The report shows that girls and women involved with making, designing and creating things with electronic tools, may build stronger interest and skills in computer science and engineering which could potentially reduce the growing gender gap in these fields.

Intel’s report, 'MakeHers: Engaging Girls and Women in Technology through Making, Creating and Inventing', explores how maker activities can serve as a gateway to computer science and engineering for girls and women, and it identifies ways to better engage girls and women in making in order to increase female representation in these fields.

“With its groundbreaking new report, Intel is demonstrating how the maker movement has helped turn a generation of tech-savvy girls nearly all of whom grew up in the digital age into the leaders and entrepreneurs of the economy of tomorrow,” said Anna Maria Chavez, CEO of the Girl Scouts of the USA.

Female and male makers face similar challenges to making, such as lack of money, information and access to tools and materials. However, female makers experience additional challenges: one-in-three female makers say lack of mentorship is a challenge, one-in-six have been excluded from making because of their gender, one-in-six face cultural biases about the appropriateness of women in making and one-in-14 don’t feel safe going to the places where maker activities are held.

This article was first published here ...

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