“There are very few women in STEM in a classroom, even if you do a degree in computer engineering, where most women tend to go because it is taken as a more comfortable field – over mechanical or electrical. They say, ‘You know you are a girl, it’s better if you do computer…What are you going to do? Go into factories?’ And even within that stream, there is a ratio of probably 12 to 15 girls in a batch of 75. The rest of them are guys.”
On National Science Day, it’s worth pondering over these words by Lastika, who is currently pursuing their Masters in the field of STEM, a common abbreviation used to refer to the cumulative field of science, technology, engineering and mathematics. STEM continues to be an inaccessible space for marginalised genders as it has been dominated mainly by cis-men.
Many schools are known to reinforce gender norms by giving a lot of importance to subjects like home science for girls and science for boys. This stereotyping continues into higher education and job opportunities in the field of STEM for marginalised genders. Moreover, STEM research barely takes gender non-conforming individuals into account, thereby invalidating their contribution.
What Is The Current Situation In The STEM Field?
In a recent announcement, Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said that the number of women graduating in STEM fields has increased by 53,338 in the last three years, from 10,02,707 in 2017-18 to 10,56,095 in 2019-20.
The All India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE) report stated a decrease in the number of men enrolled in STEM courses from 12,48,062 in 2017-18 to 11,88,900 in 2019-20. The Print also reported that Pradhan referred to World Bank Data that said India has a 43% graduation rate for women in STEM. This included an exceptionally high rate of enrollment in the field of medicine.
So, while these numbers show a quantitative growth for cis-women in the field of STEM, classrooms can still feel deeply alienating for women.
The Print suggests that the rise of online educational institutes like Coursera and UpGrad has been an essential factor behind the growing representation rate for cis-women, yet the job market may not show a similar upward graph.
The data collected by Jhatkaa.org also points toward gross negligence in higher educational institutes when it comes to the representation of students in the Internal Complaints Committee. Out of the 21 colleges surveyed, which included IITs or institutions, seven had no student representatives.
The data also points to how these colleges barely make any effort to educate or sensitise students about gender. This then has a negative impact on how marginalised gender groups feel on campus.
Moreover, studies so far have only taken into account cis-women while there is no data about gender non-conforming or non-binary people within the field.
A trans woman, Anasuith, told Firstpost that she has to take the stairs to her lab on the eighth floor every day as she does not feel comfortable using the elevator that is demarcated for “ladies” and “gents”. She says, “I am not always in the best of my health to do that every day.”
Is The Job Market In STEM Hostile for Women And Underrepresented Gender Identities?
While the statistics for graduation are at an all-time high, according to data collated by Swedish Science Counsellor Fanny von Helan, only 14% of women make up the job market within STEM in India.
A science communicator, Nandita Jayaraj, says, “In Indian STEM, the primary concern has never been with the number of women graduates, but with the proportion of those who ultimately land STEM jobs. While it’s always nice to have more young women studying STEM, these enlarged numbers should not be looked at as a victory; on the contrary, it should be an alarm bell for us. How many of these women will get STEM jobs? A very, very tiny fraction.”
Several reasons exist for the same.
A NITI Aayog report stated that women in science have specific demands like the relaxation of age criteria or more infrastructure to support them. Moreover, women also face the burden of ‘dual role’ syndrome, where recruiters are hyper-focused on the domestic responsibilities that women are stereotypically assigned to, as this ORF report also suggests.
They think that women will not be able to contribute to the job as much as men in the same field. Recruiters may also feel that the presence of maternity leaves or period leaves may negatively impact women’s contribution to the workplace.
Smitin, a queer individual, says, “I had to go back into the closet when I started my job as I was afraid of my employers treating me differently.”
The fear and apprehension that marginalized gender and sexuality groups face are because they lack support from their community within the workplace and educational institutions. Affirmative actions like reservations for marginalised groups create a space for them that our internalised prejudices keep them excluded from, also providing confidence and solidarity.
The insistence on so-called merit creates a further disparity in the education or the job field. Merit does not exist in a vacuum but is wholly dependent on resources as well as the environment that one has access to. Those coming from marginalised class and caste locations are often sidelined and not given the opportunity to tap into their merit.
General perception also assumes that cis-men are the harbinger of the objectivity of science. They are put on a pedestal when it comes to taking forward scientific progressions while rarely attributing contributions to the field to marginalised gender groups. How many times have we seen cis men being called geniuses, and how many times have we seen other gender identities get the same kind of respect and recognition?
In the Firstpost article, queer students have said that many people focus too much on the “objectivity” of science. The field of science is used as a tool to reinforce harmful and ancient thought processes which according to some are proven by science.
However, with an ever-changing viewpoint, many are now questioning the stronghold that people proclaim science to have. Proponents like Bill Nye and ASAP Science have also used science to speak about the spectrum of gender.
Affirmative actions include policies to provide equitable access to marginalised genders. Suppose more companies start creating mandates to have a certain percentage of employees categorically dedicated to marginalised gender groups. In that case, the percentage mismatch may become less conspicuous to a certain extent.
How Can The Field Of STEM Be Oppressive in Education?
Microaggressions within the job field
Microaggressions are subtle ways in which certain social groups are targeted via rude behaviours or comments that are difficult to discern as outright discrimination. They usually arise from stereotypes and lead to prejudicial attitudes that harm marginalised gender groups. For example, a non-binary student talks about how their mentor used to make fun of their haircut and compare them to a boy. They say, “Every single time I had a haircut, one of the staff members insisted on making it a huge deal and commenting on how I looked identical to a male batchmate.”
Insistence on textbook definition of science
Biological science has been used to subjugate gender identities. Many psychologists like Jordan Peterson have used biology to propagate archaic ideologies like invalidating the presence of more than two genders.
Textbooks often do not include genders beyond the binary, making gender non-conforming individuals feel invalidated.
Schools often impose a rigid and unidimensional approach to science. At the same time, the arts or humanities field provides a relatively more lenient approach to have more open conversations about queerness, gender and sexuality.
Focus on the gender binary
There also exists a generalisation wherein educators, mentors, and guides segregate students into two binaries of gender. This generalisation starts early on, where schools also actively invest energy into compartmentalising subjects based on the gender binary. This is more glaring in the field of STEM.
Prejudice towards marginalised gender and sexual identities
It is also crucial to note that educators are often blatantly discriminatory towards marginalised gender and sexualities. Smitin, a queer individual, currently working with an educational technology company, spoke to us about how their professor treated them with glaring prejudice. They say, “This professor was otherwise sweet and accommodative to students but was especially disrespectful to me.”
Individuals from the queer community also face harassment and bullying if they choose to enter the field due to regressive thoughts stemming from a primitive understanding of scientific knowledge.
Anasuith tells Firstpost, “LGBTQIA+ subjects feature in our discussions only for the purpose of mockery. This, in a way, feels like indirect bullying/aggression and might also be the reason why no one comes out as queer at my university. This has also negatively affected my mental health, leading to inconsistent work.”
Conclusion
While the data given by the Education Minister can be celebrated as progressive for cis-women, the reality on the ground is vastly different. Hearing the demands from marginalised gender groups to make the job field more accessible needs to be paid more heed for practical translations. Invalidating contributions from certain groups of people solely based on their identity alienates progressions that are capable of bringing about dynamic change.
This is the second article in the user series by Jhatkaa on YKA called ‘Over Due Process’, where we aim to dissect the importance of the Internal Complaints Committee in colleges. You can read the rest of the articles here.