Nurturing a STEM Sisterhood

A popular adage holds that it takes a village to raise a child. What, then, can a village do to interest children — particularly girls, who are so underrepresented in STEM fields — in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math?

I can attest that it was my own "village" — my teachers, mentors and family members — that led me along my path in STEM. While I was fortunate to have that support, many young people do not.

Every single child enters the world driven by curiosity; it is the force that drives an infant to grasp for a toy or a toddler to taste anything within reach. Curiosity is the same fundamental driving force inherent in the pursuit of science. That makes part of our mission easy: a natural interest in STEM is already programmed into the minds of children.

We, as adults, must now nurture that interest. Teachers are already heavily engaged in that goal, but STEM involvement doesn’t end in the classroom, so the other members of the village must do their part as well.

Jin Kim Montclare

Full Story: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jin-kim-montclare/post_5427_b_3769639.html?utm_hp_ref=tw