When you grow up...? Tackling diversity in STEM one aspiration at a time
If you ask a child or young person what they want to be when
they grow up, then they will probably have at least one idea of something they
would like to do.
For over 40 years, there have been numerous reports looking
at why careers in STEM are more popular amongst certain groups – namely white,
middle class, boys and men. These reports have usually been followed by
initiatives aimed at changing this balance.
In many initiatives the focus was often on individual young
people, usually in secondary schools. The idea is to ‘inspire’ young people to get
them to like science, and then they would follow this liking with choosing a
career in STEM. However, even though many young people quite like science, they
still don’t want a STEM career.
Attitudes towards different careers start early, by the age
of 8 boys and girls say that they want to do different jobs in STEM.
In this inspirational inaugural lecture, Professor Carol Davenport will look at how NUSTEM
have been tackling the challenge of developing a more diverse future workforce
in STEM. She’ll also answer the question of what do 10 year olds want to be
when they grow up.
About the Speaker
Professor Carol Davenport is an Associate Professor and Director of
NUSTEM at Northumbria University.
Carol began working in education at Barnsley College as a Physics lecturer, and later taught at a large North East school. Moving into teacher education, she worked within the network of Science Learning Centres for over five years, and with the Institute of Physics as a Physics Network Coordinator for the Stimulating Physics Network.
Carol is an experienced curriculum designer and textbook author. She is also a governor at a local school and college.
Her research interests include career aspirations in young children, and diversity in STEM.
