BREAKING THE STEM STEREOTYPE

Girls and women do well in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), however, multiple barriers continue to inhibit girls’ and young women’s confidence in STEM and their development of a positive STEM identity. These barriers are even greater for girls of color and of low socioeconomic status. Complicated barriers such as stereotypes, irrelevant curriculum, lack of access to hands-on STEM, and lack of role models and mentors have resulted in women representing only 24% of engineers and 22% of computer and information scientists.

As an educator and child development researcher, I believe the issue of women's representation in STEM starts long before women enter the career world. Like most child development specialists, I believe that early experiences are critical to success later in life. We need to expose girls to quality STEM content as they are growing up and exploring their identities and interests. While they are still gaining confidence in their abilities and still deciding what they are “good at” and what they enjoy.

In my work, I look at the impact of stereotypes on girls' interest and performance in STEM beginning in early childhood. I also research the best tools, curricula, and other strategies for engaging girls in STEM as well as the impact of role models and mentors on girls' and young womens' interest in STEM. You can learn more about my research in my book Breaking the STEM Stereotype or by checking out some of my projects and resources below!

LEARN MORE

Below are my recent publications that have to do with gender stereotypes and engaging girls in STEM. For a full list of my publications on all topics, please visit my publications page.

Sullivan, A. (2024). Girls in robotics: Empowering girls early to support long-term equity. National Girls Collaborative Project.
Sullivan, A. (2024). Using play to spark girls' interest and confidence in STEM. Genius of Play.
Sullivan, A. (2022). 5 ways to counter STEM stereotypes in children and youth. National Girls Collaborative Project.
Sullivan, A. (2021). Supporting girls' computational thinking skillsets: Why early exposure is critical to success. In Teaching Computational Thinking and Coding to Young Children (pp. 216-235). IGI Global
Sullivan, A. (2020). STEM tools, games, and products to engage girls in pre-k through early elementary school. Technological Horizons in Education (THE).
Sullivan, A. (2019). Supporting girls' STEM confidence & competence: 7 tips for early childhood educators. EdTech Review.
Sullivan, A. (2019). Breaking the STEM stereotype: Reaching girls in early childhood. Rowman & Littlefield.
Sullivan, A. (2017). Breaking gender stereotypes through early exposure to robotics. Education Week: Education Futures: Emerging Trends in K-12.
Sullivan, A. & Bers, M.U. (2019). VEX robotics competitions: Gender differences in student attitudes and experiences. Journal of Information Technology Education: Research, 18, 97-112.
Sullivan, A. & Bers, M.U. (2018). Investigating the use of robotics to increase girls' interest in engineering during early elementary school. International Journal of Technology and Design Education.
Sullivan, A & Bers, M.U. (2018). The impact of teacher gender on girls’ performance on programming tasks in early elementary school. Journal of Information Technology Education: Innovations in Practice.
Sullivan, A. & Bers, M.U. (2016). Girls, boys, and bots: Gender differences in young children's performance on robotics and programming tasks. Journal of Information Technology Education: Innovations in Practice, 15,145-165
Sullivan, A., & Bers, M. U. (2013). Gender differences in kindergarteners' robotics and programming achievement. International Journal of Technology and Design Education, 23(3), 691-702

SELECTED WEBINARS & PRESENTATIONS

National Girls Collaborative Project,"Gender Equity in Online STEM Learning"- Recording available here
ISTE, "STEAM Learning at Home: How to Break Stereotypes & Inspire Young Children" - Recording available here
Wonder Workshop, "Inspiring STEM Learning for Young Girls" - Recording above or available here