Are we doing it wrong?

A lot of effort is being expended these days on getting girls into science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM), as it should be.  According to NSF statistics, women make up about 20% of the college graduates in engineering generally and only 12% of the college graduates in computer science and electrical engineering.   And yet, despite these efforts, the percentages declined throughout the 2001-2010 timeframe (more recent comprehensive data was not readily available).

So something clearly isn't working.  I have some hypotheses that I will explore through this blog.  Some of the first things I will explore are:

• Whether overtly targeting young girls (elementary and middle-school level) for STEM programs may be counterproductive
• Whether certain types of programs set young women up for failure and how to restructure those programs to be more effective
• How college-age women (and to some extent, men) need to be made aware of factors like impostor syndrome that foster self-doubt and undermine one's ability to succeed
• How we can foster an interest in math and scientific thinking at a very young age

My ideas are formed from a combination of personal experiences, discussions with other women in my field, and from articles and statistics I have come across.  I invite everyone - women and men, those who have succeeded in STEM fields and those who have not, to share their experiences through comments, but please be civil.