Date of Award
5-1-2019
Document Type
Capstone Paper
Department
Counselor Education
First Advisor
Mary Fawcett
Abstract
The projected growth of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) careers is unprecedented (Lufkin, 2009). With the growth of women in the workforce and/or obtaining post-secondary degrees, the projected number of females in STEM fields should increase; however, that is not the case. Recently, the estimated percent of women in STEM careers is less than 30% in the United States (“Has employment”, n.d.). The reasons behind this underrepresentation of women in STEM careers includes multiple facets such as: sexist practices in education and workplace, psychological factors that influence the self and career choice and social factors including, but not limited to friends/peers, parents/guardians, teachers and other educators and the media representation of STEM. In accordance to American School Counselor Association’s standards for school counselors, school counselors serve as a pivotal role to encourage adolescent girls in STEM. These interventions include institutional and individual changes within the school. Through analysis of interventions and a thorough understanding of the research, a small-group intervention was developed to increase academic self-perceptions in mathematics and science among adolescent girls. Increasing self-efficacy has shown to increase persistence in STEM courses which will increase STEM fields.
Recommended Citation
Stein, Brittany Elizabeth, "STEM and Adolescent Girls" (2019). Counselor Education Capstones. 92.
https://openriver.winona.edu/counseloreducationcapstones/92
Unique Identifier
wsucedcap_2019_Stein
