There's only a little bit of talking.
[Video Presentation]
This was taken a couple of weeks ago in Iqaluit, Nunavut. In the clip, you saw Inuit and northern girls who were part of the throat singing club learning coding skills they then used to capture the sounds of their throat songs in a piece of software and then recode those sounds into music they could then share with their friends, family, and so on. They were building STEM skills, applying their traditional culture, and learning about opportunities for the future in STEM fields.
Actua is a national organization with two decades of experience delivering programs that break down barriers to youth participation in STEM. Actua represents a national network of university- and college-based members who annually engage 225,000 youth, ages 6 to 26, in 500 communities across the country.
We work with corporate sector partners like GE, Suncor, GlaxoSmithKline, and Google to connect these youth with leading-edge STEM content and careers.
Within our broad national mandate, for the past 20 years we have led an initiative to ensure the equal representation of women and girls in skilled trades and STEM fields.
The evidence of the under-representation of women in skilled trades in STEM is indisputable. It is also well established that the early engagement of girls in these fields is critical. What needs more focus and attention within this broader topic—and where I will focus my comments today—is the significant and mounting under-representation of women in computer science and the absolute imperative that exists to engage girls in building competency in these fields now. I would argue this is a prerequisite to their engagement in skilled trades and STEM.
Encouraging girls in computer science is not only about making sure we have more women computer scientists. We live in a digital world where every aspect of our lives is controlled by computer science. Computers are revolutionizing every field from the construction trades to health care, environmental sustainability, politics, and art. If girls don't learn to code, which is really the language of computers, they will be left behind, period. Canada risks losing the critical perspective of women in the digital economy.
Over the past 20 years, Actua has developed successful models for the engagement of girls in STEM. We focus on building self-confidence and self-efficacy. We expose them to inspiring female role models and allow them to imagine themselves in these fields in the future.
Actua is annually engaging 100,000 girls in these experiences, which are not only fuelling the pipeline for skilled trades in STEM but also helping them to develop critical life and employability skills such as collaboration, problem solving, critical thinking, and financial and technical proficiency.
We apply our model to reach all girls with a significant focus on engaging aboriginal girls through our national aboriginal outreach program, which annually engages 30,000 aboriginal youth across Canada.
As you saw in the video, we engage with communities to make strong cultural connections that are inspiring aboriginal girls to take their place in the digital world. In October 2014 Actua and Google launched a three-year project called Codemakers to transform how youth engage with computer science.
In the early phase of establishing a national strategy, we've confirmed three big challenges. The first is an almost complete lack of formal computer science content in Canadian schools. The second is the ongoing myth among parents and teachers that because youth are such great consumers of technology, that translates into their understanding how that technology works. The third is a lack of awareness about why these fields are so important beyond just making sure we have enough computer scientists in the future. And as I have said, this is particularly critical for girls.
Actua's new partnership with Google is contributing to a national strategy to address these challenges. We're infusing our national girls program and our national aboriginal outreach program with experiences that transform the way they view computer science. We start by situating how computer science impacts their lives. We work with the girls to build technology skills so they can then apply them and design and build their own technology. We'll also address the critical topics of online safety, digital citizenship, and cyberbullying, but in a different, more empowering way.
Instead of telling the girls how to behave online, we're actually going to show them the computer science behind these messages. As we do this direct work with girls, we're also developing tools and resources to train their influencers—specifically parents, teachers, and community leaders. Through 20 years of experience and research, we know that these are the people with the most significant ongoing influence on whether girls study and stay in STEM fields. This is particularly critical for the skilled trades.
I also want to underscore the importance of the partnership with Google, not only because they're one of the largest and most ubiquitous technology companies in the world, but because this is an excellent example of the kind of multisectoral approach to create real systemic change in this area. The success of Actua's model, beyond the amazing experiences that we're providing to girls, is leveraged greatly by drawing on partnerships with universities and colleges, with governments, and with industry.
I love that video clip you saw at the beginning, because it reinforces all of the messages I'm speaking about today. Given the right exposure, girls will come to understand the importance of computer science in ways they otherwise would not have considered. Given positive role models, they'll start to see themselves in these fields in the future, and given the support, they will build essential skills in these areas and share what they have learned with their families.
Based on our experience working with hundreds of thousands of girls across the country and the new initiative that we're taking on within computer science, I have three recommendations for you to consider.
First, we need to recognize and promote the fact that computer science and digital skills are a kind of basic literacy. They are prerequisites to the successful engagement of girls in skilled trades and in STEM. They're also essential for the future economic resilience and independence of girls far beyond just computer science fields.
Second, Canada has to be prepared to make a huge leap here. We need big, bold goals, so I encourage you to provide financial support for evidence-based, multisectoral models that can be scaled up significantly, and to put girls in the driver's seat of developing content that will inspire them to become the innovators and technology producers of tomorrow.
Third, the influencers need to be equipped. Invest in programs and content that support teachers, parents, and other influencers to ensure that their daughters become the leaders of tomorrow's digital economy.
Thank you very much.