Girls just want to have fun… playing with science and techonology. This isn’t news to me as most of my female friends have pursued careers in engineering and science, but I look around and see they are the exception not the rule.
There is a lot of talk about the need for S.T.E.M.(Science, Tech, Engineering, and Math) education in our country if we don’t want to get left behind the rest of the world. Technology is a large part of our future and we need to invest in it through upcoming generations. I love to read about all the organizations with opportunities for youth to succeed, especially in fields requiring critical thinking and problem solving skills. One of these amazing places is Black Girls Code(BGC). They are focused on insuring that black girls in America are not left behind. Launched in 2011, the program offers computer coding classes to girls age 7-17, from underrepresented areas. Don’t take my word for it, below are links to interviews with girls who have participated in the program.
The first interview is from a young Tech Diva named Devyn. She enjoys building “web-sites about my favorite subjects candy and dolphins” and she’s already an accomplished builder of small robots. http://www.blackgirlscode.com/1/post/2013/07/tech-diva-exclusive-qa-w-tech-diva-devyn-bgc-mom-tamara.html
Rebecca is another Tech Diva who likes video games and is currently designing her own. She also thinks more girls should join BGC because it is “fun and interactive”. http://www.blackgirlscode.com/1/post/2013/07/tech-diva-exclusive-qa-w-tech-diva-rebecca-bgc-mom-wilda.html
In her own words, 7 year old Nailah talks about how she learned to write code for a program that would help with her homework. despite all the despised typing involved, overall the class was a good introduction for this future coder. http://www.blackgirlscode.com/1/post/2011/10/kidsruby-and-me.html
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