Girls Day 2018: Environmental Science

Girls Days are biannual programs that the Education & Public Programs team at the MIT Museum conceived of, and first produced, in 2013. Each day is focused on a particular STEM topic and has three main components based on the day’s theme: short, snappy career talks by 3-4 women in unusual careers or who had interesting paths to their current profession; 10-15 different “drop-in” hands-on activities offered by local scientists and engineers; a group activity. The student collaborators – all volunteers – were asked to produce an original activity related to their research or studies, that would not likely have already been demonstrated elsewhere. The challenge encouraged our collaborators to consider unique aspects of their work and how it could be interactively explored by non-university audiences. Presenters for the brief career talks were selected for their varied perspectives and careers: an environmental journalist, a graduate student who studies climate change through models of sea-level rise, a post-doctoral archaeologist, and a geology professor. Each was then coached by the authors to prepare a 10-minute presentation. Presenters were asked to limit use of slides but if needed, rely on pictures rather than text or graphs; describe their career paths; encourage participation from the audience; and provide words of advice to young prospective scientists. Some of the activities developed included exploring topological maps, identifying gemstones, comparing ripple patterns in ancient rocks, walking the Gulf Stream on an iGlobe, launching virtual balloons, Weather in a Tank, and a game to learn about pioneering female environmental scientists. For the Girls Day documented in this report, more than 800 visitors took part in the day’s environmental science activities, which were hosted by 70 undergraduate and graduate students from MIT, Harvard, Boston University, and Northeastern University, and ~10 year-round MIT Museum volunteers. Girls Days have proven popular with the target audience (females of age 10+ years) as well as with parents, guardians and chaperones. Attendance has grown since the program was initiated in 2013, with people traveling from the greater Boston area and beyond. Interest from students and researchers in participating has grown as well, with first-time students and researchers asking to participate in future Girls Day programs. The opportunity to share personal interest in STEM fields through creative, hands-on activities has appeal for both participants and presenters. We have varied this mode of engagement in many ways, tailoring programs to particular topics (e.g. VR/AR Day; Mathternoon; Nautical Night) with notable success