To the Tune of "Where the Boys Are"
Where the girls are
Future engineers you’ll see,
A smiling face, a determined pace,
Two hands that build so tenderly
Where the girls are
Technology love will be,
They’re walking down some street in town
And they’re looking for opportunity
In the crowd of a million women
You’ll find many Einstein’s
They will climb to the highest mountain
And tell the world it’s time
'Til the girls succeed
The world will wait impatiently
Where the girls are, where the girls are
Where the girls are, the future of the world will be!!
It was a cheesy song to begin with, so please excuse my cheesy parody, but the message is real. Women make up 50% of the human population, 48% of the American workforce, but only 24% of people in STEM Careers (Census Bureau's 2009 American Community Survey). Women are missing out on great career opportunities, and the world is missing out on great ideas. I have talked a lot in my previous posts about ways I have seen adult women trying to increase and support a female presence in tech, but let’s take some time to look at the many programs designed to support girls as they build a sense of self and find their place in the world.
There are many websites and companies that popped up in the last 5 years and they have different ways of serving girls, so here are just a couple of those programs that can be found online or have local programs. For an even more exhaustive list you can visit the Tech-Girls Resource page.
Girls Who Code offers in-person club programs or summer immersion programs. There are weekend and after school options for girls grade 6-12. The programs are specifically aimed at preparing girls to enter into computer science or other computing majors, to close the gap between men and women in tech. There is also a need to make sure there are enough American workers to fill the large number of tech jobs that will be available. Why not women?
Techgirlz (different than Tech-girls)
Techgirlz offers "techshopz" that can be set-up by instructors in many locations. At the time of writing there were not currently any techshopz being offered in the Twin Cities (MN) area. Techgirlz also offers a summer camp in Pennsylvania for 12-15 year old girls that is an introduction to Arduino programming and robotics.
Code.org began the push for an “hour of code” so that all kids get exposed to coding. Their website is designed for individual use with no in-person interaction. Teachers nationwide are integrating the website into their curriculum. Students can use the website on their own at home as well as being directed to use it by a teacher. Code-org is designed for all children and not specifically designed for or marketed to girls. Code.org is also focused primarily on computer science.
Coderdojo is a free, in-person program for young people. This program is also not designed exclusively for girls, but is a great opportunity to get an introduction to computer programming. Ages 7-17 are welcome to attend and learn skills from website building to app creation and more. Volunteers familiar with coding are at the dojo to help with projects, and to lead the learning process.
While not designed or marketed specifically to girls, Code Kitty programs are research-based to better serve girls. Code Kitty focuses on teaching teachers so all students have the opportunity to learn coding, not just those with extra time or money to seek out programs that take place outside of school. As Code Kitty grows, the products will be made available to individuals, not just schools. Help Code Kitty grow by making a donation and talk to your school today to tell them you want Code Kitty integrated into your child's curriculum!