Maths gives girls options

Female students tend to shy away from subjects where they struggle. Photo / NZ Herald

A poster on the wall of an Auckland girls' secondary school says: "I advise my students to listen carefully the moment they decide to take no more mathematics courses. They might be able to hear the sound of closing doors." - James Caballero

But how to encourage students, in particular girls, to keep taking mathematics courses?

Suzanne Kerr, mathematics faculty head at Auckland Girls' Grammar School, says: "Whatever you do, when you're talking to young women, to your daughters and family members, never, ever say "I failed maths at school", because the sub-text of that is "Look at me, I'm a fantastic role model." No one would ever stand up at prize-giving and say, 'Look at me, I'm the PM or whatever, and I'm illiterate.' So why say, I can't do maths, I'm not numerate as if it's some kind or badge of honour?

"I say to the girls 'You never know when you will need your maths.' They might say, 'I'm an English/history person, I'm going to be a lawyer' and I say, 'What about trials which involve probability?'

"Engineering and the physical and chemical sciences - of course they need maths, pure maths, but accounting and business courses need statistics and involve all sorts of differential models, and geography, biology, health sciences and planning need statistics as well. Archaeology and linguistics are also statistically driven."

Yet the research shows that female maths and science students' confidence in their ability to succeed is considerably weaker than that of males.

Kerr says: "There are gender differences. Girls don't want to jump around and flounder a bit until they get it whereas boys are happy to jump in the deep end with maths learning. I talk to the girls about this phenomenon which mitigates against girls doing well. It's impossible to know it all at first. It's about creating a climate of acceptance and encouragement; that it's okay to feel your way at first."

Kerr recalls an example when she was teaching maths with calculus in a co-ed school and of her two top students that year, one male and one female: "She was the brighter of the two. He went on to do medical sciences and she ended up taking English and law. She opted out of maths.

"Another student I was mentoring got accepted into law and limited-entry science and she chose law. I remember her coming back to me and saying: 'You'll probably be disappointed' and I was. She didn't believe in herself to do the hard maths stuff."

Women's career specialist and researcher Nancy Betz says: "Low mathematics self-efficacy or the lack of 'belief that you can succeed' leads to avoidance of maths course work, poor performance on maths tests when such course work could not be avoided, and giving up at the first sign of poor performance ... in maths.

"Lack of support and mentoring can affect women in any subject but these and other subtle or direct messages that 'she doesn't belong' are particularly true in male-dominated fields, such as engineering and the physical sciences."

To counter this, Kerr talks to students "all the time" about the phenomena associated with girls and maths and endeavours to build their confidence; when they interpret themselves as failing, she reframes it for them and isolates the area of difficulty.

Robyn McLeod is the women in engineering equity adviser at the University of Auckland, a position made fulltime as recognition that "a lot of bright girls were going elsewhere".

During the past five years, the percentage of girls studying engineering has increased about a percentage point each year and, today, 22 per cent of all engineering students are women.

Still some researchers have described schools and universities as providing a "chilly educational climate" for girls and women.

McLeod says: "The more girls there are the less 'chilly' the environment becomes. It's no coincidence that girls are drawn into departments in the faculty where there are a greater proportion of female lecturers and tutors.

"One area of concern is that more Maori and Pacific Island young women are yet to realise the benefits of studying engineering with families tending to want their daughters to enter professions seen as making a difference for the community; professions such as medicine and law, and they may not see the altruistic nature of engineering.

"There is work to do in effectively communicating to these communities the benefits of an engineering career for their daughters."

McLeod gives the example of EPIC - Engineering Projects in Community - a programme which has its roots in the concept of "service learning" where students are involved in schemes such as an on-site recycling programme on Waiheke Island in co-operation with the Waiheke Waste Water trust.

"Engineers without Borders is another exciting project which recruits students to work with professional engineers who work towards confronting global challenges of poverty, sustainable development and social inequity.

"Together, they take on projects that will directly improve the quality of life in communities within New Zealand and the South Pacific region in areas such as water supply, hygiene and sanitation.

"The thing about girls is that they're not primarily looking at the dollars or having a linear career progression; they are more concerned with how their work will impact on other people's lives, communities and environments.

"During the past 20 years, engineering has broadened to include specialties such as environmental, bio-medical and food engineering. Today there is a wide range of choices leading to diverse career opportunities.

"The highest percentages of girls go into process engineering, which includes areas such as chemical and materials engineering where they can learn 'What makes a difference between an apple with a crunch and an apple that is floury? How is an apple engineered so that it gives you a crunch: the chemical engineering of an apple?"'

McLeod says her role involves giving women students a "place" in engineering school and comments that some need that "place" more than others. She provides activities for a range of women students from diverse backgrounds and cultures.

And that begs the question in today's economy where so many graduates are waiting several months and more to get permanent employment in their chosen field. So how do girls go when they graduate from engineering and enter the workforce?

McLeod says: "Girls do not have any problems getting well-paid jobs. They can move into all sorts of areas. One recent graduate moved into banking and straight into an ANZ graduate programme as a mathematical problem solver. Banks see engineers as being creative and advanced problem solvers.

"Engineering graduates are well equipped to work in mixed teams with planners, surveyors and architects. As well as getting positions in engineering firms such as Fletcher, Downer and Beca, there are also opportunities to move straight into consulting firms like Deloitte."

And how to work towards areas such as engineering and the physical sciences becoming places where more girls choose to belong?

Women's career specialist, Nancy Betz, says: "The critical importance of a sound mathematics background for entrance to many of the best career opportunities in our society - engineering and scientific careers - is now generally agreed on.

"Some barriers to career choices are social in nature, that is, socialised belief systems or behaviours that lead women themselves to avoid certain career fields."

Margie Elley-Brown is an Auckland career consultant and writer.
margieeb@gmail.com