Challenges and Programs to Promote STEM Education

The assignment highlights the importance of promoting STEM education among women, particularly in the UK. It discusses how societal factors, family background, and other issues can influence children's development and career choices. The report concludes that societies need to change aspects and run programs to eradicate discrimination and promote equality. Various laws and legislations are mentioned, including the Sex Discrimination Act 1973 and IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) 1975, which ensure equal opportunities for education regardless of sex or disability.

CHILD
DEVELOPMENT

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................4
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................5

TOPIC: “Difficulties for women pursuing STEM Degree in American College
and University”.
INTRODUCTION
Child development programs demonstrate the drastic improvement in growth, survival,
social and health productivity. Due to discrimination on the basis of sex, women who pursuing
STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) degree from a University face
various difficulties (Spodek & Saracho, 2014). In this regard, present essay will demonstrate
some major difficulties which impact on growth of children (student). Further programs run by
governmental bodies and NGOs for eradication of such issues are also elaborated.
Overview
When a young child progress from first seven years of life then there are number of
developmental stages occur. During early stage of development behaviour of them affect by
various factors. It includes basic desires of children like parental love, recognitions, acceptance
and success etc. In addition to this, they also have unconditional or corollary needs for autonomy
and privacy. As they complete each stage from childhood to mature, they get experience about
several transitions of life (O'connor, Monk & Fitelson, 2014). It involves enter in school, meet
with new people, make friends, carry out some new activities etc. Therefore, going out through
these stages of life and development, behaviour of them changes vigorously. During child
development, the main factor which affects their life is family and societal environment. This
would either cause normal and abnormal behaviour, which couldn’t examine in early stage. If
children face discrimination on the basis of sex, race, culture, colour and other social factors then
it impacts negatively on their growth and development. Some other clues to determine if
behaviours of children are abnormal or not, can be examined by some examples. It includes very
well behaviour of children with other shows anxiety or level of depression. They want to get
more attention, affection or love and always fear from rejection. These children are found to be
very cautious, insecure and shy which shows sign of abnormal behaviour patterns.
Case Scenario:
In American college and University, increase in efforts for diversify STEM education i.e.
science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, have significantly enhanced the number of
studies. These studies offer insight into the women’s experiences of STEM programs in
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relatively higher education. These educations are referred to pre-school through higher standards,
which has given rise to hundreds of studies. It ranges from recruitment or job employment and
retention of female students to the workplace. Spotlight of STEM education have also increased
the demand for updated research and information for investigators, professionals, experts and
administrators. This would aid college faculties to understand the needs of researchers, students,
staff and administrators which support females in STEM in higher education. But it has
examined that women in UK are under depressed in this kind of education. The main reason
behind that is gender gap which creates various difficulties in front of female students who are
pursuing STEM education.
According to views and theory of Walton & et. al., (2015), it has evaluated that male
students are better at spatial tasks where as females ones at verbal tasks. Women suffer gender
inequalities due to prevailing socio-cultural climate in UK. Due to un-even socio-economic
development like difference on the basis of culture and specially sex i.e. given priority to males
over females, create various difficulties for women. In societies, it has ascertained that parents
always focus more on developing career of their male child. They generally ignore to give equal
importance to female child. Therefore, it causes feeling of depression in women which impact on
their growth and development. In context with education such as STEM studies, mind of boys
are seemed to be equal like women, both can solve a question easily. In fact women concentrate
on studies more than males, they are much sharp then boys in mathematics and engineering field.
But when women perform a task or face test in specific field then they fail to give effective result
as desired. The reason behind this lack of confidence and family support due to which, feeling of
insecurity has generated in their mind. Similarly, when women go to take admission in
universities like American College then they fail to clear assessment of academic qualification,
show interest in specific goals, aspiration and more.
In universities of UK, admissions are given on the basis of standardised tests. Further after
clearance of assessment and standardised tests, authorities shortlists potential students and
courses which match with their profile (Chisholm, 2017). Along with this, under visa counselling
and interview sessions including mock test, students have to give better and effective answers.
Thus, undergoes with all such sessions, it reduces confidence level of female student. As they
have already less confidence and feeling of inferiority so, it quite looks difficult to take
admission easily in STEM studies. Another main issue is under-matching courses where women
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are more likely to drop out of high school or less likely to complete a degree. Apart from this, to
gain competitive advantage and increase productivity of business, organisations give preference
to introduce male employees. The reason behind this is high level of confidence, family support,
can do work in late night, less restrictions of society etc. Man can do job in more adequate
manner as well as they have also not much issues to do job in distant places, late working hours
and more. In place of this, female employees have much restrictions and family pressure due to
which they face difficulties to do certain job for long run in same company (Wei & et. al., 2014).
They take more leaves as compared to boys especially for marriage, pregnancy, menstrual
periods etc. Family and children responsibilities as well as societal laws also not allow them to
do work for late nights. Due to these, companies give recruitment to male employees as they can
give more commitment to achieve growth of business and stay for longer period. All such
concerns create negative impact on minds of females and decrease their interest to take STEM
degree. To study such difficult subjects like science, technology, engineering and mathematics,
demand students to give full time to understand. This would also create difficulties for women in
pursuing STEM degree from an affiliated college and university in UK.
To encourage women to take admission in this field, regulatory bodies and universities of
UK have run various programs (Corbett & Hill, 2015). They have created a college-going culture
which ain women in visualising themselves over such places. Faculties of universities and
government give support to each other in developing strategic plans to reach post-secondary
aspirations. They also concern on reducing discrimination with women on the basis of sex,
culture and other socio-economic factors. In this regard to protect females from inequalities,
Government of UK has made various laws and legislations. It includes Sex Discrimination Act
1973, Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) 1975, Equality Act 2010 etc.
According to Equality Act, it is strictly prohibited for organisations, universities and colleges to
discriminate human on the basis of sex, culture and socio-economic factors. If any institutions
will seem to do this then government or any individual can take legal actions against them (Xu,
2015). This would help in encouraging women to enrol themselves in pursuing STEM and other
degrees. Similarly IDEA act is an American Legislation which ensures that child having
disabilities will provide Free Appropriate Public Education. This serves to meet their basic needs
and give them equal opportunity to get education as those people who have no disability. This
would help in child development and create equal culture in societies.
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One of these programs is the College Ambition Program which includes an effective or
broader approach to change high school culture. American College and other universities of UK
offer courses for women on less academic fees. But it creates challenges in front of authorities to
offer additional support for such type of courses like STEM. It falls outside of remedial courses
and curriculum for female students with special needs. They have to change whole criteria of
admission process and recruitment practices which often increased costs too.
CONCLUSION
It has concluded from this report that due to societal factors, family background and others,
behaviour of child much influence. From early stage to maturity, children have passed from
many stages which impact on their development either in positive or negative manner. Similarly,
in context with their student’s life, there are many factors present that influence them towards
career development. If children face discrimination on the basis of sex, race, culture, economic
status and more, from early age of childhood, then it generate feeling of insecurity, shy and
inferiority in their minds. Therefore, for development of child, societies are needed to change
aspects and run programs to eradicate discrimination or such type of issues.
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REFERENCES
Books and Journals
O'connor, T. G., Monk, C., & Fitelson, E. M. (2014). Practitioner review: maternal mood in
pregnancy and child development–implications for child psychology and psychiatry.
Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry. 55(2). 99-111.
Chisholm, J. S. (2017). Navajo infancy: An ethological study of child development. Routledge.
Spodek, B., & Saracho, O. N. (2014). Handbook of research on the education of young children.
Routledge.
Wei, X. & et. al., (2014). Postsecondary pathways and persistence for STEM versus non-STEM
majors: Among college students with an autism spectrum disorder. Journal of autism and
developmental disorders. 44(5). 1159-1167.
Corbett, C., & Hill, C. (2015). Solving the Equation: The Variables for Women's Success in
Engineering and Computing. American Association of University Women. 1111
Sixteenth Street NW, Washington, DC 20036.
Xu, Y. (2015). Focusing on women in STEM: A longitudinal examination of gender-based
earning gap of college graduates. The Journal of Higher Education. 86(4). 489-523.
Walton, G. M. & et. al., (2015). Two brief interventions to mitigate a “chilly climate” transform
women’s experience, relationships, and achievement in engineering. Journal of
Educational Psychology.107(2). 468.
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