- Early and sustainable encouraging of scientific and technical talent and skills Agueda Gras-Velazquez 16 and 17 June 2011 Digital Assembly 2011

- Europe’s role for innovation in global scenario driven by IT. Context: –Europe faces a widening ICT skills gap particularly in female population –e-Skills have become a key component of practitioner skill requirement for new job 90% of jobs will require basic ICT skills  i.e. digital literacy 20% of employees expected to have advanced ICT skills IT will generate 5.8 million new jobs in the next 4 years 2 Economic crisis e-skills more valuable powerful engine for jobs creation

- Europe’s role for innovation in global scenario driven by IT. Objectives: –Europe as amplifier of value in the global chain & focus on value creation through innovation –Europe as ‘go-to destination’ for e talent and high value innovation –Recruiting more females to help closing the skills gap Obstacles: –Lack of appropriate skills in Europe –Representation of women in ICT-related jobs relatively low –Few girls currently entering the technology sector 3 Need to address the gender gap in ICT-related job to contibute to decrease the e-skills gap in Europe

- Gender divide in ICT studies and careers 4 “ Women are significantly under- represented across the board in ICT – from education and training programmes right through to high level careers in the sector, whether in academia or industry”* * Jan Figel’, European Commissioner for Education, Training, Culture and Youth ** Viviane Reding, former European Commissioner for Information Society and Media “In short, Europe needs more "cyberellas" – women equipped with the e-Skills needed for the future. These skills are key to ensuring Europe retains a major role in the ICT sector of tomorrow. To tap this vast pool of talent, special attention must be paid to raising the participation of women in this field.”**

- Priorities and impacts (1) Gender neutral STEM education in schools Informal teacher training opportunities on gender- neutral STEM approaches Increased number of girls entering STEM studies at tertiary level Increased number of women entering STEM careers 5 Scaling up after school activities (robotics) via STEM clubs – for more gender neutral and creative manner Pilot network of schools to test gender neutral STEM methodologies in schools Addressing the lack of gender neutrality of careers advice in schools with training for career advisors Improved teaching methods and approaches for gender neutral STEM education Pan EU Network of schools, teachers and careers advisors active on gender neutral STEM

- Priorities and impacts (2) Permanent platform on girls & STEM education as part of existing STEM European initiatives Increased motivation of female students for STEM subjects Parents and teachers age group attitude and perception of technology improved 6 Policies to address parents and teachers age group stereotyped thinking of technology and the sector Enhancing evaluation & benchmarking of current STEM girls outreach programmes Deploying wider across Europe innovative effective approaches from MoEs, associations, federations and industry Improved STEM literacy among all girls Increased number of girls entering STEM studies at tertiary level Increased number of girls taking part in STEM outreach actions Improved STEM outreach for girls on basis of evaluation and benchmarking

- Permanent platform on girls & STEM education Establishment of permanent platform on girls and STEM education as part of existing STEM initiatives in Europe, including EU level coordination and national partners in at least 20 countries 7