Women in mathematics,Science,and Engineering - Essay Example

Women in Mathematics, Science, and Engineering Women employees with skills in science and technology are an essential resource today, in leading knowledge based economies, such as in the OECD countries. Due to the rapidly growing technology, there is an acute demand for science and technology employees, with the job growth being motivated and driven by an increased number of female employees in this sector. However, women are highly underrepresented in science and technology studies at the secondary and tertiary levels of education, and in the overall technical workforce. This is despite evidence that suggests further involvement of women in technology related fields would greatly improve innovations and economic development in most countries (OECD, 11). Young girls are currently less involved in technical subjects as early as in their high school level; only a third of students in OECD countries taking biology, advanced chemistry, and physics related subjects are girls. In the United States, only 15% of girls are enrolled in advanced computer science studies, despite the growing computer literacy among all young people. Therefore, there is need to critically address the low enrollment of women in science and technology based fields to bridge the large gap between male and female expatriates in science and technical fields. Currently, women in US and other OECD countries are increasingly enrolling in male dominated engineering and mathematics fields; there has been a remarkable impact on the number of women enrolling for engineering and math intensive courses. In 1958, women in US received less than 1% of all the doctorates in engineering, with the number increasing to 20% of women earning doctorate degrees in engineering by 2006 (Wood, Reichmann, and vanDellen, 492). Moreover, Wood, Reichmann and vanDellen assert that Women in US made about 1% of tenured engineering faculty by 1979, a number that increased to 11% by 2006. However, these numbers represent a very minute fraction at higher levels of technical academies, with women making about 5% of full professors in engineering by 2006 (Wood, Reichmann and vanDellen, 493). This pattern portrays a typical characteristic of women enrollment in math and technical fields. Despite the significant increases over the years, women still make a very low minority, especially considering high positions in such fields. There is a serious under representation of women in engineering enrollment in the western world. In the US, there are evident and remarkable differences in the numbers of females enrolled in various engineering disciplines. These trends are indicative of specific university features, or some courses appearing attractive to females, resulting in higher numbers of female students in some science and technical courses compared to others (Gill etal, 392). For example, in Australia, though engineering is regarded as one of the highly paid professions, requires high tertiary scores before admission to university, and has the highest level of employment from the graduate level, females in Australia make below 14% of the total first year enrollments in engineering; this is despite the given incentives, high professional status of engineers, and high pay offered in engineering (Grill et al, 392). Moreover, in Australia, women have been leaving the engineering profession at a much higher rate compared to men, which suggests that women underrepresentation in engineering will continue to worsen. This is complicated by the fact that high performing females who overcome the barriers to score highly in math and science subjects, and would be expected to take engineering as the best course, prefer other courses such as Law and medicine, with female students making more than 50% of first year enrollments in these studies across Australia (Grill et al, 392). The trend where high performing female students in Australia prefer law and medicine to engineering hints on the social implications of being an engineer. Law and medicine are associated with higher stature and achievement compared to engineering as per the trends of enrollment by female students. Social perceptions explaining engineering as a tedious job suited for the masculine has increased the trend of females preferring other courses to engineering, though qualified to take engineering. For instance, there is a growing opinion that engineering is a desk job that requires employees to carry out tedious mathematical equations instead of enhancing creativity; hands on design and team working that characterize the field (Chriath, Marshall and Kelly, 2). Women are mostly extroverts, and prefer courses that would facilitate more interactions with others, while at the same time facilitating self-development. The social perception of engineering profession being a tedious job creates the impression of boredom to students, explaining the high dropout rate of practicing females in the science and technical field. There is also a discontent among students concerning the engineering concepts learned in class, and how the concepts have to be applied in the practical field (Chriath, Marshall and Kelly, 2). For example, many female students cannot relate trigonometry and calculus learned in class to the design of a mobile phone, or to the design of a car engine. The poor perception may be blamed on engineering professionals who do not do much to address such questions among students, with perceived inconsistencies driving more female students away. Considering that more females prefer health sciences and law, which involve direct application of concepts in real life situations, the disconnect between principles and real life applications in engineering has largely contributed to low level of enrollment by female students, and high dropout rates from engineering to health sciences or other humanities (OECD, 23). The blame for such misunderstanding falls squarely on the engineering professionals and their professional bodies; these parties have not done enough to explain and illustrate to students the real implications and applications of engineering concepts in real life situations. For example, in Finland, there has been formed an extensive and elaborate way of combating such public opinion and perceptions in the engineering field. the Finnish Association of Graduate engineers (TEK), and the technical Research Centre of Finland (VTT) have come up with a “Technology Barometer,” with an aim of recording and addressing public opinions in the technology sector, regarding the overall technological and scientific trends (Chriath, Marshall and Kelly, 3). There is a growing concern on biasness in hiring of female science graduates in research and development projects, which are necessary in engineering and other math related fields. Currently, though there is an increase in number of women majoring in science and technology disciplines, fewer women have the privilege of running R&D, manufacturing engineering, and information technology segments at the highest levels in companies (Luo, 2013). To this realization, the UN’s International Labor Organization (ILO), urged countries to rapidly address the issue of serious lack of women in science and technology, terming the large gap between men and women in these positions as a hindrance to progress; ILO urged countries to put in place measures in ending discrimination and the traditional attitudes towards women participation in high ranks of science related careers (Luo, 2013). This problem may be linked to traditional social norms, and lack of enough professional practices to encourage and find ways to increase women participation in such fields. In addition, the professional culture in technical subjects has done much to discourage women participation in these fields. A study by Yale University reported a gender bias in hiring of women science graduates for research and development posts, preferring to hire more men (Luo, 2013). As Luo remarks, it is not surprising to have two women representatives in a forty members committee in scientific leadership conferences, portraying the magnitude of the problem. A research by Harvard Business Review in 2008 on Stopping the Exodus of Women in Science revealed there is a massive brain drain in science and Engineering fields affecting women. In lower levels of science and technology fields, 41% of highly qualified scientists and engineers are women, but over 52% of these talented women quit their engineering jobs at their late thirties due to high isolation of women in the male dominated careers. This hints of a poorly structured professional environment (Luo, 2013). The legal framework has also not favored women in science based fields. According to the National Academic Press, NAP (17), in a conference to highlight the problems experienced by women in the science field, participants cited numerous impediments that discourage women from taking science and technical fields. These included: some hiring and recruitment practices that create significant entry barriers to women, a cooperate culture that is hostile to women, sexual harassment of women in the male dominated field, setting of different standards for men and women in the field of science, salary discrepancies based on gender, disparity in assignment of high profile jobs, and difficult of women mobility within the field of science and engineering. These factors portray lack of elaborate legal mechanisms in OECD countries that protect and safeguard women in technical and science based fields, forcing them to seek other alternatives with better working and mobility prospects. Opportunities Despite the numerous hindrances to women participation in engineering and technology fields, there are numerous opportunities for female students to be involved in the technical field. Xerox Company in improving hiring and performance of women engineers has established elaborate financial aid to female graduates, and guaranteeing them internship with the company to encourage more female students in engineering. In addition, the company clarifies the qualities to be met by a person seeking any promotion, and promoting internal hiring opportunities that would ensure cross organizational flow associated with lateral transfers, in encouraging and facilitating mobility among female engineering employees (NAP, 53). ALCOA, through its technical center, designed and implemented the Pilot School Program aimed at increasing its presence in various colleges and campuses to identify, track, and encourage talented undergraduate female minority students. The centers are also responsible for creating technical linkages with practical technical programs. Each ATC center is headed by an engineer or a scientist responsible for participating in arranging career fairs, formal and informal visits of students in industries, and on-campus recruitment, all targeting the female students (NAP, 55). These are among the numerous companies that have set up elaborate strategies to ensure increased participation of female students in technical fields, and subsequent practice as leading scientists and engineers in the field, to bridge the gap between males and females. Recommended Strategies To encourage increased participation of female students in technical and science courses, and their subsequent practice in the fields, the following has to be done: There should be critical marketing of science and engineering professions as early as at the tertiary level, with professionals being directly involved in laying down the importance of such fields, and how the female student may best maneuver through the male dominated field. There should be an elaborate legal mechanism that protects females against bias or sexual harassment in the workplace, a factor that has contributed to the high dropout rates of female engineers and other scientists. The strict legal mechanism should outlaw any biasness on promotions, salary, favors, or placements based on gender, to offer women the same opportunities as males. More companies have to initiate strategies to encourage and guide female students in studying technical fields, an approach that has been initiated by Xerox, ALCOA and a few other companies. Mentoring female students will impact the required determination to take science and engineering courses. The society has to change its perception on stereotyping regarding engineering and technical jobs as a field of males only. Such stereotyping is responsible for influencing female students from taking science or engineering fields, though they may have the required qualifications. This can only be done through sensitizing the society on the power and potential of females in undertaking such male dominated fields. There is need to address the expanding gap between male and female expatriates in science and engineering fields. Implementing the above factors would go a long way in encouraging and impacting the required confidence in the girl child to take science based and technical fields, and safeguarding them in their practices as professionals in these fields. This will involve all stakeholders, who include science and engineering professionals, the society in general to halt any stereotyping, and the government in formulating policies that safeguard women in men dominated fields. Work Cited Chraith N. Aoife, Marshall Claire and Kelly Kevin, Deciphering the Effect of Curricula on the Perception of third level Engineering, A Comparative Analysis, 4th International Symposium for Engineering Education, 2012, The University of Sheffield, July 2012, UK http://isee2012.group.shef.ac.uk/docs/papers/paper_63.pdf (Accessed 6th May, 2013) Gill, Judith, Rhonda Sharp, Mills Julie and Suzanne Franzway, I still wanna be an engineer! Women, education and the engineering profession, European Journal of Engineering Education, 33.4, (2008), 391-402 Luo Xiaochuan The Role of Science, Technology, Engineering And Math For Women In Business, Forbes, April 26, 2013 http://www.forbes.com/sites/forbeswomanfiles/2013/04/26/the-role-of-science-technology-engineering-and-math-for-women-in-business/ (Accessed 6th May, 2013) National Academic Press, Women Scientists and Engineers Employed in Industry: Why so few? Washington: National Research Council, 1994 OECD, Gender and Sustainable Development: Maximizing the Economic, Social and Environmental Role of Women, 2008 http://www.oecd.org/social/40881538.pdf (Accessed 6th May, 2013) Richman S. Laura, VanDellen Michelle and Wood Wendy How Women Cope: Being a Numerical Minority in a Male-Dominated Profession, Journal of Social Issues, 67.3 (2011), 492—509 Read More