Let her Dream!

My sister is a high school teacher and the experiences she shares often are big eye openers about the issues the current teenagers face. There are several situations where the teachers and parents felt helpless and there are several more situations where those kids amazed everyone with their determination and perseverance. I am always very proud of her role and her ability to make a real difference in the next generations as a teacher, guide and mentor.

Today, 11th of February is celebrated as the “International day of women and girls in science”. ?I wanted to introspect this heartwarming experience shared by my sister to highlight the need for changes in how we look at STEM education for girls.

Students are required to select their stream of studies; science, humanities or commerce when they enter into the 9th standard. This was the time, one of the brightest girls in the class, whose ambition was to become a doctor reached out to my sister and informed that she would take a non-science stream. She was surprised to see this request and asked for the reason. The girl belonged to a business family and her father did not expect her to do any jobs other than helping in keeping the household business accounting. Hence, taking a science stream was waste of money and time where she could have used them to learn household work that would prepare her for her future life as a homemaker.

My sister, her teacher asked about her ambitions to become the doctor and she seemed so helpless. That was the time when my sister had taken the decision to speak to her parents about her ambitions and not to let their reservations come in her favorite student’s way. The conversation went at length and they were still living in the 100 years back mindset of not allowing girls to study and work the way they wanted. They had even the belief that as a girl she would not be able to keep up with the pressures of a course that needs intellect and a job that needs constant vigil and attention. After such a long conversation where my sister managed to explain why their daughter should be taking up a subject that she loves, and how girls/women are equally capable to make a mark in their chosen fields with several examples, her parents finally agreed to let her study science.

This student met her teacher after this incident and her joy and gratitude towards my sister was boundless. Well, the post is not about “Teachers day”. Still, I can’t resist asking “Isn’t the beauty and uniqueness of teaching profession?”

For those who think this will be the happy ending, wait a minute. There are several phases that this girl will go through before she can finally realize her dream.

• Taking up coaching for medical entrance examinations during her senior secondary. Will she be allowed to do so? We as a society does not have an answer.
• After she gets her entrance rank, will she be allowed to join the college of her choice? There could be factors like location of the college, expenses and many more.
• Will she be able to pursue her dreams to pick up specialization without pressure of societal norms of marriage and having kids? There are several dependencies and several other decision makers than just herself.

Summing all this up, on this “International day of women and girls in science”, we need to fast forward the following aspects to really pave a way to women and girls to the wonders of science.

• We need to shed the inhibitions about girls not suitable for high pressure and intellectual streams and careers.
• We need everyone NOT just men to learn that allyship and support are a collective responsibility. They are NOT just about women supporting women and running women in technology initiatives. We need more teachers, guides and mentors who enable their students to dream big.
• We need women to STOP comparing their traversed path with that of other girls/women and expect them to follow the same path as yours. Every path is different as the destinations are different for every individual.
• We need every one to dream and let everyone around us to dream as well; about their future; every girl, every woman, every father and every partner. Afterall, dream is not what you see in sleep, dream is something which doesn’t let you sleep (Dr. Abdul Kalam).

Let us dream of a day when every girl and women can choose their on education and career. This day should be a curtain raise for our 2023 International Women’s day ; DigitALL: Innovation and technology for gender equality. Let her dream...