Genius Girls

I think one of the reasons that many young women are outnumbered by young men in pursuing STEM careers is because of the social messaging that children grow up with.  As we saw with Goldie Blox, people say that engineering toys for girls don’t sell.  Instead, Barbie has been providing unrealistic body standards, as well as a lack of inclusivity for girls for decades.  Only in recent years has it started to make more diverse dolls.  

Every girl is interested in different areas and should be encouraged to explore and discover their passions in the humanities, creative arts, and STEM.  Debbie Sterling went to college to study engineering but was one of the only women in her classes.  She said she faced a disadvantage because she did not have the 3D spacial awareness that many of the men had because she hadn’t grown up playing with LEGO like they had.  She was made to feel so uncomfortable in this environment, but luckily she persevered because she had a vision to help other girls.  She prototyped Goldie Blox, an engineering toy made for girls, so they could develop the skills she hadn’t as a child.  She learned that girls wanted a story to accompany the toy so she wrote books too.  People didn’t understand her idea and did not want to sell it.  So she raised the money for her business and it became a huge success.  Her skills in storytelling and engineering combined to help little girls to learn skills.

Girls and women are innovative, creative, and intelligent.  They often finds ways to solve problems or create opportunities that weren’t there before.  It is good to see the gender shift in middle school winners of STEM awards.  Hopefully, we see a shift in the messaging around girls and STEM in every area.  It is important for girls to be encouraged and given the opportunity to develop their skills and talents. 

Pop culture hugely contributes to the messages and voices that girls hear growing up.  It is vital to have diverse representation of girls and women in all industries.  In pop culture, this means that we need to see women of colour and of diverse ethnicity and nationality, and LGBTQ+ community, representing characters who are interested in all areas including STEM.  Growing up with role models is incredibly important for young girls to feel represented and inspired to follow their own path and passions, and create change in the world.

Image from Hidden Figures film.