Teenage girls use computers and the Internet as much as boys do, but are five times less likely to consider a technology-related career.
In the United Kingdom, fewer than 1 in 5 computer scientists are women (Women and ICT), and in the United States, women hold more degrees than men and make up 58 percent of the professional workforce, yet their representation in ICT is less than 25 percent (NCWIT).
Companies around the world will try to reverse these trends on International Girls in ICT Day this Thursday, April 25 – an initiative organized by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU).
In Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, and the Americas, 80 Cisco offices will hold Girls in ICT Day events, joining the global effort to encourage girls and young women to consider careers in the growing information and communications technology (ICT) field.
The events target secondary school-aged girls and will include office visits, tours, and presentations by Cisco female employees who will discuss career opportunities and life in the technology field.
For example, 180 girls will visit 10 Cisco offices throughout Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Costa Rica, Mexico, Peru, and Venezuela. Through Cisco TelePresence videoconferencing technology, they will engage in a simultaneous panel discussion about opportunities in the ICT field.
Participants will also hear testimonials from Cisco women about their experiences working in the ICT field, share their personal aspirations with each other, and meet representatives from the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (Latin America region) and the Corporación Universitaria para el Desarrollo de Internet (University Corporation for the Development of Internet).
Ana Makhlouf, a Cisco employee in Costa Rica who is helping to organize the event, says the TelePresence panel will allow the girls to “come in to Cisco offices and experience technology itself.”
ICT jobs are expected to be plentiful in coming years. According to ITU, by 2015, 90 percent of jobs across all sectors will require tech skills and almost all jobs will be ICT-enabled. The European Union calculates that in ten years there will be 700,000 more ICT jobs than there are professionals to fill them; globally, that shortfall is estimated to be closer to 2 million.
Markus Schwertel, a senior manager in Cisco Corporate Affairs who is leading Cisco’s participation in Girls in ICT Day, says the event can raise awareness of these opportunities among girls and young women.
“The IT industry is not necessarily the first choice of the majority of girls around the world to look at when they think of their potential professional career,” Schwertel says. “By being part of the Girls in ICT Day movement, Cisco wants to contribute to an awareness shift – don’t leave IT just to the boys!”
Cisco have worked with girls in our school to encourage our Girls in CS – The mentoring scheme has been very successful – their supoort has been gratefully received.
That is wonderful, Theresa. We are glad the mentorships Cisco is providing are proving effective!
Heidi Rhodes (London based) and Silvia Spiva (San Jose) have been energetic, supportive, knowledgeable and an overall amazing pair of inspirational women in ICT – just what we need in school 🙂 read our blog for more details http://wp.me/p3iRSc-3
That sounds like a great experience for your students, Theresa. I am so impressed that they got an honorable mention and were among the top 10 teams out of 115! I hope this is the start of a tradition for you and your students.
http://technovationchallenge.wordpress.com/2013/04/23/we-may-not-have-made-the-finals-but-we-got-an-honorable-mention/
I am wondering if there is any correlation between socio economic status and interest in technology in girls. In my experience as a manager in the non profit world and as a counselor, I saw little interest in technology from girls. However, they were quick and good at using the latest social media and any tech devices. Parents expectations and their skills in technology does influence in a great deal how girls see themselves in the technology world: having an active role or a passive one.
According to this study by the Girl Scouts, many girls from traditionally underserved groups say they have less exposure to STEM, less adult support for pursuing STEM fields, lower academic achievement, and greater awareness of gender barriers in STEM professions.
Check out “Finding 5” starting on Page 20: http://www.girlscouts.org/research/pdf/generation_stem_full_report.pdf