Empowering women in STEM through art thinking
Project
Despite great efforts by policies and projects at the European, national and local levels, it is estimated that the participation rate of women in ICT (Information and Communication Technologies) is much lower than that of men. With the underrepresentation of women in STEM we’re lacking an extensive pool of talent, and the variety of concepts and ideas that can lead to innovation. The project WeSTEAM injects STEAM approaches (Science – Technology – Engineering – Arts – Mathematics) to increase women’s attention and curiosity to STEM by investing in their education process through art thinking development.
WeSTEAM aims at developing, testing and disseminating a methodology based on the STEAM approach to enhance the Art Thinking skills of female students engaged in STEM careers. The final goal is to empower female STEM students for increasing their chances of employment in ICT high-level positions once they graduate and increase the attractiveness of STEM courses for women.
Outcomes
The project’s outcomes are a set of practical tools. It comprises a skills-framework, a training methodology, a VR-based educational game and a skills certification system:
- The WeSTEAM Skills Framework is a reference for strengthening and assessing woman STEM students’ Art Thinking capacity. It describes phases, actions and skills that characterize a STEAM creative process. The framework also includes the explanation of the method with which it was created, a collection of best practices and the comparison of the creative process as seen by artists and scientists. It is aimed at educational organizations as well as female students.
- The WeSTEAM Methodology Handbook is designed to be used by STEM higher education teachers in their teaching activities, or by female students themselves, to enhance, through a set of training tools, artistic thinking skills. It contains 12 activities around the 4 phases of the creative process: incubation, imagination, creation and evolution. They aim to develop skills such as analytical thinking, curiosity, open-mindedness, goal-oriented thinking, awareness, teamwork, observation and more.
- The VR-based educational game aims for enhancing art thinking capacity in women STEM students in an interactive and attractive way.
- The creation of the WeSTEAM certification system, in line with national and EU qualification frameworks, for recognition and certification of Art Thinking skills allows women STEM students to prove their skills and communicate them when applying for further learning or jobs across Europe.
How to use the game:
Prerequisites
- Unity Version 2021.3.21f
- Unity XR Interaction and VR Packages (how to install)
- Oculus Desktop App
Installing
- The project can be accessed by simply cloning the repository and opening it using unity editor.
Executing program
- Connect Oculus Headset to your PC, via AirLink or Cable
- Enable and Launch Quest Link.
- Make sure you are in the starting scene(SpaceShip) in the unity editor.
- Click Play on unity editor
- You should be able to play using the VR headset.
Help
This project uses unity events heavily. If at some point you struggle to follow the code, try to navigate your way in the unity editor hierarchy to the object that might be using that code. Unity Event invocations are typically not counted by IDEs.
Partners
Since 1979, Ars Electronica has sought out interlinkages and congruities, causes and effects on the nexus of art, technology, society. The Festival as proving ground, the Prix as competition honoring excellence, the Center as a year-‘round setting for presentation & interaction, and the Futurelab and Ars Electronica Solutions as as in-house R&D facility extend their feelers throughout the realms of science and research, art and technology. Ars Electronica’s divisions inspire one another and put futuristic visions to the test in a unique, creative feedback loop.
Changemaker Educations was funded more than 20 years ago. It provides training in higher education, adult education, education for companies and it is involved in some European projects. It bases its activities on the pedagogical models and attitude of the „Kaospilotes“.
More than 2000 graduates are currently working in game development, e-commerce, communication, data/IT, UX, VR/AR/XR, web and organisation/leadership in Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Germany, Poland, UK, France, Australia and Malaysia, among others.
ESPRONCEDA – Institute of Art & Culture, powered by Lemongrass Communications S.L., was founded in 2013 to create an innovative platform for artistic and cultural research that could bring innovative change in society.
Its mission is to provide a multidisciplinary environment to promote international dialogue between artists, curators, critics, gallerists, collectors, cultural managers, scientists, diplomats and academics from across Europe and the world, enabling them to collaborate to achieve the best cultural and social solutions.
Luleå University of Technology (LTU) contributes to the development of an attractive, sustainable society by providing first-class research and education. Through our research and education, which is characterised by creativity, new thinking, initiative and responsibility, we are involved in shaping the future. In an increasingly globalised world, a prominent university must be able to prepare undergraduates and doctoral students for a career in the international arena. LTU educates and examines undergraduates and doctoral students to become attractive and well-prepared for an international career.
Sineglossa is a cultural organization that realizes sustainable development models by applying the processes of contemporary art in response to global challenges. To generate innovation, we create complex ecosystems involving artists, universities, public administrations and businesses. Through the convergence of humanities and scientific disciplines, we design beautiful, sustainable and inclusive solutions.
We name our approach „New Renaissance“: artists, scientists, entrepreneurs and humanists gathered at the same court to jointly devise solutions that benefit the entire community.