One of the most effective ways to narrow the gender gap in STEM is to give women equal opportunities to pursue STEM. This will enhance women’s confidence and ensure society's diverse and talented STEM workforce. Here are some key factors perpetuating gender STEM gaps.
👉Gender stereotypes; STEM fields are often viewed as masculine, and teachers and parents often underestimate girls’ math abilities starting as early as preschool.
👉Male-Dominated Cultures: Because fewer women study and work in STEM, these fields tend to perpetuate inflexible, exclusionary, male-dominated cultures that are unsupportive or attractive to women and minorities.
👉Fewer Role Models: girls have fewer role models to inspire their interest in these fields, seeing limited examples of female scientists and engineers in books, media, and popular culture. There are even fewer Black women role models in math and science.
👉Math Anxiety: Teachers, predominantly women, often have math anxiety they pass on to girls, and they often grade girls harder for the same work and assume girls need to work harder to achieve the same level as boys.
Source: www.aauw.org