This discussion is locked.

You cannot post a reply to this discussion. If you have a question start a new discussion

Calvin Asks: How can I keep my daughter inspired in engineering subjects?

My daughter is 11 and loves all things STEM! However they don’t do a lot of science at school and I want to make sure she stays interested in the subject.

I am clueless about engineering and I was hoping to get some advice about interesting activities to inspire her.

I'm a single mum and money is tight, so big expensive things are out – any suggestions on what I can do?

Looking for inspiration - Brighton

Need advice but too shy to ask? Have a question of a ‘sensitive’ nature and would prefer to remain anonymous? Need to get something off your chest but worried about the boss (or your colleagues) finding out? Then ‘Ask Calvin’ !

Submit your questions confidentially to AskCalvin@theiet.org and Calvin will ask the community on your behalf to give you the anonymity you want to find the advice you need.

Parents

0 Roy Bowdler over 5 years ago

An issue which keeps coming up is; having established some level of curiosity in and enthusiasm for aspects of engineering, perhaps in the pre-teen years, why does that so often ebb away by the mid-teens?

Obviously this is a complex issue which has a very significant gender component, including gender stereotyping by society, although this is less pronounced in some other countries and cultures. If we assume that a young person has an aptitude and enthusiasm for the application of science to achieve practical results, then why do so many begin to feel that Engineering and Technology does not offer a career pathway that they would wish to pursue , by the age of 13-14. Is this “tripping point” created by social attitudes and gender related preferences, or are there other major causes? After all, more girls than boys are drawn towards the science of Biology. Geography and Art are relevant to some aspects of engineering. Strong interpersonal skills are needed in many roles to lead or coordinate. Perhaps we need to understand better which types of engineering and engineering related roles are more successful at maintaining the interest of a diverse range of people, to the point where this might become a viable career for them.

Are we ourselves a major contributor to the problem?

All the major Professional Engineering Institutions have long-established processes intended to ensure that only those who are exceptionally strong in mathematics, can pursue a career as a “professional engineer”, leading ultimately to Chartered Engineer recognition. Therefore, anyone who has not developed a talent or enthusiasm for mathematics as taught in school, by around the age of 14, leading them to strong GCSE and A level results, is already potentially falling out of the running. The Professional Institution view has traditionally been narrow, specialised and siloed, focussed on calculus or other advanced mathematical techniques relevant to their discipline. Other variations of careers have been either ignored, or at worst even looked down upon. Examples include more practically orientated engineering careers such as skilled trades, technicians, engineers who are slightly less theoretically orientated. Less “pure” versions of engineering involving management, commercial and organisational skills. Types of practice outside the specialism such as architecture, topography, surveying, building etc. In fact in some eyes, almost anything outside the narrow definition of the accredited engineering degree course that they did or similar, isn’t “proper engineering”.

As someone who spent much of their early career in an almost exclusively male workplace of heavy engineering, where dirty overalls, hard hats and sexist attitudes were just normal. Much progress has been made over the last 30 years on gender issues in technical workplaces, but there is still much work to do. There is also much to do in addressing social-mobility, which sociologists assert has reduced in that time. Many of those Chartered Engineers towards the end of their careers were products of the grammar school system, or were able to study at an affordable cost in “night school” during their twenties and thirties. Others slightly younger were given grants by local authorities to attend university provided they were reasonably successful in school. We now have a highly competitive school system and very costly higher education system. For example, I was speaking to a friend last week who has invested hugely in getting their son to pass his 11+ exam. A successful engineering graduate will also have to pay back their student loan. A good apprenticeship may be the answer, but there are not enough of them, spread widely enough and this “traditional” pathway even became stigmatised in recent decades.

Of course we need to ensure that pre-teens develop curiosity about how the world around them is constructed by mankind. We then need to nurture that curiosity to turn it into an intellectual one, enabling those with an aptitude for a technical career to progress it. If what we are achieving is just a series of tripping-points, that potentially crush any early enthusiasm, or allowing some to misuse our name to perpetuate forms of snobbery, then we need to address this.

Does anyone have direct personal experience of these issues and if so what should we do? Perhaps you disagree with my frame of reference? Are the issues in IT/Computing the same, or is that just cultural?
Cancel
Vote Up 0 Vote Down

Cancel

Reply

0 Roy Bowdler over 5 years ago

An issue which keeps coming up is; having established some level of curiosity in and enthusiasm for aspects of engineering, perhaps in the pre-teen years, why does that so often ebb away by the mid-teens?

Obviously this is a complex issue which has a very significant gender component, including gender stereotyping by society, although this is less pronounced in some other countries and cultures. If we assume that a young person has an aptitude and enthusiasm for the application of science to achieve practical results, then why do so many begin to feel that Engineering and Technology does not offer a career pathway that they would wish to pursue , by the age of 13-14. Is this “tripping point” created by social attitudes and gender related preferences, or are there other major causes? After all, more girls than boys are drawn towards the science of Biology. Geography and Art are relevant to some aspects of engineering. Strong interpersonal skills are needed in many roles to lead or coordinate. Perhaps we need to understand better which types of engineering and engineering related roles are more successful at maintaining the interest of a diverse range of people, to the point where this might become a viable career for them.

Are we ourselves a major contributor to the problem?

All the major Professional Engineering Institutions have long-established processes intended to ensure that only those who are exceptionally strong in mathematics, can pursue a career as a “professional engineer”, leading ultimately to Chartered Engineer recognition. Therefore, anyone who has not developed a talent or enthusiasm for mathematics as taught in school, by around the age of 14, leading them to strong GCSE and A level results, is already potentially falling out of the running. The Professional Institution view has traditionally been narrow, specialised and siloed, focussed on calculus or other advanced mathematical techniques relevant to their discipline. Other variations of careers have been either ignored, or at worst even looked down upon. Examples include more practically orientated engineering careers such as skilled trades, technicians, engineers who are slightly less theoretically orientated. Less “pure” versions of engineering involving management, commercial and organisational skills. Types of practice outside the specialism such as architecture, topography, surveying, building etc. In fact in some eyes, almost anything outside the narrow definition of the accredited engineering degree course that they did or similar, isn’t “proper engineering”.

As someone who spent much of their early career in an almost exclusively male workplace of heavy engineering, where dirty overalls, hard hats and sexist attitudes were just normal. Much progress has been made over the last 30 years on gender issues in technical workplaces, but there is still much work to do. There is also much to do in addressing social-mobility, which sociologists assert has reduced in that time. Many of those Chartered Engineers towards the end of their careers were products of the grammar school system, or were able to study at an affordable cost in “night school” during their twenties and thirties. Others slightly younger were given grants by local authorities to attend university provided they were reasonably successful in school. We now have a highly competitive school system and very costly higher education system. For example, I was speaking to a friend last week who has invested hugely in getting their son to pass his 11+ exam. A successful engineering graduate will also have to pay back their student loan. A good apprenticeship may be the answer, but there are not enough of them, spread widely enough and this “traditional” pathway even became stigmatised in recent decades.

Of course we need to ensure that pre-teens develop curiosity about how the world around them is constructed by mankind. We then need to nurture that curiosity to turn it into an intellectual one, enabling those with an aptitude for a technical career to progress it. If what we are achieving is just a series of tripping-points, that potentially crush any early enthusiasm, or allowing some to misuse our name to perpetuate forms of snobbery, then we need to address this.

Does anyone have direct personal experience of these issues and if so what should we do? Perhaps you disagree with my frame of reference? Are the issues in IT/Computing the same, or is that just cultural?
Cancel
Vote Up 0 Vote Down

Cancel

Children

No Data

Calvin Asks: How can I keep my daughter inspired in engineering subjects?

Join us to get the best from IET EngX.

Community Rules & Guidelines