Connecticut Women's Education and Legal Fund

californiastatelibrary:

Marilyn Reece, Civil Engineer

What do you do when you like math but don’t want to become a teacher? You could be a civil engineer, like Marilyn Reece.

She was the first woman to be a fully-licensed civil engineer in California and she’s featured in our May calendar of women trailblazers in science, tech, engineering and math.

Let’s kick off Monday with an awesome woman in STEM!

(via gender-and-science)

In the spirit of Pi day, did you know that some recent studies have addressed the myth of gender and math performance? Common myths tell the tale that girls just aren’t as good at math, but researchers suggest this just isn’t so. In reality, a more complex constellation of cultural factors may be at work.

Professors Kane and Mertz from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater comprehensively explored math performance among girls and boys. They tackled the “greater male variability hypothesis”, which states that math ability among males varies more widely (males at very high and very low ability) than math ability among females. In order to see if this hypothesis held weight, they gathered data from over 80 countries around the world and compared the variability of boys’ and girls’ math performance.

Results of their study showed that the variability of ability between genders varied by country. For example, Kane and Mertz indicated that, in Taiwan, eight grader boys’ score varied much more widely than did girls; yet they found that, in Morocco, boys and girls had equal experiences and patterns of school attendance) contribute to variability. In those countries in which women have a high labor force participation rate, and have a small gender wage gap, girls have the highest math scores.

“In summary, gender equity and other socio-cultural factors, nor national income, school type or religion per se, are the primary determinants of mathematics performance at all levels for both girls and boys”.

To read their research, see the American Mathematical Society

To learn more about CWEALF’s work with girls and STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) go to our website

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Photo by Paul Smith (originally posted to Flickr as Pi pie) [CC-BY-2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Ada Lovelace

wildcat2030:

Ada Lovelace has been honoured by a Google doodle on the 197th anniversary of her birth. Photograph: Google Google’s latest doodle celebrates the 197th birthday of Ada Lovelace, the 19th century mathematician and daughter of romantic poet Lord Byron. Often described as world’s first computer programmer, Lovelace showed a keen interest in mathematical studies from an early age and was taught by her mother, Annabella, who was also a gifted mathematician. In correspondence with Charles Babbage, who was working on the ideas for a machine that is now recognised as a forerunner of the modern computer, Ada demonstrated her gift for mathematics and was described by him as ‘the enchantress of numbers’. She was introduced to him by another female scientist famous in her day, the mathematician Mary Somerville, who mentored Ada during her relatively short life. Babbage was impressed by the mathematical skills Ada possessed and invited her to translate a piece in Italian written by Luigi Menabrea describing Babbage’s ‘analytical engine’, so that it could be published in England. Her notes include what is recognized as the first algorithm intended to be processed by a machine, while she also speculated on its future ability to create graphics and complex music. Born in 1815, she had no relationship with her father, who died when she was eight. In 1835, she married William King, who was created Earl of Lovelace in 1838. She died in 1852 at the age of 36. Her lasting legacy as role model for girls and young women considering careers in technology is remembered on Ada Lovelace Day, which is dedicated to the celebration of the achievements of women in science and technology. (via Ada Lovelace honoured by Google doodle | Technology | guardian.co.uk)

(via gender-and-science)

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Awesome Women: Lise Meitner

awesomewomen:

Lise Meitner was an Austrian-born physicist who is now known as “the mother of the atomic bomb” despite never being fully recognized for her contributions to the theory of nuclear physics and being denied a Nobel Prize. Lise was born in 1878, but because she was female was unable to attend university in Austria until 1901, when she attended the University of Vienna. There she studied physics under Ludwig Boltzmann, who inspired in her a great love of life’s mysteries - and the idea that physics was the key to unlocking them all. In 1907 she began work with Max Planck and Otto Hahn, studying the makeup and reactions of radioactive elements. Meitner and Hahn would continue to collaborate for 30 years. When Germany annexed Austria in 1938 Meitner, who was born Jewish but had converted to Protestantism, emigrated to Stockholm. There she was without collaborators or laboratory equipment, and so was forced to try to solve physics puzzles through little other than correspondence.

On November 13, 1938, Hahn met secretly with Meitner in Copenhagen. At her suggestion, Hahn and Strassmann performed further tests on a uranium product they thought was radium. When they found that it was in fact barium, they published their results in Naturwissenschaften (January 6, 1939). Simultaneously, Meitner and Frisch explained (and named) nuclear fission, using Bohr’s “liquid drop” model of the nucleus; their paper appeared in Nature (February 11, 1939). The proof of fission required Meitner’s and Frisch’s physical insight as much as the chemical findings of Hahn and Strassmann. (s)

In 1945, Otto Hahn alone was named as the recipient of the Nobel Prize for the discovery of nuclear fission, with Meitner’s tremendous contributions being either overlooked or ignored. Although she and Hahn were jointly awarded the US Fermi Prize in 1966, her exclusion from the Nobel Prize is noted as “one of the most glaring examples of women’s scientific achievement overlooked by the Nobel committee.” Meitnerium, element 109 on the periodic table, is named in her honor.

Yet another awesome woman!

(via girlengineer)

G2O T-Shirt Contest!

Generating Girls’ Opportunities (G²O) CWEALF’s latest initiative designed to engage girls, parents, and teachers in expanding girls’ educational opportunities. Under G²O, CWEALF plans and implements more than five Girls & STEM Expos every year, serving approximately 600 girls and their teachers. Each one-day Expo is held at a local college or university and consists of hands-on workshops and team-building exercises led by women in STEM careers.

This year, CWEALF is having a G²O T-Shirt Contest. Click the link above for more info!

An article came out in June describing the gender gap in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) careers. Women are less likely to hold jobs in these careers and the numbers show how wide this difference really is. Only 1 in every seven engineers is a woman. Only 27 percent of computer science jobs are held by women. Even more surprising is that there has been no improvement over the last 12 years. So, why is this happening and how can it be fixed? If 60 percent of bachelor degrees are held by women than why are less than 20 percent of women holding them in computer science?

The article gives three ideas on ways to help women stop this cycle and gain entrance into STEM careers. First, programs need to be implemented that encourage women to study technology. Second, the early education system needs to be looked at. Girls need to be equally involved in these types of activities as boys. Lastly, by showing more women holding jobs in STEM careers the stereotype of who is and can do the jobs will be challenged. CWEALF encourages girls to look into STEM careers through G2O (Generating Girls’ Opportunities). G2O implements Girls and STEM expos every year to help girls have a better understanding of STEM careers. 

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Written by Erin Taylor. Erin is a MSW student at UConn and an intern at the Connecticut Women’s Education and Legal Fund (CWEALF).

Research shows that parents are essential partners in career development - your influence will last a lifetime. Parents who talk about and show confidence in their daughters’ ability to make decisions and plan for their future help girls to make good educational choices.

Stereotypes are powerful, but not as powerful as YOU.

What girls see in the media and society often tells them that to be a girl equals not being good in math and science; help them to discover the truth about what they can do!

Girls have less familiarity with technology and/or the tools of STEM; model your willingness to take on challenges.

Are you comfortable with your PC? Do you know what makes a construction crane work or how aircraft engines turn? Engage your daughter in your own learning and your curiosity will encourage hers. Find out about the out-of-school activities that will give her hands-on STEM learning experiences. 

Girls need to make connections between what they take in high school and a career; help them to find good information.

Talk about ‘when’ she will go to college; start in middle school to help her to plan high school courses so that she will have a wide variety of career options in STEM fields. Encourage her to take math. Connect with other parents and school counselors and teachers to find good information about education and careers.

Girls need strong financial literacy skills; start early with lessons in self-sufficiency.

Teach your daughter how to manage her own money from an early age — to set a budget, to think about the costs of being self-sufficient and the connection between how much education she receives, what she studies and how much she can expect to earn.

Girls need strong advocates to pursue education in nontraditional areas; guide them to advocate for themselves.

In the areas that are nontraditional for girls, they may face both outright discrimination and/or a “chilly climate.” Guide them to find support with their peers and teachers and to speak up for what they need and want. “Yes, I can!” is a powerful statement.

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Written by Lucy Brakoniecki and Kelly Fitzgerald. Lucy is the Director of Research & Evaluation at CWEALF and Kelly is CWEALF’s Program & Policy Associate.

Last month marked the 40^thanniversary of Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972.  This piece of legislation is aimed at eliminating discrimination based on sex in educational institutions that receive federal funding.  Many people associate Title IX with sports.  While the law has dramatically increased girls’ participation in high school and college athletics, its purpose extends far beyond sports to trying to promote equality for students in all aspects of education.  The National Coalition for Women and Girls in Education (NCWGE) advocates implementation of Title IX.  This nonprofit organization focuses on equality issues relating to sexual harassment, STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) fields, pregnant and parenting students, career and technical education, and single-sex education, in addition to athletics.

NCWGE recently published a comprehensive report on the accomplishments of Title IX over the last four decades and the challenges that are still left to face.  This report describes how cultural biases and institutional barriers continue the gap between women and men in STEM education and careers. Women’s participation in these fields has been increasing since Title IX passed, especially in the life and social sciences.  The gap is still wide, though, in mathematics, computer sciences, and engineering.  The percentage of women receiving degrees in computer science has actually decreased in the past decade.

Title IX has the potential to further narrow the gender gap in STEM fields if it is implemented correctly.  NCWGE emphasizes that it is important to raise awareness of the various protections that Title IX is supposed to provide and that federal agencies need to correctly track schools’ compliance with Title IX. The Connecticut Women’s Education and Legal Fund (CWEALF) is dedicated to the effort of closing the gender gap in STEM education and careers through its Generating Girls’ Opportunities (G2O) Initiative.

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Written by Sarah Trench. Sarah is a volunteer blogger for the Connecticut Women’s Education and Legal Fund (CWEALF).

This is the simple message that ECSU professor Jeffrey Trawick-Smith delivers in the article, “Schools Shouldn’t Subtract Math For Young Students” in the Hartford Courant on Sunday, July 15^th.

Trawick-Smith presents evidence from research, and his own practice as an early childhood educator, that indicates that many early childhood programs have dedicated themselves to student’s acquisition of literacy skills. While this is an important focus, literacy development often comes at the expense of the promotion of math skills.   Trawick-Smith suggests that math needs to be at the center of childhood instruction and play and should the responsibility of both educators and parents.   Blocks, board games and puzzles strengthen abstract and concrete learning about numbers and the relationships between them. Educators are responsible for giving math education the prominence it needs; parent interactions with their children, such as (Trawick-Smith suggests) singing “Five Little Pumpkins” or counting napkins on a dinner table, need to occur with  consistency and in the “most natural of ways.”

Math is often the turf on which gender equity struggles are fought. Are girls just naturally math phobic? Do teachers and parents unintentionally broadcast gendered expectations of their daughters’ and female student’s expectations? Some research suggests that this is so. Elementary teachers’ expectations of girls (specifically, female teachers who may not be comfortable themselves teaching math) and fathers’ expectations of their daughters may affect girls’ math learning. It may be even more important to parents and educators to ensure that their daughters have hands-on, relevant experiences that consistently connect math to their daily lives. Pull out the Legos for your daughter (pink, blue or primary colored), make a space for a puzzle, count the number of blocks in the drive or walk to school; but also get to know how your daughter’s schools intend to make sure all students have strong numeracy skills to ensure their success.

At the Connecticut Women’s Education and Legal Fund (CWEALF), we are engaged in projects which examine the issues of math and gender; offer girls opportunities to explore math through our Girls and STEM Expos and online activities; and, connect parents and educators to important research and resources.

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Written by Lucy Brakoniecki. Lucy is the Research & Evaluation Director at the Connecticut Women’s Education and Legal Fund (CWEALF).