Girls In ICT Day | Gold Coast and Logan City Schools Promote Careers in Tech for Females

The Australian Computer Society (ACS), in partnership with Deloitte Access Economics, researches the ICT Industry every year in a publication entitled ‘The Digital Pulse’. The 2021 Digital Pulse has presented some startling facts about the ICT Industry in Australia.

Although women hold around 47% of all employment positions in Australia, they are underrepresented in the technology sector. In 2020, women made up just 29% of the technology workforce. Since 2015, female representation in technology occupations has grown by 0.75% on average every year. One in five graduates in information technology are women. (ACS Digital Pulse, 2021) Clearly more needs to be done to attract more females into the tech industry.

International Girls In ICT Day took place on Thursday 28 April and three #ICTGISP schools marked the occasion by providing a full day of presentations and experiential learning for students.

The 2022 theme was 'Access And Safety' - promoting safe access for girls in the digital environment. The proportion of women using the Internet globally amounts to 48% of the female population, compared to 55% of the male population. (Source https://dailywireless.org/) If girls cannot access the Internet or feel safe online, they are consequently unable to develop the necessary digital skills to engage fully in digital spaces.

This reduces their potential to pursue careers in STEM-related fields.

Over the course of two years, the ACS ICT GISP has supported three schools to run their own Girls in ICT Day, with one school inviting students from surrounding suburbs to attend. To date, 431 girls have taken part in the Girls in ICT Day across three school campuses (and this year, 142 boys as well!)

These events are a combination of presentations, discussions and student questions plus relevant experiential learning to engage with students on creative and innovative levels. Guests were sourced through the ACS ICT GISP and work for some of the biggest and best tech companies in the local area, nationally and internationally:

Students also participated in experiential learning provided by teachers, ACS employees, ICT GISP partners and service providers funded by the ICT GISP. Activities included robotics challenges, STEM workshops, game development, digital art and an entrepreneurship program.

To promote a hands-on celebration for schools not running their own event, industry partner MicroMelon created a Girls in ICT Day page populated with a message from Dr Amanda White, Women In Computer Science Posters, embedded videos of emerging and established female tech leaders and fun robotics challenges.

Matthew Jorgensen, ACS’s ICT Gateway to Industry School Program Project Manager supported three schools to host their own FREE Girls In ICT Day.

At Canterbury College, Bop Industries provided a full day of presentations, using ICT GISP Industry talent, alongside entrepreneurial learning for 75 Logan region school girls in Years 5 – 8 who are currently studying digital solutions, ICT and STEM, and who are interested in pursuing a technology career. Students heard from talented female role models through keynotes, presentations, career stories and a discussion panel, where students submitted questions for the panel to answer.

Saint Stephen's College hosted their second Girls (and Boys) in ICT Day, with diverse panels of industry professionals, as well as some fantastic activities relating to ICT and technology. 142 Boys and 140 girls attended various sessions throughout the day. The ACS (Australian Computer Society) ICT GISP was again proud to be involved in sourcing industry professionals and providing experiential learning for the students, as well as funding robotics workshops to develop problem-solving, coding and robotics skills.

At Trinity College Beenleigh, 93 females Digital Technologies, STEM and Business girls attended a full day of presentations and workshops. Leigh Williams, CTO at Brisbane Catholic Education was a special guest from the Catholic system, alongside ICT GISP Partners from academia and the robotics industry. Catherine Newington from the Australian Computer Society provided expert STEM learning using Cubit STEM Kits provided by ACS and the ICT GISP.

ACS and the ICT GISP thanks our Industry Partners for their support over the last two years and we look forward to even more schools hosting this type of event in 2023.

#acs #ictcareer #ictcareers #gatewayschools #gatewaytoindustry #trainingqId #celebratetraining #ictgisp | This Gateway to Industry Schools program is proudly supported by the Queensland Government.