study aimed to describe different push-pull factors that influenced male and female students when choosing STEM education at the TVET college level. This study used qualitative research methods and focus-group interviews with a sample of 20 students studying at a TVET college in a rural part of the Limpopo province. In addition, a thematic analysis was used to analyse the data collected. The study revealed that the following factors: lucrative salary, graduate unemployment rate, aptitude for mathematics and science, parental education and autonomy and independence, and rejecting stereotypical feminine identities were push-pull factors that influenced both male and female TVET college students to choose STEM education. The policy implication of...
Why Not STEM? A Study Case on the Influence of Gender Factors on Students’ Higher Education Choice
Mathematics
The gender gap in STEM-related job positions is a fact, and it is closely related to the low percentage of women studying STEM degrees. This poses a problem because Europe, as well as the United States and the rest of the developed countries, keep demanding the best engineers and scientists to continue developing innovative products. This problem can thus be approached by answering, firstly, the following question: Why are women not studying STEM degrees? In this paper, we summarize the factors, found in literature, that influence students—both boys and girls—to not study STEM, particularly engineering, computer sciences and technology. We study these influence factors in a sample of N = 338 students from a secondary school placed in the south of Spain; we carry out a survey in order to find out if those students fill out the same answers other researchers have found and published in the related literature. Our main conclusions are as follows: The results confirm that the number of ...
Corpus Intellectual, 2024
The underrepresentation of Girls and women in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) fields is an ongoing issue, with significant consequences for individuals, communities, and society. This study investigates the causes and effects of gender disparity in STEM and identifies remedies for this problem. The under-representation of female students in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics courses inhibits their potential to maximize their career opportunities. It also tightens the noose of stereotyping of women in general society. Social cognitive theory informs this study by identifying self-efficacy, interests, and environmental factors to explain career choices. This study employs a mixed-method approach, combining survey data with in-depth interviews and focus groups to comprehensively understand the gender gap in STEM. The findings show that the gender gap in higher education STEM is determined by, Stereotype threat and bias, Lack of role models and mentorship, Limited access to resources and opportunities, Sociocultural expectations and norms. Implications include, Reduced innovation and economic growth, Reinforcing Gender Stereotypes and Inequality, Reducing Career Choices, Available to Girls/Women. Based on these premises, the study makes the following recommendations, Outreach and mentorship, more inclusive curriculum design and pedagogies, Bias and stereotype challenges within education and society. This study, through its causes and consequences, helps develop effective solutions that will help foster gender equality and diversity in the fields of STEM. Ultimately, this research aims to empower women and girls to pursue STEM careers, driving innovation and economic growth while promoting a more inclusive and equitable society Lead Author
Asia Proceedings of Social Sciences, 2020
Globally, women are underrepresented in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields. Although women’s participation in higher education is increasing, they are still significantly underrepresented in STEM fields. It is important to understand the forces at play, which drive women's choice of STEM education. A variety of factors impact the choice of females to take STEM path including personal (I.e. self-concept, self-efficacy, personal preferences, self-stereotyping and intrinsic motivation) as well as the external factors (i.e. role models, family, teacher’s influence as well as low recruitment of women in STEM fields). This paper systematically reviews the literature on young women’s intention to undertake STEM education in Malaysian context. The paper has adopted the PRISMA protocol for Systematic Literature Review (SLR). The paper has identified 10 research papers which have attempted to identify the factors effecting female participation in STEM education...
Gender Inequalities in STEM Careers in Developed and Developing Countries
Proceedings of the 4th International Conference on Innovation in Engineering and Vocational Education (ICIEVE 2021)
Gender inequalities in careers has been an issue for a long time in many parts of the world. Even in the country with the best rates of gender equality in the world, gender inequalities persist across many professions. One of the career fields where there is a lot of gender inequality is science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), which in this field is still dominated by men. This study aims to discuss gender inequalities that occur in STEM careers in developing and developed countries. The method used is a systematic literature review using a number of relevant articles from various journals. After the screening process, a number of articles obtained were studied further. As a result, many women experience gender gaps or biases in STEM careers. These gaps occur mainly in developing countries, although the results are not very significant. The gaps are felt especially in women who already have children, because their productivity is considered to decrease when they become a mother. In addition to the difficulty of women to get promotions, inequality also occurs in the provision of wages, where women sometimes get lower wages than men.
Gender differentiation in STEM career choice and the role of education
Hellenic Journal of STEM Education
This work is the product of research conducted by the project team of the Regional Directorate for Primary and Secondary Education of Attica formed under the Erasmus+Project “RoboGirls: Empowering girls in STEAM through robotics and coding». The research has focused on identifying and investigating the factors that influence and interpret the differentiation in men and women’s participation in education and in their professional careers in the fields of STEM, but also on the selection of the best educational practices that enhance the participation of women in the STEM fields. The research has combined literature review with data analysis resulting from questionnaires and interviews of a selected focus group. The results of the research have contributed to understanding the factors that conduce to the creation of these differences, as well as the role that education can play in Greece and in the EU in bridging the gender gap in the STEM fields.
Qlantic Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities, 2024
There is a widely held belief that there is an increasing gender gap in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) worldwide. Women have achieved gender equality with men in certain professions, such as the humanities and social sciences. However, women still lack adequate representation in the highest positions of academia and the professional world in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). This paper is grounded in institutional theory to explore the factors that demotivate or hinder women from joining STEM as a profession in universities. The research is based on a qualitative case study of the University of Peshawar. We conducted 20 interviews with female staff members in 13 STEM departments, with 32 female staff out of 183 faculty members. The collected data generated a total of 123 codes. The axial coding procedure generated 38 codes, which were grouped into fourteen distinct categories and four overarching themes of (1) male dominant culture, (2) multiple influences, (3) professional environment, and (4) job opportunities. The study highlights the complex interplay between societal attitudes and gender in STEM fields, emphasising the need for comprehensive strategies to promote gender equality. Addressing these factors and thoroughly analysing women's engagement in STEM departments is crucial.
Women in STEM: Closing the Gender Gap to National Transformation
2015
The study examined the differences between enrolment and completion of students admitted into science, technology, engineering and technology based undergraduate courses in Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike. The population consists of all students admitted into
Analysis of barriers, supports and gender gap in the choice of STEM studies in secondary education
International Journal of Technology and Design Education
Society is more digitised than ever and there is an urgent need to train people in these sectors, where women are still under-represented. A quantitative descriptive, correlational and explanatory descriptive design was used to identify barriers, supports and gender gaps in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics in Secondary Education by analysing the interest and perception of 1562 students and 432 teachers. Descriptive statistics, Chi-square and Lambda test and Crame’s V or Phi test were performed together with a qualitative analysis. The results show that fewer female students want to pursue STEM studies, with girls preferring health and education professions and boys preferring engineering and computer science. Indeed, their motivation is different since we found correlations between being a girl and choosing STEM for helping people and society, while earning money is important for boys. Girls believe more necessary than boys to have qualities to study STEM and less of...