Abstract:

This work presents one line of action within WiSTEM2D (Women in Science, Technology, Engineering, Math, Manufacturing and Design) Project of Aeronautics Institute of Technology (ITA) for 2021, the Python Course for Game Development. WiSTEM2D Project is a Johnson&Johnson (JnJ) initiative together with several other partnerships around the world with leading academic centers, which is designed to stimulate STEM education and to foster female interests at an early age and stimulate them to continue to grow in these areas. The Python Course for Game Development is related to the programming courses area of the mentioned Project. The course was fully applied, and the content was presented through game production with students. The general objective of the course is to encourage girls to get in touch with the universe of computer programming, arousing curiosity in this sector, showing the reach of this type of knowledge by allowing them to understand its use in applications that are in their daily lives, like computer games. In addition, it was possible to develop an entire motivational work with the students, encouraging them to increase their confidence in themselves and in the skills, they can acquire with dedication and commitment, and thus strengthen them so that they stay in this area, which is not yet a predominantly female environment. The structure and development of the course began in March 2021, with classes occurring between August 2021 and October 2021. Course statistics and students’ feedback will be presented to measure and analyze the impact achieved.

Keywords:

Women in STEM, women in technology, computer programming, hands-on projects, STEM education.