App Which Encourages Girls To Take Up STEM Launched In Delhi Schools

On the occasion of International Day of Girl Child, Delhi Government launched a mobile-learning app called STEM for schoolgoing girls. The app aims at removing the gender disparity in the field of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) owing to the stereotyping that girls are not competent enough to study science, which eventually affects their choice of subject and career.  Through STEM, Delhi Government wants to encourage girls to study science and technology.

The app will give female students between ages 13 to 18 an exposure to space, science and technology, and encourage them to pursue a career in it.

Key Takeaways:

• Delhi Government launched a mobile learning app STEM for schoolgirls.
• Higher secondary classes of Delhi government schools have 57 percent girl students while only 43 percent of them are in the science stream.
• The app aims to inspire girls to take up a career in science and technology.
•  The curriculum of the app has been developed using content from NASA and Stanford University.
• The app is free of cost and accessible to parents and teachers as well.

Contents of STEM app

STEM is a mobile learning platform developed by the multinational service provider, Ernest and Young (EY) in collaboration with Tribal Planet. It will feature modules on science, technology, climate change, space exploration, artificial intelligence and many more. The app will give female students between ages 13 to 18 an exposure to space, science and technology, and encourage them to pursue a career in it. The curriculum of the app has been developed using content from NASA and Stanford University, reports The Times of India. It will also have inspirational stories of women excelling in space and technology. This initiative is an effort to remove the gender disparity the field of space and technology witnessed till today.

Besides, the STEM app incentivizes learning for female students using methods like inbuilt games which are engaging and entertaining. After the completion of an activity, an article or an experiment, the student will be rewarded with points and merchandises like robotic kits, codling kits and many more. The rewards might also be virtual mentoring sessions of building a CV, understanding the environments and requirements of a workplace, etc. The app is free of cost and aims at covering 6000 girls across private and government schools. It will be accessible to the teachers and parents also.

Also Read: Girls Need To Know That It’s Fine To Be Nerdy: Vinita Marwaha Madill

Intention behind the app

After the completion of an activity, an article or an experiment, the student will be rewarded with points and merchandises like robotic kits, codling kits and many more.

As per Hindustan Times, Manish Sisodia, Delhi Education Minister said, “Higher secondary classes of Delhi government schools have 57% girl students while only 43% of them are in the science stream. Gender stereotypes, such as boys prefer science and girls opt for humanities, need to be broken now. In order to turn this vision into reality, we are introducing STEM education for girls in Delhi government schools. Through the platform, we want to encourage our girl students to acquire skills of the 21st century that are necessary to secure jobs, not just in India but also all across the world. We want more girls to be inspired to pursue science and related subjects,” With the STEM learning app launched in Delhi, India becomes the first country to implement this global initiative, followed by the US.

Dan Higgins, EY Global Advisory Technology Consulting Leader, said in a statement, “This platform will help girls to build a passion for STEM, learn new concepts and apply them in real life, and most importantly, will inspire even more girls across the world to embark on STEM careers. We purposely chose the themes and designed the platform to trigger real-life actions, where girls can reach out to their communities, individually or collectively, and make a greater impact on society."

Rudrani Kumari is an intern with SheThePeople.TV.

Also Read: International Day of the Girl Child: Know Why It Is So Important