How can we inspire young girls to overcome the barriers to becoming scientists, researchers, engineers and astronauts? Australian space engineer Sarah Canard has experience in the field. there is.
“When I was in 10th grade, I went to the career counselor at school and said, “I want to be an engineer or a scientist who works in space.'' And they looked at my grades and said, “Sarah. , maybe you should try something a little easier,''' she told the girls at the Girls in Tech exhibition in Adelaide, South Australia.
“So my advice to you is: Find your passion, find your spark. And if you're motivated, learn the skills to do what you want to do, and make the grade.” Don't let anyone tell you that you can't do it. ”
Mr Canard, now a senior space engineer, began the day with a keynote speech detailing his journey to becoming the lead systems engineer for Australia's first lunar rover, Louver, which will go to the moon with NASA as part of the Artemis mission. . .
Garth Coulter, head of digital learning at St Peter's School for Girls, said: universe Girls in Tech Expo is specifically targeted at 5-6 year olds. Because children at this age are excited about everything.
“This is about their spiritual growth and what they can hold and understand from a scientific point of view – understanding what girls in society are doing. is. [year] “The 5-6 year age group is more likely to start choosing different paths, ideas and passions that they want to follow,” he says.
“As they mature and start to grow, they start narrowing their focus to the areas they are passionate about. The earlier you can introduce them to that passion and give them opportunities within it, the more they will learn to solve problems. We think we’re going to start to embrace more ideas about how that can be a career.”
Girls in Tech Expo began at St Peter's Girls in 2018 with the aim of broadening the horizons of our female students and preparing them for a future full of exciting career opportunities in the technology sector. Since then, she has grown to include 7 schools, 10 technology companies, and 14 workshops in her action-packed day.
The Innovation Hub included booths and interactive activities run by 10 technology companies. St Peter's Girls Year 6 student Elizabeth said it was her favorite part of the day.
“I like the Innovation Hub because it has a lot of different stations. One was like this VR thing where you're in space and there's a black hole under your feet.” she says.
The station was run by OzGrav, the Australian Research Council's Gravitational Wave Discovery Center, in an effort to get children interested in STEM.
“OzGrav is divided into measurement, data analysis, and astrophysics. So we have these VR headsets. [the students] You can see the solar system,” said Zach Holmes, a PhD student at Ozgrab. universe.
“We answer their questions, we ask questions, we see what they know. Try to give them a little bit of inspiration for years to come. I think immersion is really important to their experience and education.”
On the Adelaide Robotics Academy stand, director Daniel Manu detailed the after-school club where students learn how to program robots and drones. He notices a huge difference in attendance between girls and boys.
“I would be happy if I could get 10%.” [girls] But unfortunately, it's even less than that,” he says.
“I understand that girls who have the courage to participate in class sometimes feel like they are being pushed aside by the boys, but the boys are having more courage to do things. It's a gap, and unfortunately we don't know how to solve it.”
During a civil engineering workshop run by the Royal Institution of Australia (RiAus). universeRiAus education manager Michelle McLeod and Dr Brendan Scott helped students design and test water pipe layouts around the town, with the goal of equally distributing sustainable access to fresh water. I supported it.
At the TafeSA (Technology and Further Education) workshop, which explores food technology through the process of spheronization, which transforms liquids into squishy, egg-like spheres, McGill School's Pacita was an eye-opening experience. did.
“There was a part in the morning where we had to build things like snakes and ladders, and we had to code the robot so it could move into larger squares,” she said, adding that she had done the coding before. added, but it will never reach this level.
“Normally it's the boys who lead this, such as engineering. So it's important for girls to make sure they have an equal role in engineering as well.”
The day offers girls the opportunity to discover cutting-edge technology and new career paths.
“I feel blessed because I had a passion and I followed it. And now I'm living my dream while working on these projects. But not everyone has that kind of experience. It’s not going to affect us,” Canard said. universe.
“I didn’t know what an engineer was when I was a kid. And when I went through college there [were] In our class, two out of every 100 women are in mechanical engineering,” she says.
“It hasn't changed much, maybe a few percent increase, but it's just a waste of resources and manpower. We know it's not just boys who dream of working in space.
“I can be a role model for young girls to say, 'This is what being an engineer is like.' So if you want to be an engineer, especially a space engineer, you feel like you can absolutely do it.”
