STEAMPunk Girls is an educational program striving to engage young women in STEM subjects through STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics). It borrows a key philosophy from the Steampunk movement itself: the idea that the individual, rather than institutions, holds power to facilitate innovation and change.
The program begins with a two day NESA-accredited Professional Learning course in project-based learning and STEAM. During this program, teachers will develop a driving question to guide their students’ investigations. Students will then select a specific school or community-related problem and use STEAM to develop a solution. During this program, students will get to engage in the design process and take advantage of UTS resources and expertise to complete authentic projects.
Designed based upon existing research on barriers to young girls in STEM, STEAMPunk Girls aims to utilise a young woman’s innate curiosity and creativity to instil confidence in their STEM skills and innovative capacity. The teacher-led program is flexible in implementation and customizable to each individual school context.
Program Phases
STEAMPunk Girls runs in four phases: Engage, Select, Develop, and Pitch.
- Engage – Teachers will introduce the driving question in an impactful way to generate excitement and ideas around how to solve it
- Select –This is where students will select their chosen problem from the wider question to work on for the duration of the project
- Develop – Students will brainstorm and create their end products
- Pitch – Students will deliver a short “Pitch” of their solution at a showcase or presentation day event
With a strong presence in both Sydney and regional NSW, STEAMPunk Girls has a large community of practice with engaged and enthusiastic educators!
Join our program
steampunkgirls@uts.edu.au