Traditionally, boys are encouraged more by teachers and society to pursue science and math fields, and consequently they excel in them and today careers in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) are overwhelmingly male. Girls are geared towards humanities, which usually pays less than STEM jobs, which contributes to the overall gender pay gap. It’s all cyclical if you think about it.
There has been a movement in recent years to reverse that trend and get more girls to explore STEM subjects and stick with them through middle school, high school and college when interests wanes.
Shows like SciGirls which airs on PBS Kids are helping to encourage more girls to retain interest in those subjects. The Emmy Award-winning series will launch its third season this April.
The diverse middle-school- aged STEM adventurers that star in the show do things like track toads, count clouds and much more, all in the name of citizen science. The activities captured during this season encourages kids to observe and record data about everything around them and where ever they go: from birds to beaches, monarch butterflies to maple trees. The data is then shared with scientists, who use it to generate new scientific knowledge.
“Collaboration is the key to successful citizen science,” said SciGirls executive producer Richard Hudson. “Since SciGirls’ beginning, working together—making discoveries, mistakes and friends—is one of the important research-based methods we use to engage girls around STEM.
“This new season underscores the importance of collaboration within the scientific research community and workforce. SciGirls is fortunate to have powerful partners advising us about citizen science, including the University of Cornell Department of Ornithology, NASA and FrogWatch USA.”
Good stuff! My girl will be watching!
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