WATT in STEAM

The project 'WATT in STEAM' is based on three crucial findings from the earlier KA2 project GirlsTech:Female teachers as role models are crucial for the career choice of young women in STEM areas, as the role of teachers in general is a crucial one. Reluctance of girls/women to make a choice for STEM is not based on a lack of affinity with technology, but rather often because the social and physical environment of traditional technology doesn't appeal to their world of emotions3.A choice for STEM doesn't narrow down the possibilities to a purely technical profession as it is often thought, but on the contrary does it widen the opportunities

It is envisaged to run a two or three years project with 9 transnational meetings and Skype meetings in between. The partners from the three national Associations (MBO Raad, AMKE and AoC) will not only get involved with their own staff but also involve staff from one or more of their member-colleges. For the quality assurance there will be two types of internal evaluators from the partnership; AMKE from the content point of view and AoC from the process point of view. Preparation, before every meeting: Partners will receive information about the situation in the hosting country, including their instruments to attract more (female) teachers and to keep their choices sustainable. Partners will comment on these GP’s. Implementation: It is all about sharing Good Practices and learning from each other. Every partner can decide about the best way to adapt and implement these GP’s to their own situation.

Impact: It is envisaged to show the huge variety of opportunities that STEM programmes are offering. To take away prejudices and to find efficient and effective strategies to select and train more teachers in STEM areas, with a strong emphasis on female teachers as women are strongly under represented as students and as teachers. Finally, this should contribute to the demand of the trade and Industry for well qualified and trained staff.
In Finland, UK and The Netherlands, there will be an impact on a national level as these three countries are participating (or are strongly related) with their Associations of VET colleges, that are all involved in STEM areas.