SESTEM: Supporting Equality in Science Technology and Mathematics related Choices of Careers

This project has been funded with support from the European Commission. This publication reflects the views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein. SUMMARY The SESTEM Analytical Framework is a research protocol (guide) that will be utilized during the project runtime by the SESTEM project consortium. It is a methodological tool which results from the partners's discussion on methodological issues and defines methods, tasks, purposes and expected outcomes for addressing the analytical and empirical research tasks. The scope of the work – i.e. the current situation of the low uptake of Science, Technology, and Mathematics (STEM) by girls in Europe – is described first. Afterwards, a rationalization of the methodological approach is provided, focusing on the projects' central objectives and research questions with regard to the qualitive and quantiative study as methods triangualtion. The central part of this report is the development and specification of the SESTEM research activites in terms of its scope, target groups (pupils, teachers, parents, and female students in STEM), research approach and partners' responsibilities. A timeframe for the conduction of these is developed and collected by SESTEM project consortium. The low uptake of Science, Technology and Mathematics (STEM) constitutes a research and policy concern worldwide for some time now. In the EC, while the related benchmark appears to have been achieved, there is evidence to suggest that the problem on access and retention of females in STEM remains an unresolved issue. Likewise we lack tools so as to allow reflecting on good practices in supporting choices making for careers in STEM by girls. SESTEM is built on the premise that the study of the uptake of STEM studies by girls and their retention in the field can benefit from investigation into the triangulation of family-individual and school (secondary and tertiary) factors. Under this scope SESTEM aims to conduct four interrelated comparative studies engaging female students, pupils, parents, and teachers (both secondary and tertiary levels). Both qualitative (in depth interviews, concept mapping, tandem based dialoguing and review into existing literature) and quantitative (collection and analyses of data from across the member states using on-line survey methods, and meta-analyses of existing statistical data) methods will be applied. SESTEM, through its studies aims to deepen understanding into the process of decision making in career choices, the process of enhancing school-family collaboration in …