Women in STEM

Monday 6 May 20192.30–5.15 pm

The Royal Society of Edinburgh22–26 George Street

Edinburgh, EH2 2PQ

Joint Symposium organised by

The Royal Society of Edinburgh (RSE)

and

The Royal Flemish Academy of Belgium for Science and the Arts (KVAB)

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The aim of this Symposium is to bring together leading experts from Scotland and Belgium (Flanders) to discuss the current climate surrounding the position of women in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics). The symposium will also provide the opportunity to engage with the RSE and the KVAB on their current initiatives and activities in support of international collaboration and Women in STEM.The workshop will be held at:

The Royal Society of Edinburgh22–26 George StreetEdinburghScotland

This symposium is jointly arranged by the Royal Society of Edinburgh and the Royal Flemish Academy of Belgium for Science and the Arts.

Introduction

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About the Royal Flemish Academy of BelgiumThe KVAB is an autonomous scientific-cultural society that promotes scholarship, science and the arts and contributes to their appeal. As an Academy, it is unique in that, apart from the sciences and the humanities, it also embraces the arts and the engineering sciences. As a result of this interdisciplinary approach, the KVAB is well-positioned to promote the great value of science and the arts. With the exception of the medical sciences, all scholarly and scientific fields are represented: the exact, technical, natural, social and applied sciences, the humanities and the arts. Attention is paid to both the processes and the products of science. The Academy has entered into an agreement with the Flemish Government and receives funds to develop activities in three different areas: the internal activities of the Academy, its international profile and its interaction with society. The Academy has signed bilateral agreements with a number of foreign Academies to promote scientific exchanges. In 2017 an agreement with RSE was signed, and since then alternatively a joint workshop is held in Brussels and in Edinburgh.For further information about the KVAB, please visit: www.kvab.be/en/

About the Royal Society of Edinburgh (RSE)The RSE, Scotland’s National Academy, was established by Royal Charter in 1783 and is one of the seven UK National Academies. It is an educational charity, operating on an independent and non-party-political basis and provides public benefit throughout Scotland, supported by the considerable strengths and varied expertise of our Fellows. The Fellowship comprises around 1600 Fellows from a wide range of disciplines – science and technology, arts, humanities, social science, business and public service. The RSE’s Young Academy of Scotland, established in 2011, is made up of 126 young professionals and provides a platform for innovative early-career entrepreneurs, professionals and academics to develop a coherent and influential voice, and address challenging issues facing society in Scotland and beyond.Our main activities include funding for research; policy advice papers; free public lectures and events; and international partnership activities which enhance Scotland’s involvement in global collaboration. Through strategic partnerships in over 20 countries, the RSE promotes collaboration and the reputation of the nation’s research, innovation and culture. By forging these effective partnerships with national academies and learned societies overseas, the RSE is helping to foster international exchange programmes, raise awareness of Scottish research and innovation, stimulate collaboration through joint activities and provide spaces for discussion of international affairs.For further information on the RSE’s work, please visit www.rse.org.uk

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Monday 6 May 2019

ARRIVALKVAB guests travel to Fraser Suites Hotel, St Giles Street, Edinburgh

Fraser Suites Edinburgh, Scotland12 – 26 St Giles Street Edinburgh EH1 1PTTel: +44 (0)131 221 7200Email: sales.edinburgh@frasershospitality.com

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Registration and Refreshments

Opening Address (Wellcome East Room) Dr Rebekah Widdowfield, Chief Executive RSE Professor Karel Velle, President, KVAB

Welcome and Introductions Chairperson: Professor Lesley Yellowlees FRSE College of Science and Engineering, University of Edinburgh

The Important Role of Motivation and Growth Mindset in STEM Education Professor Joos Vandewalle, Faculty of Engineering Science, KU Leuven

Lessons from Tapping All Our Talents: Six Years On Dr Tanya Wilson, Adam Smith Business School, University of Glasgow ‘Family Science Capital’ and ‘Gender-Equality Paradox in STEM’ Challenging Policy Programmes Professor Veerle Draulans, Faculty of Social Sciences, KU Leuven

Coffee/tea break (Wellcome West Room) ‘Draw a Scientist’ – and let her break that glass ceiling! Professor Katrien Kolenberg, Institute of Astronomy, KU Leuven Gender, Habitus and Occupational Segregation within Vocational and Technical Education in STEM Education Mr Douglas Morrison, Innovation and STEM, City of Glasgow College

‘Reflections from across the River’. A Humanities Perspective on STEM and Gender Professor Godelieve Laureys, Department of Linguistics, Ghent University

Concluding Remarks Professor Lesley Yellowlees FRSE Professor Joos Vandewalle

Symposium Group Photo

Close of Symposium

Speakers’ Dinner The Ivy on the Square, 6 St Andrew Square, Edinburgh

14:00–14:30 14:30–14:40

14:40–14:45

14:45–15:00

15:00–15:20

15:20–15:40

15:40–16:00 16:00–16:20

16:20–16:40

16:40–17:00

17:00–17:10

17:10–17:15

17:15 18:30–20:30

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Speakers

RSE

Douglas is an experienced educator having worked in the further and higher education sector for 15 years. His areas of interest include STEM, innovation, digital disruption, educational policy, technology enhanced learning and gender equality issues. He is the Associate Director of Innovation and STEM at City of Glasgow College and the Scottish Director of the Institute of Innovation and Knowledge Exchange, of which he was awarded Fellowship in 2015. Douglas holds a Master’s Degree in Educational Technology and is a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) candidate researching gender, habitus and occupational segregation in the UK construction industry at the University of Strathclyde.

Douglas is responsible for a range of projects aimed at engaging companies, operating within sectors experiencing significant underrepresentation of women, to be bold on gender equality issues. A regular speaker on gender equality and workplace inclusivity, he holds a number of board and advisory positions relating to gender and has worked with key agencies including Scottish Funding Council, Scottish Government, Skills Development Scotland and The Royal Society of Edinburgh. Douglas is a member of the Board of Governance at the Construction Scotland Innovation Centre, championing sector diversity and skills transformation, and also represents the college sector on the Board of Glasgow City of Science and Innovation.

Douglas Morrison Associate Director of Innovation and STEM, Director of Scottish Institute of Innovation and Knowledge Exchange, City of Glasgow College

Abstract

Gender, habitus and occupational segregation within vocational and technical education in STEM education

Women continue to be underrepresented at all stages of the career pipeline within traditionally male occupations such as engineering and the built environment.

Recent developments within the policy and advocacy landscape in Scotland have led to renewed investment and heightened awareness of gender equality issues. However, progress remains glacially slow and the longer-term impact of high profile interventions has yet to be determined.

In this talk, an overview of key challenges relating to the proportional representation of women within the Scottish STEM skills system is presented. The deeply engrained cultural and occupational habitus inherent within education, society and employment are considered and resultant challenges and opportunities are proposed.

Biography

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Dr Tanya Wilson Lecturer in Economics, Adam Smith Business School University of Glasgow

Abstract

Lessons from Tapping All Our Talents: Six Years On

In 2012 the Royal Society of Edinburgh examined the issue that the majority of women in science, technology, engineering and mathematics do not work in STEM areas. The report, Tapping all our Talents, set out a comprehensive strategy aimed at increasing not only the proportion of women in the workplace qualified in STEM, but also the number who rise to senior positions. Six years on was established to examine what progress has been made in the intervening period. This talk discusses some of our headline findings.

Tanya is a Lecturer in Economics at the Adam Smith Business School, University of Glasgow. She gained her PhD in Economics from Royal Holloway University of London in 2015. She is the recipient of the 2016 Royal Economic Society Prize, and was awarded the Sir Alec Cairncross Prize from the Scottish Economic Society in 2017. Tanya’s research interests lie in Family Economics and Labour Economics, where she has investigated topics such as the impact

of local labour market conditions on the incidence of domestic violence and the role of financial constraints and gender in the decision to become an entrepreneur.

She has contributed to Scottish Parliament Inquiries on the Gender Pay Gap in Scotland and Scotland’s Economic Performance and to the Royal Society of Edinburgh Report: Tapping All Our Talents: Six Years On.

Biography

Speakers

RSE

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Speakers

KVAB

After obtaining her PhD in Ethics (KU Leuven, 1994), Veerle Draulans was appointed Assistant Professor at Tilburg University, the Netherlands. From 1998 to 30 November 2015, she combined a part-time appointment at Tilburg University, the Netherlands, (60%) with an appointment as Associate Professor of Gender Studies at KU Leuven (40%). She has performed teaching and research in various fields of gender and diversity. Since 1 December 2015, Veerle has had an 80% appointment at KU Leuven, Center for Sociological Research, with full focus on gender and diversity in research and teaching. She collaborates with South Partners, such as Bahir Dar University and Arba Minch University, Ethiopia, and Limpopo University, South Africa (Vlir UOS).

In 2019, 2020 and 2021 Veerle will coordinate a ‘gender-sensitive doctoral summer school’ in Ethiopia.

Veerle is the KU Leuven representative responsible for the inter-university Master ‘Gender and Diversity’ in Flanders, a unique project of collaboration between the five Flemish universities; chair person of the ‘Vlir High Level Taskforce Gender’; co-chair of a workgroup in the COST program, ‘Reducing Old-Age Social Exclusion: Collaborations in Research and Policy (ROSEnet)’; a member of the Board of Governors of Emmaus, a network of 24 care facilities in the province of Antwerp employing more than 6600 people; and is regularly consulted by Flemish journalists regarding gender issues.

Prof. dr. Veerle Draulans Associate Professor Faculty of Social Sciences, KU Leuven

Abstract

‘Family science capital’ and ‘Gender-equality paradox in STEM’ challenging policy programs

When analysing ‘gender and STEM’, a focus on three levels at the same time is needed: the micro level (individual choices/decisions), the meso level (organisational culture and structure) and the macro level (societal dynamics). Literature highlights the importance of ‘family science capital’, a key factor in the decision of youngsters to opt for a STEM-program (micro level). The macro level confronts with the ‘Gender-equality paradox in STEM’: in gender-equal countries, few women can be found in STEM positions. What do these findings imply for organisations (meso level) when developing policy programs intending to increase the numbers of women in STEM?

Biography

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Speakers

KVAB

After studies in Physics, Katrien Kolenberg obtained a PhD in Astrophysics at KU Leuven in 2002. Subsequently, she led research projects at the University of Vienna, Austria, (2002–2010) and the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, CfA, Cambridge MA, US, (2011–2014). She returned to Belgium in 2014 where she is now a part-time Associate Professor of Astrophysics at the University of Antwerp, also affiliated (as associate researcher) to the KU Leuven and the CfA. Katrien is involved in several inter-university collaborations (IUC) with a transversal theme of gender and STEM. As such, she is a guest Professor at the Université Cheikh Anta Diop in Dakar Senegal, and recently started an IUC with Morocco.Passionate about both scientific research and innovative science communication and education, Katrien currently assumes the role of STEM

coordinator for the KU Leuven Association, STEM for Teachers: www.STEMvoorLeerkrachten.be She coordinates ESERO–Belgium, ESA’s European Space Education Resource Office: www.eserobelgium.be for Flanders, to bring STEM into schools and enable teachers to teach STEM through space themes. Katrien is active in various STEM and Art & Science networks, and – as a keen proponent of STEAM (A for Arts) interventions – she has set up various shows and activities linking Art & Science, such as: https://pilotleuven.wordpress.com

Katrien has received international awards for both scientific accomplishments and science communication.

Prof. dr. Katrien Kolenberg Associate Professor (part-time)/STE(A)M coordinator/Associate Researcher Faculty of Science, University of Antwerp/Science, Engineering & Technology Group, KU Leuven/Institute of Astronomy, KU Leuven

Abstract

‘Draw a scientist’ –and let her break that glass ceiling!

Drawing from my own experience and observations, I will discuss the op-portunities of STEM education (with some focus on Flanders), the challenges women (still) face in a STEM context, and a few promising initiatives with attention for gender balance in STEM.

Biography

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Speakers

KVAB

Godelieve Laureys has been a Member of the Royal Flemish Academy of Belgium for Science and the Arts since 2007 and was Chair of the Class of the Humanities in 2017 and 2018. She has been a member of the Board of the Academy since 2015.

Godelieve Laureys is emeritus professor from Ghent University, where she held the chair of Scandinavian Studies until 2015. From 1983 until 1992 she was full professor of Scandinavian Languages and Literature at Groningen University (NL). Her main field of research is modern Scandinavian linguistics, but she has also conducted research on cultural transfer and on gender roles and patterns as encoded in texts and discourse. She has published several books and numerous articles in national and international journals on a wide range of Scandinavian subjects. She is the Editor-in-Chief of three bidirectional bilingual dictionaries for the language pairs Dutch–Swedish, Dutch–Danish and Dutch–Finnish.

Godelieve has fulfilled numerous national and international assignments regarding evaluation of university research and education.

She was a member of the Board of Governors of Ghent University (2004–2012) and of the Executive Committee of Ghent University (2008–2012). She represented Ghent University in the High-Level Task Force Gender of the Flemish Interuniversity Council (VLIR) 2012–2017. In that capacity she co-authored several policy reports and gender action plans.

She is still appointed as an advisor to the Rector of Ghent University and is Chair of the U4 Task Force for strategic alliances.

Em. prof. dr. Godelieve Laureys Royal Flemish Academy of Belgium for Science and the Arts; Ghent University

Abstract

‘Reflections from across the River’. A Humanities Perspective on STEM and GenderIn my paper, I will reflect on the ideas and hypotheses put forward in the lectures by the four other speakers. I will try to draw some parallels with recent developments and strategies within the Humanities as well as to outline some prominent differences. In particular, I will focus on the mirror effects of female dominance in the student population of the Humanities and its consequences, both for the research agenda and for professional profiles e.g., in education, psychological and social care and legal services. Further, I will formulate an answer to the question why the relative gender repartition of the academic staff in the subsequent stages of the academic career is so strikingly similar in STEM faculties and in the Humanities and finally I will comment on the omnipresence of the scissors graph in gender statistics.

Biography

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Speakers

KVAB

Professor Vandewalle obtained a degree in Electrical Engineering and a doctorate in applied sciences from KU Leuven, Belgium in 1971 and 1976. Until October 2013, he was a full Professor at the Department Electrical Engineering (ESAT), Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Belgium and Head of the SCD division at ESAT, with more than 150 researchers. He supervised 43 PhDs. Since October 2013 he has been a Professor Emeritus with assignments at KU Leuven. His present tasks include chairing the positioning test for engineering in Flanders, chairing PhD defenses and promoting the role of mathematics and STEM in society and high schools.

He has held visiting positions University of California, Berkeley and I3S CNRS Sophia Antipolis, France. He taught courses in linear algebra, linear and nonlinear system and circuit theory, signal processing and neural networks.

His research interests are in mathematical system theory and its applications in circuit theory, control, signal processing, cryptography and neural networks. He has (co-)authored more than 300 international journal papers and obtained several best paper awards and research awards. His publications received over 30,000 googlescholar citations. He is a Fellow of IEEE, IET, and EURASIP and a member of the Academia Europaea. From 2009 until 2013 he was a member of the Board of Governors of the IEEE Circuits and Systems Society. Between 2017 and 2018 he was the President of the Royal Flemish Academy of Belgium for Science and the Arts.

Prof. Em. dr. ir. Joos Vandewalle Honorary President/Emeritus Professor KVAB/KU Leuven

Abstract

The important role of motivation and growth mindset in STEM education

Three important recent studies related to STEM and gender will be highlighted. The first is an extensive study of the views of 15-year-old boys and girls in over 40 countries on the Relevance of Science Education. Important gender differences on the role of STEM are observed especially in the more wealthy countries. Second, in a recent PhD study by Jolien De Meester, Designing iSTEM learning materials for secondary education, integrated STEM projects have been designed by high school teacher teams and validated. Third, the impressive work of Jo Boaler and her team at Stanford has proven the important role of a growth mindset for mathematics.

Biography

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