ipl-logo

Gender Discrepancy In STEM

1529 Words7 Pages

The U.S. Department of Education recently reported that even though more female high school graduates took advanced STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) courses than male counterparts, their interests in STEM were significantly lower regardless of race/ethnicity according to a 2009 survey (U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics [NCES], 2015). Further, there are significantly less women who completed STEM degrees compared to men (Lee, Alston, & Kahn, 2015). In addition to the gender discrepancy, racial discrepancy also exists in STEM. Both discrepancies have been examined by researchers for the last decades; however, relatively less studies have examined the racial discrepancy in STEM. In contrast, many studies have examined how to promote gender parity in STEM fields.
Studies have found that gender stereotypes contribute heavily to the gender discrepancy in STEM (e.g., O’Brien et al., 2015). STEM fields are highly associated stereotypes with masculine traits (e.g., independent, assertive, highly technical). These stereotypes can lead to gender discrepancy in STEM in multiple ways. For instance, due to evaluations of students affected by gender-STEM stereotypes, faculty tend to offer more opportunities to men compared to women, such as job opportunities, …show more content…

Also, STEM career interest in computer science and adaptive learning skills were very strongly positively correlated, r (20) = .84, p = .000. There is also a very strong positive correlation between the career interest in science and the career interest in computer science, r (5) = .91, p = .035. However, the sample size is very small, therefore these findings should be interpreted with caution. The post-test was conducted on April 16th, and the results are expected to be ready by

Show More
Related
753 Words | 4 Pages

How exciting would the world be if everyone was either a scientist or mathematician? What would the world be like? Of course there will be a bountiful supply of scientific breakthroughs thank we can bank on, but what how will all of the other aspects of the world fare? As of currently, all across the country there has been a jolt of urgency for the incorporation of a more STEM based education in schools. A more “STEM” based education like the type described in We Can’t All Be Math Nerds and Science Geeks by Fareed Zakaria narrows student’s once broad-based learning foundation and directs it into a more specific line of learning, which is the reasoning behind Zakaria’s disapproval of the movement.

Read More
1040 Words | 5 Pages

The value of the STEM system (science, technology, engineering, and math) is steering the education world in a new and positive direction, although some may believe otherwise. In Lloyd Bentsen’s article, “the United States educational system will continue to fail our children,” he talks about how he disagrees with Zakaria, another writer stating his views on the STEM system. Bentsen believes the STEM system will benefit America. In Scott Gerber’s article, “How Liberal Arts Colleges Are Failing America,” he talks about how people can correlate their majors into entrepreneurship. Lastly, in Fareed Zakaria’s article, “Why America’s obsession with STEM education is dangerous,” he shares his belief that our obsession with STEM is just a way to overlook

Read More
749 Words | 3 Pages

In Fareed Zakaria’s we can’t all be math nerds & science geeks he effectively persuades the readers that school curricula should push beyond STEM education by establishing credibility, using facts, and connecting with the audience. Zakaria establishes his credibility by quoting several notable innovators and using personal experience. Throughout his article, Zakaria

Read More
655 Words | 3 Pages

In Ann L. Mullen’s article on “Gender, Social Background, and the choice of College major in a liberal arts context” highlights how gender along with social status impacts the choice of college major. Mullen writes, “ Men are more likely than women to major in engineering, the physical sciences, and fields that lead to jobs with high incomes and prestige”(Mullen 292). Additionally, the article explains how women are more likely to lean towards social sciences and how these programs are tailored to encourage women into these particular fields of study. Mullen goes on to explain how “nearly 80 percent have parents with at least a bachelor degree” (Mullen 296). through these findings she confirms that men are more likely to be concerned with

Read More
1485 Words | 6 Pages

On 10 October 2015, Eileen Pollack published an article in the online New York Times titled “What Really Keeps Women Out of Tech”. This article points out that there is a serious gender and diversity problem among the computer science and engineering professions. Pollack uses the studies and experiments that Dr. Sapna Cheryan, a psychology professor at the University of Washington, has done to argue her points. Along with Dr. Cheryan’s experiments and conclusions, Pollack drew some of her own conclusions about being a woman in a male-dominated field and how it affected her mindset. Pollack’s article is overall effective because her main goal was to bring about awareness to the issue of computer science and engineering professions being male-dominated

Read More
931 Words | 4 Pages

When I was young, I never thought that I would want to have anything to do with a STEM career. I always thought that it wasn’t something that women did, and therefore I couldn’t do it. It wasn’t until I was in high school started learning more about science and hearing encouragement from my teachers that I realized that pursuing a career in science would be possible. Just like how Chimamanda Adichie says in her Ted Talk, “The single story creates stereotypes, and the problem with stereotypes is not that they are untrue, but that they are incomplete. They make one story become the only story.”

Read More
272 Words | 2 Pages

In America, students are taught about the struggles that racial minorities and women have, and still, face in the country. Countless textbook chapters across the country are dedicated to the moments surrounding these minorities, but less is said about the LGBTQIA+ rights movement that is still in it’s prime and heavily underway. For this reason, Manil Suri’s Op-Ed piece titled, “Why Is Science So Straight?”, about LGBTQIA+ discrimination within the math and science departments, is an interesting representation of issues that have become increasingly present in America today. Suri start’s by telling a story, “I came out as gay to a colleague in the engineering department. ‘I didn’t realize you were so unconventional.’”

Read More
379 Words | 2 Pages

Hoekenga (2012) noted that the U.S. Census Bureau estimates that the Hispanic population in the U.S will reach 132.8 million by the year 2050, when almost one in three Americans will be Hispanic. Yet today Hispanic students (as well as other minorities) continue to be underrepresented in the STEM disciplines (Hoekenga, 2012). In the face of these disparities Hispanic scientists have had a major and lasting impact on the world around them. In many cases they overcame obstacles, including racism and sexism, poverty, cultural and family expectations, and lack of mathematics background, in order to work and excel in the fields that they love.

Read More
645 Words | 3 Pages

Gendered Mathematics in the Case of The Simpsons A growing question within education is why males generally do better in STEM related fields than their female counterparts. The Simpsons episode entitled “Girls Just Want to Have Sums” attempts to answer this question through its analyzation and observation of the differences between boys and girls. By forcing a girl into a boy’s world, we begin to see the issue from both sides, and the many aspects that make it such a daunting question.

Read More
481 Words | 2 Pages

Dreams That Can Be Accomplished African American history is filled with a plethora of contributions in the music, acting, and sport industries, but some young adults fail to recognize the African American contributions to the science field. For decades, minority women have been the most underrepresented individuals in science, engineering, and medicine. Being one of less than 100 African American women physicists in the United States, Dr. Hadiyah-Nicole Green has been an inspiration to me to pursue a degree in Chemistry. She once said, “It’s important to know that our brains are capable of more.” It is important for African American women to further their skills and know that they are a valuable part of the workplace and that their contributions to STEM is essential.

Read More
247 Words | 1 Pages

As a young latina woman looking to major in computer science, I continuously remind myself about the influence I could have on young Latino students and by how changing their views on science, technology, engineering and math, I could fight the problem that minorities are underestimated in STEM fields, Latino students are underestimated because of race, and it 's not because we’re unfit for STEM but because we are unaware of the opportunities we have making us a minority in the workforce. From a young age being a Latina girl never placed me at a disadvantage, however, I wasn 't always met with support at home when I showed interest in science or math because my parents did not have a great understanding of those subjects, being a

Read More
301 Words | 2 Pages

Steps toward diversifying STEM fields–such as Kimberly Bryant founding Black Girls Code–are especially beneficial to the cause, but we have to remember that expanding STEM will be a lengthy process; just as it takes numerous, continuous steps to run and finish a marathon, so will the journey for diversity in STEM be as extensive. A diversification in STEM needs to happen. The more variant the minds of tomorrow 's scientists are, the more potential there is for new innovations and inventions. But what is holding this undertaking back is the same thing that hinders equal rights: deep rooted stereotypes in our society.

Read More
787 Words | 4 Pages

STEM disciplines require an immense amount of work and effort to succeed for most students. From my personal experience, on average, as an undergraduate student pursuing a Mathematics degree, I have taken four, five unit courses in my field per semester. Often I was overwhelmed by how many different concepts I had to learn simultaneously and became concerned that I would accidentally apply wrong formulas or techniques in my varying courses. Along with class stress, there are also additional components that interfere with success in a STEM discipline. Two of these additional stressors are gender and ethnicity; these stressors or challenges appear more

Read More
1023 Words | 5 Pages

Women comprise 48 percent of the United States workforce, but just 24 percent of the Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) fields. A study by Gaucher found that job advertisements for male-dominated careers tended to use more argentic words (or words denoting agency, such as "leader" and "goal-oriented") associated with male stereotypes. The stereotype threat is one of the important reasons domestic females are underrepresented in STEM field. Because stereotype threats bring females extra stresses, they could lead to negative academic performances for females, especially for those studying mathematics and science. Meg Urry is a professor of physics and astronomy at Yale.

Read More
728 Words | 3 Pages

Many students go to college, mostly after high school. It has been common that every student at least apply or attend colleges for a semester or more, regardless if they want it or not to seek opportunities for their future. However, since what the world want is changing, the necessity of college education is on the way to downward trend. When college was first established, its primary purpose was to provide higher and more professional education than high school with more opportunities. At that time, especially during industrial revolution, the knowledge was the primary focus for the companies.

Read More

More about Gender Discrepancy In STEM

Related Topics

Open Document