General Info
The "STEAM women: evolution and scenarios in Lombardy" study features a desk research by Assolombarda, the association of all the enterprises of the Greater Milan Area, for the "STEAMiamoci" project, whose goal is to promote women's partecipation in STEAM sector. The research contains suggestions about the best way to engage women in STEM careers and supports them through statistical reports as detailed as possible (e.j Labour Force Survey) and administrative reports ( e.j. Ministry of Education, University and Research), available at regional and sub-regional level.
Companies and the private sector could play a fundamental role to support and strengthen the presence of women in the employment of STEAM, through recruitment and human resources development policies, which overcome gender stereotypes, and the activation of family-friendly measures in the organization of work.
Applicability and Audience
Details
Despite several studies highlight that graduates in technical-scientific subjects have the highest employment rates, a gap between female and male partecipation to training STEAM paths still remains. From the analysis clearly emerges that this gap comes from the first training choices made in high schools. Suffice it to say that only 30% of enrolled in STEM hard courses is woman.
Differences in educational and training choices are linked to a mix of cultural, social and economic factors more rather then to girls skills in science subjects. Girls generally have better educational skills then boys but gender stereotypes could have a crucial role in influencing inclinations, preferences or values with respect to scientific-mathematical abilities. It is no coincidence that differences in interest in mathematics between girls and boys emerge after the age of 11 at work.
In general, this kind of problem could be overcome through articulated policies that act on social and cultural system, educational and training system and production system and labour market.
An introduction chapter presents job scenarios and expected evolution in STEM demand for skills in the next decade. Afterwards, the National Institute of Statistics and the Ministry of Education, University and Research data show the women's partecipation level in STEM educational and training paths in Lombardy. The analysis continues with the evolution in gender differences in STEM supply and demand in Lombardy. The last chapter suggests some good practices adopted at European and non-European level and useful to fill gender gaps.
The most important actions could be summarize in:
- strengthening of scientific culture spread within families, schools, media, enterprises, institutions, removing gender stereotypes through a better women visibility in STEM professions
- improving of the way in which STEM subjects are taugh from the first level of education and supporting the STEM interest in girls through appropriate pedagogical tools.
STEAMiamoci designs policies that aims:
- to support families and schools to encourage girls to make informed and autonomous choices;
- to promote a mutual respect culture, involving the male part of the society;
- to institute a permanent observatory to define actions and monitor progress;
- to network all the civil, entrepreneurial, institutional and political stakeholders, working in this field
Some good practices adopted at European and non-European level were analysed to stimulate and keep high the famale interest in STEM subject:
- the insertion of STEM subjects in the primary school curricula;
- the development of STEM training method which considering gender inequalities
- the development of training curricula of teachers aimed at improving teaching methods and making teachers awere of gender stereotypes
- the development of educational and career guidance curricula against gender stereotypes on STEM paths
In line with this logic, a Ministry of Education, University and Research initiative of 2008, has founded the Higher Technical Education and the Training school and the Higher Technical Institutes with the aim of guaranteeing an higher technical specialization in STEAM sector.
Educational Material/Resources
English
| Attachment | Size |
|---|---|
| 042017 - Donne STEAM (1)_0.pdf | 1.32 MB |