As a female engineering mentor for the last 7 years for both FRC and FLL teams, I am both happy and sad to read this thread. Sad because so many of these stories are too true in the way young women are made to feel insecure, inferior, and told to step aside. But happy because of the truly meaningful discussion that is happening here... and so much of it is coming from the students, both male and female.
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Originally Posted by Gregor
I've heard this more than once judging FLL. "The boys all work on the robot, and the girls work on the project." It is quite disapointing.
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-- Yes, I have heard this same type of comment while judging FLL tournaments. And I always make sure to point this out in the feedback section of the rubric so that teams are aware that this is not appropriate. I want to note though that as of this year the FLL guide notes that ALL team members are required to participate in the project. This is a step forward.
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Originally Posted by robonerd
Speaking as a girl, I've never at all been interested in doing PR or spirit. That's not why I joined a robotics team. We're never pushed directly away from design or building, but we've often encountered sexist attitudes from other students - not the experienced members, who know to back off, but newbies who seem to think they know everything.
Sometimes our lead mentor makes jokes about us not being able to drive. He never questions our mechanical abilities, and we know he actually doesn't believe in whatever it is he's saying - he's an equal opportunity offender - but his jokes lead others to think that those kind of comments are acceptable.
Many of the girls on the team have grown so sensitive to this issue that any time someone says something that can be looked at as sexist, we jump down his throat. There's a whole culture change that needs to occur to fix this.
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-- This is a very important point. Just because you say something as a "joke" doesn't mean it doesn't demean those who are the butt of that joke. And many will use that as justification to say what they wish... and to claim that you are just over-sensitive and can't take a joke.
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Originally Posted by CLandrum3081
It's everywhere. We can either accept it or we can try to change it. And I hate to be a pessimist, so we have to change it.C
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-- I agree. It is our job to change it... and we can as long as we work together.
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Originally Posted by moogboy
With that in mind, I've spent this year telling my teammates and fellow students to step it up. Be classy. Stop calling girls "hot" and quit objectifying women like they only exist for your pleasure. Competitions are one of the worst places for this, because, as previously stated, we don't have girls in our school. It is too easy for guys to get caught up in their primal, animalistic urges, leading to stupid comments and generally dehumanizing behavior. It makes me uncomfortable, and I know that unfortunately sometimes the issues between girls and guys at these events go far deeper than a couple of guys quietly discussing just how callipygian someone on another team is.
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-- This is an amazing insight from a young man who has essentially been trained to disrespect women and diminish their abilities. This is what a leader is. I hope his parents and his team are very proud... and that he continues to spread this uplifting attitude and destruction of cultural stereotypes. I am proud that (in his own words) "FIRST is helping him do so". We need more like him.
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Originally Posted by Lil' Lavery
With issues like this, there's often a fine line between education and aggravation. Whether or not you are in the right on a matter, it's often better to pick your battles. You have to be careful to avoid breeding resentment towards your cause. If you call everyone out on each and every thing they do, the result is often the opposite of what you intended. It won't change the behavior, only ingrain it deeper.
You're absolutely right that the culture surrounding females in STEM fields (and in general) needs to be changed. But you can't be overly aggressive in attempting to change it. I'm not saying to let everything slide, but chose carefully how you handle situations.
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-- Yes! as with all controversial issues it is important to approach the topic with a level head. Shouting and getting upset often just turns people away from even listening to your side. It is difficult when you see it and/or feel it personally but change comes from getting others to listen. So we must remember to keep pick our battles and then pursue them with tact and decorum.
[On a side note, I totally loved that quote. I never saw that movie but the quote was insightful.]
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Originally Posted by Thunder910
But the girls we DO have tend to often be the hardest workers and biggest contributors.
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-- From my personal experience this is often true. Not to diminish the boys contributions which are also very significant. But the point here is that usually the girls who do join the team are very committed or they wouldn't put up with the crap that they sometimes get. Additionally they are generally willing to do anything that needs to be done, even if it is not seen as important by others. This often leads to them being overworked and under-appreciated. Whereas more of the boys (I am saying more, definitely not all) that join just hang out waiting for their chance to do something fun like drive.
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Originally Posted by Karibou
The support for women in STEM is present and growing. Again, change won't happen overnight, but it's growing like wildfire. All it takes is one supporter, of any gender, to make a difference in someone's life. Positive impact, one person at a time.
Since I first began to show an interest in engineering, I've had countless supporters and influences that have helped me along the way. I'm not sure that I can ever repay all of them for their support, or that I can ever have that great of an influence on others, but I can certainly try. "Pay it forward," if you will.
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-- When I was in college (a very long time ago, back in the 1980s) and when I graduated and got my first job as an engineer, there were very few women in engineering and sometimes that was good and other times it was bad. It really depended on the attitude of the individual person I was dealing with. Some were rude, critical, and dismissive while others were encouraging and supportive. I'm kind of sad to see that in many ways that has not changed although I think we are moving in the right direction. I'm excited to hear from a young college student that she see it growing! That is great news... but maybe it is not changing quickly enough. I work everyday to try to show young women that I did it and so can they. And this is FIRST, so we will keep on working to change the culture. That is our mandate!