Girls in STEM

Building confidence, self-esteem and resilience to reduce barriers to science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) for girls

Ethiopia (Wolaita Zone), 2023-2024

This project increases skills in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) for adolescent learners, especially girls, in rural Ethiopian schools. Delivered by secondary school science teachers trained by Link, the activities have been developed to be fun, relevant, to build social emotional skills, and encourage transition to the next grade.

Key facts

130
science teachers trained
7,044
girls and boys reached
$150,000
invested over three years
8
innovations created such as a light bulb using local materials, a ventilator, and a juice machine

Key activities

  • Development of a creative and relevant curriculum that shows learners how STEM skills and knowledge can help solve current problems faced by the communities they live in
  • Activities embed Social Emotional Learning (SEL) skills,  using STEM concepts to intentionally build confidence
  • Female Ethiopian STEM role models are used as examples throughout the course so girls can see themselves reflected in the STEM world

In this school, female students are now more likely than male students to receive an excellent grade in maths

School Director