Presentation at the Improving STEM Education and Skills Outcomes Conference 9/6/16

1. Girls in STEM:
What can you do in the
classroom?
Dr Jenine Beekhuyzen
Founder & CEO
Tech Girls movement
Creating the next generation of female technology leaders
through entrepreneurship
@TGAsuperheroes #techgirls #STEM

2. Gender Equity
STEM
Innovation
Quality
Creativity
Unconscious bias
Makerspace
NVivo
Qualitative
Research
Search for the Next
Tech Girl Superhero
iDream
Free TGAS
books

3. Through our innovative campaign, we provide free resources to empower school girls to build
technology to change the world, and we encourage them to enter and succeed in STEM
oriented careers.
D I V ERS IT Y
Diversity is positively
correlated with
innovation (Miller & del
Carmen, 2009)
Mixed gender teams in the United
States produce patents that are cited
26 to 42 percent more frequently than
the average (Nielsen & Huse 2010)
The proportion of women directors is linked to reduced conflict & increased board
development efforts (Ashcroft & Breitzman, 2007)
Companies with women CEOs,
women in upper management ranks
and on boards experience better
financial performance (Kotiranta,
Kovalainen & Rouvinen, 2007)
Gender-diverse boards increase corporate
reputation (Brammer, Millington, &
Pavelin, 2009).
Our mission is to create a workforce that is
capable of building the technology of the future.
@TGAsuperheroes #techgirls #STEM

4. The problem?
By 2018 we will not have at least a quarter of the technology workforce that
we actually need - shortage of human capital
In 5 years time, 75% of jobs will require some kind of STEM skills
ICT$in$Australia$generates$
$$91$billion$in$gross$annual$
revenue$&$exports$around$
$4.5$billion$annually$
Women&comprise&47%&of&
Australians&who&play&tech8
based&games,&but&only&8.7%&&
of&those&employed&by&the&
industry.&
@TGAsuperheroes #techgirls #STEM

5. “sans diversity, we limit the set of
life experiences that are applied,
and as a result, we pay an
opportunity cost — a cost in
products not built, in designs not
considered, in constraints not
understood, in processes not
invented” …Bill Wulf
@TGAsuperheroes #techgirls #STEM

6. Our unique solution…Tech Girls Are Superheroes
• Is based on more than a decade of research
• Presents real life female role models
• A fun, illustrated children's book free for Australian school girls
• Encourages girls to develop strong technology, business and social capabilities
• Empowers girls with a belief that they literally can change the world for the better
We are disrupting
• outdated stereotypes
• traditional notions of work and study
• unconscious biases
• (un)conscious ways of gendering the world
@TGAsuperheroes #techgirls #STEM

7. Our unique solution…Tech Girls Are Superheroes
• Free paperback books - nearly 60 000 distributed free since 2008
• Youth entrepreneurship program - Search for the Next Tech Girl
Superhero empowers girls to be technology entrepreneurs through a 12 week
hands on program with school girls from 7-17yo. You can see the 2015 pitches
here: http://www.techgirlsmovement.org/video-pitches/
• School visits, hands on workshops and large scale events across Australia
3 main activities
@TGAsuperheroes #techgirls #STEM

8. @TGAsuperheroes #techgirls #STEM@TGAsuperheroes #techgirls #STEM

9. Reachingouraudience
Website - Average 1500+ unique
visits & 3000+ page views/month
3000+ Twitter followers
4000+ weekly reach on Facebook
http://ow.ly/PY5B1
Co-branded
Events &
Merchandise
Mailouts
Digital campaigns Traditional marketing
Mentoring
Reach 1500 female students /month
Media articles in the Financial Review, the
Australian newspaper, ABC radio national, SMH,
Smart Startup, Courier Mail, Brisbane News etc
Reach 500+ school girls
Giving back to the community
Sharing expertise and presenting your
company as an employer of choice

11. Whatcanyoudointheclassroom?
Technovation
Bringing entrepreneurship to the classroom
• Free 12 week curriculum
• Building technology for social good
• Individuals or teams
• Program teaches girls life skills such as how to identify problems, design and
test solutions, collaborate in a team and communicate to different audiences.
• Builds confidence with technology
• Can be integrated into the curriculum
@TGAsuperheroes #techgirls #STEM

12. Whatcanyoudointheclassroom?
Technovation
Final Deliverables
• App prototype sourcecode
• 3-5 Screenshots of your app prototype
• Pitch Video on YouTube under 4minutes
• 100-word app description
• Demo Video on YouTube
• Business plan – typed and in PDF format
@TGAsuperheroes #techgirls #STEM

13. Whatcanyoudointheclassroom?
Technovation
What makes this program unique?
• Focus on defining a problem in the local community
• Research to find other solutions to the problem
• Exposure to business analysis tools and techniques
• Rigorous, transparent judging rubric
• Technology is secondary to problem solving
• Holistic approach to building technology solutions
@TGAsuperheroes #techgirls #STEM

19. Positive Penguins
App for kids
building resilience
& self-esteem
2015
Ambassador

20. https://youtu.be/FauMBF_skdI

21. Improve your spelling ability and expand your vocabulary with Vocabulary
Voyager! You can practice as well as learn new words and their spellings in a
fun, digital environment on your smart device. Designed for students from year
two to six, Vocabulary Voyager offers a range of preset spelling lists based on
the Australian curriculum and NAPLAN tests as well as enabling you to insert
your own words. The app includes more challenging lists in order to expand
your vocabulary. With enjoyable mini games and quirky pirates, build a
foundation to aid in literacy at a secondary school level.

22. The TGM program has been a
wonderful way to learn how to develop
and idea and use technology to create
something meaningful to the
community.
Emma has learnt so many useful skills
along the way, ranging from sorting
through ideas, analysing and
presenting data. We have had
fantastic coaches and mentors so
thank you for all your hard work.

24. So...
what is your
superpower?

26. RSVP at bit.do/codeevent

27. Join the #techgirls sisterhood!
Inspire & be inspired
T: @TGAsuperheroes #techgirls #STEM
F & I: @techgirlsaresuperheroes
www.techgirlsmovement.org /
www.techgirlsaresuperheroes.org