Gender Stereotype and Its Impact on Women Taking STEM Programs in University

Gender Stereotype and Its Impact on Women Taking STEM Programs in University

Implicit bias has had an impact on the lives of many people across the world. One of the most significant effects of implicit bias is stereotyping, where people have a general view and belief about other people. Gender stereotyping has, over the years, created boundaries for both male and female genders, hindering people from engaging in various fields. In Canada, there exist a belief that men are women are likely to understand languages better compared to sciences and mathematics. Gender stereotyping of women’s understanding of science and mathematics is expected to impact girls’enrollments for STEM programs in universities and careers.

Purpose ofthe Research

The purposeof conducting this research is the low number of girls taking science-related courses compared to their male counterparts in Canada. Thefinding of this research can be applied to eliminate the gender stereotype of women as being inferior in science and mathematics, thus encouraging girls to take science and math-related courses and career paths. The research can be used by the government through the education department to help girls that they have the same capacity to undertake scientific courses like their male counterparts.

Research Methodology

Gender stereotyping is a subject that has mostly been researched. Thus,this research will employ secondary resources that focus on women undertaking science and math courses and career paths. Each source used in this research has been verified as reliable based because it will be based on published material either from well know researchers or government institutions. CRAAP test was used to verify the reliability of the sources. The sources used for this research must have been published in the past 20 years. A span of 20years enables me to use recent and timely information to show the trend of enrollment of women in science courses and careers..

The material used will review the trend of enrollment of girls in science courses in Canada and how this is impacted by how women are believed not to understand science courses. The information will be retrieved from scholarly sources such as books, peer-reviewed articles, journals, and websites. The research authenticates the accuracy of the information the authors have carried out. The sources must address the enrollment of girls in science courses in Canada for it to be used in this research paper.

Findings of the Research

Research shows that people aremore likely to associate science and math with men with women. More people believe that men are capable of handling mathematical and science subjects compared to women. Children as young as nine years have a notion that men perform better than women in sciences and mathematics-related disciplines in Canada (Planning, & Directorate, 2010). People’s beliefs profoundly impact the number of women taking STEM courses in college.

Statistic Canada (2016), showed an increase in women joining college to 67 % compared to men at 62%. Males, however, dominate the STEM programsas women prefer business or social sciences. Only 20% of women taking university courses opted for STEM compared to double the number in men. It is evident that the number of females is growing in stem courses, but there is still much to be done to have women taking STEM courses.

Research indicates that men with lower marks in STEM subjects in high school are likely to choose STEM programs in University. A study by Youth in transition Survey (YITS) IN 2011 indicated that 40% of women scoring between the range of 90% and 100% are likely to take STEM programs compared to 11% of those who score below 80% (Hango, 2013). In the same research, it was evident that 66% of males who perceive their skills in high school choose STEM programs in University compared to 475 of the females.

Most of the STEM Graduates are men. The number of women graduating from University was about 59% of all graduates, which was an increase from the previous years. However, the increase of the graduate was in all other fields except for Stem programs. Of the 59%, only 39% of them were STEM graduates making the number of women graduating in Stem courses so low compared to the men (Hango, 2013).

Consequently, it was evident that stereotypes lower the aspirations of women to undertake science associated courses and careers. Although the number of girls graduating in Canada is higher than that of men, males graduating in STEM subjectsare much higher than thefemales graduating in these courses(Planning, & Directorate, 2010). This can be associated with the stereotyping of women being weak in science and mathematics at a younger age.

The recent trend indicates a growth in the number of women joining STEM courses. Women are now joining science-related courses. Thesensitization of women to join math and science courses in the past two decades has impacted women to join science-related courses (DeCoito, 2016). Thus the number of females joining post-secondary education is growing, which is causing an increase in females taking up STEM courses. Consequently, the number of women joining STEM career paths, such as engineering, is now increasing.

Conclusion

More women are joining colleges in Canada than men. However, the number of men taking STEM programs in University is higher compared to that of women.  Although the number of women choosing and graduating math and science-related courses and career paths has been increasing, it is evident that stereotyping of women and science and mathematics has a negative impact on women’s participation in these courses. Fewer women graduate from colleges with science and math-related courses than male counterparts. People believe that women are poor in science and math courses. The general stereotype that men are better in sciences and mathematics can be linkedto the lower number of women taking part in a STEM program compared to men.

Consequently, the number of women joining STEM-related technical fields like engineering in Canada is low compared to the male-dominated field (Mishagina, 2012). Most women who undertake STEM courses in college opt for biology compared to technical courses, thus reducing the number of females pursuing careers like engineering.

Annotated bibliography

DeCoito, I. (2016). STEM education in Canada: A knowledge synthesis. Canadian Journal of Science, Mathematics and Technology Education, 16(2), 114-128.

Decoito looks at STEM education in Canada as a whole, giving insight into the changing patterns of students’ preference for these courses. The approach show hoe the numbers of students taking STEM courses have changed over time. The analysis indicates how women are increasingly becoming involved in STEM-related subjects.

Hango, D. W. (2013). Gender differences in science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and computer science (STEM) programs at University. Statistics Canada= Statistique Canada.

Hango’s article provides precise data showing gender differences in students who undertake STEM programs in University. While the number of female students taking STEM programs continues to grow, it remains relatively low compared to that of men in these programs.

Mishagina, N. (2012). The State of STEM Labour Markets in Canada-Literature Review (No. 2012rp-08).Cirano.

The source focus on the state of the labor market for students who undertake Stem courses. The number of people who transit from STEM courses in University to the labor market is smaller in women compared to men. Women with STEM degrees are not likely to work in STEM-related fields, and if they do, they opt for less technical fields like biological fields.

Planning, C., & Directorate, P. (2010). Women in science and engineering in Canada.Ontario: Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada. Retrieved July15, 2014.

The source is an article that shows the participation of women in science and engineering careers in Canada. The source shows the involvement of women in science and how the numbers change from elementary schools to those taking STEM-related courses in University. The article provides evidence in statistical data on the transition rates and female taking science-related courses.

Statistics Canada.(2016). Women and Education. Women in Canada: A Gender-based Statistical Report.

This source is a national website that provides Canada National data on women’s education. The site offers annual reports about the number of Canadian women join and leave school. It is an essential source of information for researchers looking for information about Canadian women.

References

DeCoito, I. (2016). STEM education in Canada: A knowledge synthesis. Canadian Journal of Science, Mathematics and Technology Education, 16(2), 114-128.

Hango, D. W. (2013). Gender differences in science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and computer science (STEM) programs at University. Statistics Canada= Statistique Canada.

Mishagina, N. (2012). The State of STEM Labour Markets in Canada-Literature Review (No. 2012rp-08).Cirano.

Planning, C., & Directorate, P. (2010). Women in science and engineering in Canada.Ontario: Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada. Retrieved July15, 2014.

Statistics Canada.(2016). Women and Education. Women in Canada: A Gender-based Statistical Report.