Using Notable Women in Environmental Engineering To Dispel Misperceptions of Engineers

This paper describes an activity the author has carried out with 72 high school science
teachers to enable them to overcome their stereotypical perceptions of engineers. The
activity introduced them to notable women in environmental engineering, and raised their
awareness of these female engineers’ contributions to engineering and society. The results
revealed that the activity was effective in countering high school teachers’ misconceptions
of engineers. By providing detailed information about the personal lives and work
experiences of the female engineers, the biographies might be useful in countering existing
cultural stereotypes of female engineers and initiating changes in perceptions needed
to narrow the gender gap in engineering. Teachers and professors can use the examples of
these notable female engineers as role models to inspire their female students to become
engineers.