Posted on: Thursday, January 13, 2005
Girls gather to break stereotype
By Treena Shapiro
Advertiser Education Writer
For 11 years, Sacred Hearts Academy has hosted a science symposium to encourage girls throughout the state to pursue studies in math, science and technology.
Sacred Hearts Academy This year about 450 girls from 40 public and private schools, as well as homeschoolers, will gather on Feb. 5 to learn about career opportunities in math, science and technology and participate in hands-on activities to stimulate their interest, such as rocket-building, working with blood splatters in a CSI-type activity, manipulating robots, and building marshmallow and spaghetti towers.
"We want to break down the stereotypes that girls are better at English and history and boys are better in math, science and technology," said the school's headmaster, Betty White. "We want to show them that girls can do anything that they set their minds to."
While breaking down the stereotypes is a slow process, White said, it appears to be happening. At Sacred Hearts, an all-girls school, 95 percent of the students graduate with four years of math and four years of science.
One highlight of the event will be a keynote address by Audra Bullock, a professor of electrical engineering at the University of Hawai'iiManoa who specializes in lasers and optics.
What: Sacred Hearts Academy 11th Annual Science Symposium
When: 8:30 to 11:30 a.m. Feb. 5 Where: Sacred Hearts Academy, 3253 Wai'alae Ave. Cost: Free and open to girls in Grades 5 through 8
Registration: Call Andrea Hamilton at 734-5058, ext. 229. The deadline is Jan. 25.
Keys to success: It is a family function, with a workshop for parents, as well as the girls, which boosts attendance. A good reputation has inspired more science teachers across the state to encourage girls to attend the event, and some teachers bring their students. In Hawai'i, women fill two-thirds of all the minimum wage jobs in Hawai'i, and 40 percent of working women still live below the poverty level, said Celeste O'Brien, also a director of special programs. One of the goals of the symposium is to show girls that these fields are where the money is.
"We're trying to break the barriers of girls entering into these fields and motivating them and encouraging them and potentially widening their horizons," she said.
While the girls are in their workshops, adolescent psychologist Emma Pavich will conduct a workshop designed to help parents raise competent, confident and caring daughters.
"She's so welcoming and so practical in the strategies that she gives to the parents that
they really leave with the hope they'll be able to get through adolescence with their daughters," Hamilton said.
Reach Treena Shapiro at 525-8014 or tshapiro@honoluluadvertiser.com.
Research shows that girls begin to lose interest in these subjects in Grades 5 through 8, so the academy started its symposium to reverse the trend.
Erika Canatingan learned from dissecting animal organs at last year's science symposium.
"She's a female in a male-dominated field and industry, so we want her to convey that message to the audience that in these times, the sky's the limit," said Andrea Hamilton, director of special programs.
To be held Feb. 5
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| The science of the workshop
How they do it: The school solicits presenters from across the community, including teachers, UH faculty and public and private organizations. They send invitations to every school in the state and also welcome homeschoolers. Lesson learned: "I think that what we've learned is that girls wanting to learn new things really get excited when the workshops are engaging and when they play an active part in it," said Andrea Hamilton, director of special programs. "They'd rather do with their hands than sit there and hear about it." Keys to success: It is a family function, with a workshop for parents, as well as the girls, which boosts attendance. A good reputation has inspired more science teachers across the state to encourage girls to attend the event, and some teachers bring their students. |
