Why its important to have Girls in Tech + Ressources

 Im almost turning 18 next month, and it's quite a shame that I have only been exposed to tech in one of my electives I had taken in grade 10 (m in IB so I didn't get any space for electives past grade 10 and I needed to have gym class in grade 10 too because the other classes like law were full) It's only been recently that the provincial government is taking steps to implement more relevant updates to the curriculum in regards to technology etc,. 

Even when I applied to university, I never considered as something I could learn because it was seen as something that was " too hard" or simply unattainable because I hadn't been learning it early on- you see, it is a vicious cycle where under preparation leads to this stigmatization and creates further difficulties down the road as girls simply do not see the possibility when they do not get first-hand exposure to important courses and hobbies that can potentially lead to these career paths. I think the most important thing for us to do is to urge governments and school boards to create more of an encouraging environment for girls in tech and providing the resources for them to succeed. 

I have attached a great resource which Allie K. Miller created. It has over 50 organizations listed that support girls in tech, and I hope this can help with girls who are looking for tech based EC's and programs! Most of them are free too. 

Summary with her original post: 

Let's get more girls into coding.

Hundreds of parents have reached out to me asking how they can help their daughter find her "first step" in machine learning.

So I compiled 50 amazing organizations that help girls (age 3-18) learn to code, many of them free.

We need as many eyes on this as possible. That means you - yes, you! - sharing this post with a young girl you know. 🙋‍♀️

VIEW FULL LIST: https://lnkd.in/gi9ACxC

#womenintech #womeninSTEM #girlswhocode #STEM #engineering #coding #education

(Note: when I was 13, I demanded to be called a “woman” and not a “girl” 🙂 Please know that I struggled with the word choice on this one. More details can be found in the description of the spreadsheet.)









While I was doing some searching for this topic, I found a great article written by CraigConnects  which listed some great reasons why we need to help girls in tech: 

  1. In middle school, 74% of girls show interest in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM), but when choosing a college major, just 0.3% of high school girls select computer science. If we encouraged girls to code and to get involved in tech, more girls might start majoring in computer science.  For example, 100% of girls who participated in Girls Who Code’s 2012 program report that they’re definitely or more likely to major in computer science after taking the program.
  2. Today, women represent 12% of all computer science graduates. In 1984, they represented 37%. This number should be increasing.black girls code
  3. When we create technology and tech products, we create for the masses. By having a male perspective consistently leading and developing tech, we’re building this through the lens of men and their perspective not the masses.
  4. “The fastest way to change society is to mobilize the women of the world.”- Charles MalikThat is, we’re living in a very small period of tremendous social change, where the people who are best prepared, who have the best listening and cooperative skills should get their chance of running things.

    I don’t think we’ll see revolution, we’ll see a rebalancing of power, shifting from traditional sources of power (authority and money) to power based on the size and effectiveness of one’s network.

  5. Although the digital divide’s steadily eroding, tremendous barriers to entry in the technology field still remain for women of color. Black Girls CODE notes that early access and exposure are essential to changing the status quo.
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