Girls encouraged to carve out careers in computing

An annual Teesside University event which inspires girls to consider careers in computing has scooped a prestigious award at a ceremony celebrating the region’s booming IT and technology sector.

Girls and Gadgets, which is held every December at Teesside University, won the Code Breaker prize at the BT Dynamites 14 awards.

The awards, at Newcastle Civic Centre, were held on Wednesday 15 October and were attended by more than 300 business leaders.

Innovation, skills, collaboration and growth were the focus of the inaugural BT Dynamites which gave a showcase to the region’s thriving IT and technology sector.

Girls and Gadgets was held for the first time in December 2008 and attracts around 200 girls from schools across the region to the University to engage with all aspects of computer science.

The conference, organised by the School of Computing, targets school girls from year nine upwards in a bid to promote computer science as an interesting and challenging career path.

Eileen Brown, former IT Evangelist at Microsoft, Teesside University senior lecturer Gabrielle Kent, listed in the top 100 women in the games industry worldwide, and other women representatives from regional IT businesses have spoken with youngsters over the years.

In addition to speakers, the girls take part in hands-on sessions that cover areas such as animation, computer networks, programming and computer games.

Women are generally under-represented in the IT and computing sector, but research has shown that girls engage far more effectively with computing when in a single sex group.

Alison Brown, Assistant Dean in the School of Computing at Teesside University, said: 'Although teenage girls are now using computers and the internet at rates similar to their male peers, they are ten times less likely to consider a technology related career.

'We hope to change this trend and to encourage more girls to consider a computer based career, whether in networks, animation, web development, mobile phone software or games development.

'To win the award is a credit to all the hard work that has been put into this event and we are extremely proud that the success of Girls and Gadgets has been recognised.'

Charlie Hoult, Chairman of Dynamo North East which stages the awards, said that IT and Technology is a booming industry and a bright spot on the North East landscape.

This year’s Girls and Gadgets event takes place on 18 December at Teesside University. For more information, email r.jones@tees.ac.uk.

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