Pink and dolls for girls, blue and trucks for boys’: Gender stereotypes that were planted from a young age persist through one’s life. However, these stereotypes go beyond just colors and toys; they are woven into the courses students choose, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development said.
At South, certain classes are dominated by one gender, according to an unscientific survey conducted by The Oracle. In the Science and Engineering Learning Community (SELC) program, gender imbalanced classes face long-standing stereotypes, junior Emerson Tuvell said. However, South is taking steps forward, she said. The Science Department supports women in science through clubs, events, and representation, Jeff Rylander, Instructional Supervisor of Science, said.
Tuvell is one of a few girls in both her SELC Biology and Engineering courses. There are only four and five girls in each class, respectively. When she first enrolled in the program, even though South advertised it to all students, Tuvell suspected it would be male-dominated because of her previous math classes, she said.
“In the past, engineering was stereotypically a male-dominated field,” Tuvell said. “[The Career and Technical Education Department and my teachers are] trying to integrate as many females as they can into the program, [but] it’s hard because of the stereotypes going back in history.”
For senior Phillip Lukawiecki, being one of three boys in Advanced Fashion Design makes the class all the more fun. Although he wishes there were more boys in his class, it is not because of his discomfort. Instead, he wants to see boys ignoring stereotypes, Lukawiecki explained.
“There’s been a stereotype that, ‘You like fashion. You have to be like gay’, but that’s just not the case at all,” Lukawiecki said. “I would love to see guys get more into fashion. I want to see dudes start making their own clothes at GBS, I feel like there’s a stigma [around] it.”
Gender gaps can cause students in the minority to feel estranged from the rest of the group in class, leaving them afraid to ask for help or isolated, senior Lynn Lee, who took Woodworking as a sophomore, said. At South, about 39 percent of students have taken an elective where they were in the gender minority, and 29 percent said it made participating more intimidating, according to an Oracle survey. In her Woodworking class, this proved true, Lee said.
“I participated less in [Woodworking] because if I tried to participate or [if] I asked questions it felt like I was being judged or looked at as stupid because guys would always snicker,” Lee said.
Senior Callie Choi has also witnessed the gender gap in the array of Computer Science classes she has taken at South. Her first course, Honors Computer Science, had a relatively balanced gender ratio, but the disparity grew as she progressed through class levels. Now in Advanced Data Structures and Algorithms, there are only four girls in a class of about 20, Choi said.
At South, the imbalance has not directly affected Choi’s learning experience, but she recognized the broader implications for female representation in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM).
“There aren’t as many female role models in the computer science field [which] makes it harder for younger girls to envision themselves in those types of roles and areas of leadership,” Choi said.
The gender gap in STEM worldwide is significant, with women making up just 28 percent of the STEM workforce in 2023, according to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
At South, this discrepancy is clear, classes such as Advanced Placement Physics C, with about 75 percent male students and 25 percent female students, Rylander said. However, the Science Department has been working to provide opportunities for female students to see themselves in these courses, with activities such as the annual Women in STEM Breakfast for sophomore girls, Rylander explained.
“We bring in female speakers in STEM fields, and particularly in areas that have historically been male-dominated, and challenge our high school girls to consider a STEM-related career,” Rylander said. “The female speakers serve as role models for our girls.”
In addition to this, the Science Department hosts a Women in STEM Club, brings females each year to Argonne National Laboratory’s “Women In Search of Science Careers” Career Day and hire female teachers so that girls at South can see women who have studied in these technical fields.
“Our work has made a difference; we have a greater percentage of women in our science classes now than at almost any point in GBS history,” Rylander said. “Our SELC has been as much as 40 percent female in past years. This is a marked increase.”
Additionally, South works to close the gap with Glenview’s Got STEAM, a program aimed at introducing girls to engineering and science, Tuvell explained.
“I just found out about [Glenview’s Got STEAM] when I came to high school,” Tuvell said. “I know a bunch of people in SELC [whose] younger sisters are doing it, which is great.”
This disparity also extends into P.E. electives, where junior Ethan Namkung found himself isolated as one of the few men in his mostly female Adventure Education class. Gradually, he was able to find a community within the group, despite initial gender differences.
“I tried to take my mind off the fact that there were blatantly more girls than guys in that class and ultimately I came out of that class with a lot of good friends,” Namkung said.
However, he recognizes that any class with a gender minority has innate difficulties when forming relationships, Namkung said.
“In any class when you find yourself in a gender minority, it’s a little intimidating at first,” Namkung said.
In Choi’s computer science class, the teacher has taken action to make her and other females feel more welcome and comfortable in the class, she said. He has promoted many scholarships, awards, or programs that are specifically for females in computer science, she said. Choi encourages girls to not let the gender gap impede them from the class, she said.
“To a girl who is contemplating taking the class, but is intimidated by the gender disparity: just go for it,” Choi said. “There’s a lot of girls in the world who are making a real impact in computer science and you shouldn’t let your intimidation get in the way.”
Tuvell agreed, adding that the gender gap does not overpower girls’ interests in engineering. Despite being outnumbered, Lukawiecki never second-guessed his decision to take Fashion. While he understands why some guys might hesitate, he encourages anyone interested to push past their doubts regarding gender imbalances.
“It doesn’t really matter if it’s a group of girls or a group of guys,” Lukawiecki said. “At the end of the day, we’re all just people [and] you can have fun either way.”
