A series of virtual events has successfully taken place to encourage more girls in Singapore to take an interest in science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM), as well as basic computer programming and coding.
The 'She Solves' engineering challenge was launched in Singapore in 2019 by Girl Guides Singapore and was developed by a team of female engineers from BAE Systems in the UK. The challenge involves completing a number of STEM activities in order to earn the 'She Solves' badge and was intended as an initiative to help girls gain a better understanding of engineering subjects and important contributions made to society by inspiring engineers.
Following the successful launch in 2019, Girl Guides Singapore and BAE Systems hosted two large virtual events at the end of 2020 to help make the badge accessible to as many girls in Singapore as possible and inspire them to learn more about engineering.
To date, nearly 800 girls in Singapore have completed the engineering challenges to earn their badge, with more than 220 doing so during the recent virtual events. The participants were also set a challenge to get creative and produce a poster showing how much they had learnt from their engineering activities. With some incredibly creative and insightful entries covering everything from how cyber security impacts daily life in Singapore, to the important work of engineers throughout history, three competition winners were selected and invited to attend afternoon Tea with British High Commissioner to Singapore, Her Excellency Kara Owen and Dr Cindy Goh, Director of University Glasgow Singapore on the 28th January.
On hosting the Girl Guides and the initiative generally, British High Commissioner to Singapore, Her Excellency Kara Owen, commented:
'As a mother of girls I've loved hearing the Girl Guides talk about the contributions of women in engineering, and how the 'She Solves' challenge has sparked off their interests and ambitions in the STEM field. These girls will be tomorrow's researchers, scientists, mathematicians and engineers. There's every chance they can change our world.
'Researchers and scientists from the UK and Singapore collaborate closely across many fields, tackling some of the world's most pressing problems such as climate change, and initiatives like 'She Solves' help to inspire our countries' next generations of women STEM specialists and leaders'.
BAE Systems launched a similar engineering challenge badge with Girl Guides Malaysia in 2020 following the success of the Singapore initiative and plans to continue working closely with the Girl Guides organisation to encourage more young girls to complete the engineering challenge badge and take an interest in STEM subjects.
BAE Systems Managing Director Asia, Natasha Pheiffer said:
'It is great to see more and more girls completing the challenge in Singapore. Through our long standing partnership with Singapore, including our cyber business based there, we hope to continue to encourage Singapore's future pipeline of talent to take an interest in engineering.'
On the success of the 'She Solves' badge in Singapore, Mrs Koh-Teh Yi Wen, Chief Commissioner of Girl Guides Singapore, commented:
'The 'She Solves' badge reinforces Girl Guides Singapore's mission to engage girls through fun and enriching learning programmes that empower them to reach their fullest potential. Hands-on experimentation or 'learning by doing' is extremely effective for girls to experience firsthand how interesting and exciting STEM concepts are. Not only do they enjoy coming up with solutions to solve real-world problems, it is also exciting to consider how STEM can be used to help people lead better lives. Furthermore, the opportunity to learn directly from female engineers and see their achievements has inspired many more girls to consider pursuing a career in engineering - a traditionally male-dominated profession.'
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