Title:  Understanding STEM E-mentoring for Girls in a Saudi Context 

Speaker: Ms. Aseel Alhadlaq

Abstract:.

The under-representation of women in the STEM workforce is a global issue. Although women and girls in Saudi pursue STEM studies, their participation in STEM careers remains very low. We explored e-mentoring as a process to raise awareness about professional Saudi females and their careers in STEM, by linking them with schoolgirls (age 14-18).  We conducted an 8-week e-mentoring program in Saudi Arabia during which 8 female STEM professionals mentored 22 schoolgirls using an asynchronous communication platform. A mixed methods approach was used to evaluate interaction and impact. Our findings show that participants faced significant challenges in initiating and sustaining relationships, despite a number of positive impacts. Based on our analysis of the findings we identify a number of context-sensitive recommendations for designing e-mentoring programs for teenage girls including scaffolding communication strategies and media usage.

Speaker's Bio: Aseel is a PhD student at Newcastle University under the External Joint Supervision Program. Her research in HCI aims to design an online platform to introduce female Saudi role models to young Saudi school girls to inspire and encourage them into STEM fields in Saudi Arabia. The aim of her study is to create interaction space that facilitates collaboration and communication in online mentoring relationship. 

Date/Time: Tuesday, Jan 24, 2017 at 12-1pm

Location: Khadija Auditorium, 6G41/6F49 in Building 6 (Broadcast to Room 2084 in CCIS male side)

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