1. Integrating the gender dimension
in STEM teaching:
a teamwork process
4th July 2019, Bilbao
Elisabet Mas de les Valls
elisabet.masdelesvalls@upc.edu
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1. Motivation – some UPC demographic statistics
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
Arch.,Urbanism&
Building
AppliedSciences
AerospaceEng.
CivilEng.
IndustrialEng.
ComputerEng.
Naval,Marine&
NauticalEng.
TelecommunicationEng.
BusinessManag.&
Organisation
Environm.,Sustainability
andNaturalResources
UPC Master Studies 2018-19
Women Men
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1. Motivation – III Gender Equality Plan at the UPC
1) Institutional leadership
2) Gender mainstreaming in decision making
and HHRR management
3) Academic careers of women at the UPC
4) Attracting women and increasing their
number in UPC courses
5) Networking and mentoring women
6) Work-life balance
7) Ensuring gender equality at the UPC
8) Gender in research
9) Communication for cultural change
10) Monitoring and measuring the impact
Strategic lines: Period: 2016-2020
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1. Motivation – GEECCO Project
To keep developing specific actions for the III GEP
To design the IV GEP
Period: 2017-2021
3 strategic lines:
1. Removing barriers to the recruitment, retention and career progression of
female researchers;
2. Addressing gender imbalances in decision making processes;
3. Strengthening the gender dimension in research programmes.
WP6: Research and Teaching
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1. Motivation – the new framework
A pioneering measure in Europe:
What: General framework for incorporating the gender perspective in
higher education teaching
Where:
To be applied in all degree programmes at Catalan universities
In assessment, monitoring, modification and accreditation
When: from the 2020-2021 academic year onwards
Catalan University
Quality Assurance
Agency
University
Faculty /
School /
Department
Teaching
staff
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1. Motivation – the new framework
Catalan University
Quality Assurance
Agency
University
• Institutional
commitment
• Assessment
• Best practices
exchange
• Enhance women
visibility
• Promotion and
stabilization of
women academic
staff
• Incentives policy for
gender perspective
initiatives
Faculty / School / Dept.
• Assessment
• Special events
• Promotion of the less-
represented gender
students
• Work-life balance for
academic staff
• Curricula: competences,
learning results,
methodology, specific
subjects, ...
• Teaching assessment
Teaching staff
• Knowledge and
background to
effectively include
gender perspective in
teaching
• Specific gender
trainings
• Innovation projects
related with gender
perspective
• Development of
teaching material
with gender
perspective
Diagnostic elements:
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2. Aim of the project
To train a pioneering
group of teachers
To develop a guide of
recommendations for the
whole UPC community
To include
gender
perspective in
all UPC studies
Technical support
within the
Gender in Teaching
project, along Q2
2018-19
How:
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3. Call for participation – November 2018
Minimum 3 teams from 3 different UPC degrees (bachelor or master)
Minimum 3 subjects/team, 3 teaching staff/team, from the same degree
Team’s commitments:
To participate in the sessions
To progressively introduce the gender perspective in the teaching
Eligibility criteria:
Institutional support
Diversity in applicants’ degrees
Background on gender studies and on teaching innovation
Sex balance within the team
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3. Call for participation – Results
8 teams – 8 different UPC degrees
41 volunteer teaching staff
40% men
Teams:
Bachelor’s degree in Architecture Studies
Bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering
Bachelor’s degree in ICT Systems Engineering
Bachelor’s degree in Naval Systems and Technology Engineering
Bachelor’s degree in Aerospace Systems Engineering
Master’s degree in Applied Telecommunications and Eng. Management
Master’s degree in Industrial Engineering
Master’s degree in Environomical Pathways for Sustainable Energy Systems
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4. Methodology of the project
Online
participants’
assessment
6th February
Equality Day at UPC
Classroom management experiences
Methodology experiences
Students’ survey
18th January: Kick-off
GEECCO training
Analysis of results
UPC Guide
7th June
Analysis of results
Review of the project’s
final assessment
25th April
Analysis of results
Evaluation
Gender mainstreaming
Degree’s form
15th March
Analysis of results
Contents
Subject’s form
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5. Results – First participants assessment (1/3)
Years of experience:
Assessment based on …
The 4 pillars
Contents
Methodology
Classroom management
Evaluation
Specific objectives
Active and interdisciplinary teaching
Enhance self-efficacy
Develop student’s capacities
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5. Results – First participants assessment (2/3)
Some results:
1. Gender relevance: only 13%, no one makes it explicit
2. Non-sexist language in teaching materials: 33% don’t know
3. Conference by a referent women: 13%
4. Different classroom participation by gender: 53% yes, 60% promote
women participation
5. Different roles in teamwork: 70% yes, only 20% explicit them or promote
turnover
6. Co-evaluation: 60%
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5. Results – Students’ perception assessment (1/3)
Participation: 543 students, 23% women
Referents of the profession – male: 50% know (50% wm, 54% m)
– female: 25% know (27% wm, 23% m)
Within your UPC studies…Do you consider that you have suffered or have witnessed a
different treatment for being a boy or a girl by the teacher?
11%
30%
27%
32%
WOMEN
Always
Many times
Sometimes
Rarely
Never
1%3%
18%
26%
52%
MEN
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1% 11%
30%
25%
33%
WOMEN Always
Many times
Sometimes
Rarely
Never
Within your UPC studies…Do you consider that you have suffered or have witnessed a
different treatment for being a boy or a girl by your classmates?
2%
15%
28%
19%
36%
WOMEN Always
Many times
Sometimes
Rarely
Never
1%3%
18%
26%
52%
MEN
5. Results – Students’ perception assessment (2/3)
0%3%
14%
28%
55%
MEN
Within your UPC studies…Have you detected sexist or discriminatory language by the
teachers?
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6. Final remarks
Successful acceptance of the Project
Successful learning teamwork process
Tools for the continuum assessment of the UPC degrees
Consensus opinion of the Guide’s contents
but ….
We still need to work at Faculty/school level
T E A M
Together Everyone Achieves More
23. Thank you very much!
Amaia Lusa, Sílvia Gómez-Castan, Didac Ferrer,
Marta Peña, Noelia Olmedo
…and the 41 UPC volunteer teachers that have made it possible
This work has been carried out within the framework of the Gender Dimension in Teaching project, at UPC-BarcelonaTech,
and GEECCO project that has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation
programme under grant agreement No. 741128. The views and opinions expressed herein are those of the authors and do
not necessarily reflect the official point of view of the UPC-BarcelonaTech nor the European Commission.