Giving girls a little bit of encouragement

Prompted in part by statistics showing how girls tend to lose interest in science and math, folks in the Treasure Coast are in the beginning stages of bringing a Sally Ride Science Camp for middle school girls into their area. It’s exciting to see so many people and organizations coming together to address a problem that could be easily ignored otherwise.

“The concept is really cool. I think it’s something that’s going to be unique to Florida,” said Kathryn Hensley, a St. Lucie County School Board member. “We know that girls sometimes need a little bit of encouragement in middle school to go into math and science.”

A study done in 2000 by the National Center for Education Statistics shows the number of girls and boys who like math and science in the fourth grade is about the same. But by eighth grade, twice as many boys as girls show an interest in these subjects.

More information on Sally Ride Science Camp.

About Brandon Haught

Communications Director for Florida Citizens for Science.
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