In high school, I attended an all-girl’s school. I decided to go there because standardized education wasn’t working out for me at all, and I needed a change. Although I went to the school for mainly academic reasons, the social setting ended up impacting me much more than the classes ever did.
Going in, people would say things like “I bet there’s gonna be a lot of drama” or how all the girls would probably be boy crazy. Despite their warnings, I found that all girls’ education was nearly the opposite of everyone’s expectations. The girls (at least in my grade) were pretty drama adverse. There was some drama because we were teenagers, but as a whole, I found that my classmates and I were more interested in getting through the day than making each other miserable. We were definitely having an easier time than my friends at co-ed schools. Overall, high school was quite a positive experience, and I think a lot of that had to do with the all-girls aspect. Studies have shown that all girls’ education leads girls to develop higher education goals and greater academic confidence. I definitely started off lacking confidence, especially in academics. Over my four years in high school, I saw a huge change in myself, and it wasn’t a coincidence. In co-ed environments, teachers are biased to give boys more attention, both positive and negative, and to call on boys more frequently, challenging them to learn more. This bias only increases in math and science classes where male students are expected to thrive. At my high school, girls were the only ones around. If we didn’t talk, it was silent. If we didn’t do something, it didn’t get done. We were forced to be more than just note takers for the first time.
I didn’t really understand how much my high school education impacted me until I got to college. I knew I wanted to be an engineer, and Stevens was the best school on my list for my goals, but I also knew that the switch from all girls to 70% male would be jarring. It’s hard to explain what being the only girl in an academic setting feels like, and it’s even harder to prepare yourself for. I know that I definitely lost a lot of the confidence that I had found just a few years ago. Especially at first, I found it impossible to get a word in during class discussions, and I always had this looming feeling something was definitely different. I’m not a psychologist, though, I’m just a girl, so I’m not here to tell you exactly what it is that I struggle with in male-dominated spaces. All I know is that I’m adapting, and I’m going to have to keep adapting for my whole engineering career. I have to remind myself to be more than just a notetaker and organizer in group projects, and I know that I should try to take classes with female professors because it always motivates me to do better. Maybe someday, that feeling will go away.
