Blog Post #4

As I come to the close of a Master's program for Leadership in International Schools, it is natural to start to envision myself in a leadership position. This isn't a stretch for me because I have had female leaders to look up to and learn from. In fact, I consider myself incredibly lucky to be in a school with a female superintendent, a female middle school principal, and a female high school principal. This is incredibly rare in international schools, and as we all know, representation matters.

I am a high school math and physics teacher. I happen to be a woman. Research indicates that female students who have access to female math and science teachers are more likely to enter STEM related fields in the future. I have seen the numbers of females in my courses grow in the few years that I have been at the school, and I can confirm, that, again, representation matters.

The exact same can be said for a school's technology program. In every school I have worked in, we have always asked ourselves, "How do we get more girls taking computer science courses?" According to the interview of Stacy Stephens and Dana Watts on Education Vanguard, female teachers must model the tech-related pathways for their female students. Girls who see women with tech roles are more likely to be able to envision themselves with tech roles as well. Again, representation matters.

Stacy and Dana spoke extensively about the WLEAD conference in the above interview. While a conference like this may not have an immediate impact on the percentage of females in leadership positions in international schools, I think it is an incredible first step to make. Like Stacy and Dana said in the interview, the goal is to "create a culture of helping one another and supporting one another and growing." Mentorship was a key element the educators brought up. For women who want to move up in leadership, and are seeking a mentor, the conference serves as a place to make life-changing connections. As a female in a male dominated field, I understand this need for connection completely.

The number of women in STEM roles in international schools is disproportionate to the overall teacher population, and the effects can be seen in the fields women enter in college. As the studies show, if we want to increase the number of girls going into STEM fields, we as schools need to ensure girls have role models to look up to--especially during their high school years as they develop their sense of identity. Schools need women in STEM classrooms because representation matters. Conferences like WLEAD can be the tipping point to give women the courage and connections they need to step into those roles.

In fact, maybe I should look into teaching a section of coding next year...