School children are being convinced that Engineers don’t have dirty hands

Nearly two thirds are now more likely to pursue science and engineering subjects at school as a result of their project experiences and all of them have had their perceptions of engineers and scientists seriously challenged.

The students are taking part in a UK-wide programme called Go4SET which is growing fast across the country, engaging hundreds of schools and businesses and having 66 lively awards events across the country to celebrate the students’ achievements. In Go4SET the students work in teams of six on fun and challenging, ten week long, science and engineering related projects on environmental themes. They are mentored by managers from local businesses and supported by their teachers to ensure the project fits well with their curriculum learning.

Go4SET has grown by a third in just the last year with 380 teams from 285 schools taking part and support being drawn from 140 science and engineering companies. The programme aims to give students a perspective on careers in science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) by giving them an insight into the practical use of the subject in substantial ten week projects and giving them role models in the form of their company mentors and further insights through company visits.

Mark Williams, Education Director from the education charity EDT which runs the Go4SET programme says:
“There is every indication that the Go4SET scheme will be as successful as in previous years with two thirds of pupils saying they are more likely to pursue STEM subjects for continuing study at school as a result of the experience. The UK economy has a massive future need for talented scientists and engineers and we need to continue to expand the Go4SET experience to inform about these career options.”

Go4SET is also excellent at challenging perceptions and addressing misleading stereotypes. Typically before the project a high proportion of pupils have perceptions of engineers and scientists which are inaccurate e.g. engineers have “dirty hands” and “repair cars” and “always wear overalls”. By the end of the course the numbers of students with these perceptions have been significantly reduced. This is accompanied by an equivalent increase in the perception of engineers as “logical”, “clever”, “well paid” and “professional”. Similarly attitude shifts about scientists are evident.