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It has become a familiar sight; new initiatives with a promise of getting more girls into science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), initiatives that involve inspiring female role models, hands-on activities and encouraging messages that science is for them. The intention is genuine, and significant effort underlies the programming, but the question is: Are we addressing the right problem? In this blog post we reflect on how one Irish science educational outreach initiative, , has used an alternative approach to widen participation in science.

The challenge of structural barriers and deficit framing

When we design programmes specifically to change girls’ relationship with STEM, we inadvertently imply that girls themselves are the issue, suggesting that there is a gap in girls’ confidence or aspiration that needs to be addressed before they can fully participate in STEM. Yet the barriers young women face are often systematic or structural, such as lack of access and outright exclusion, not personal deficit. In , for example, all-girls’ secondary schools often lack the same STEM subjects and resources available in all-boys’ or mixed schools. The problem is structural, and as such requires structural responses.

‘The barriers young women face are often systematic or structural, such as lack of access and outright exclusion, not personal deficit.’

Focusing primarily on gender can sometimes obscure the other factors that shape who feels welcome or who participates, such as socioeconomic background, ethnicity, geographic location or disability, . A girl from a well-resourced urban school and a girl from an isolated rural community are not navigating the same barriers, and treating them as a single audience can blur important differences. Girls-only STEM programmes may well have their place in to participation including: reducing exposure to stereotypes, increasing the sense of belonging and science identity, and providing a supportive environment to build confidence. However, if they are not specifically targeted at girls who face the greatest access barriers, they risk reaching only those who are already well positioned to participate.

This binary framing , whose experiences are rarely considered in STEM initiatives. It also sidelines boys from groups with limited STEM access, from including migrant or Traveller communities, low-income households or geographically isolated areas (Kaufman & Keane, 2026). The mixed-gender design in Cell Explorers is therefore intentional. If we want inequitable STEM environments to change, all young people need to be part of the process.

Cell Explorers as an equity-oriented alternative

Instead of targeting girls exclusively, Cell Explorers was designed to to science to everyone. This was a deliberate decision recognising that unequal access is a key factor in participation, not necessarily a gap in interest or willingness. Drawing on social constructivism, humanistic education, and frameworks, Cell Explorers provides opportunities for children aged 11–13, a period before science self-concept, self-efficacy and career aspirations begin to narrow. The programme content of hands-on exploration of the concept of DNA, cells and living things, lets children engage meaningfully with authentic science. The aim is to create a sense of belonging and agency for young people, not to lead them to a predetermined outcome.

A key element of the programme’s design is the role of scientist facilitators, trained to act as social role models and challenge stereotypes to make science feel open to all. The presence of women scientists as facilitators in itself sends the message that women can also become scientists. A crucial turning point in Cell Explorers’ evolution has been to formalise partnership with youth work organisations. Their community-based expertise has fundamentally changed how we think about young people’s agency and how we train our facilitators. Cell Explorers aims to foster curiosity and choice, and support young people to develop their own relationship with science. We do not need everyone to choose a STEM career, but we do need citizens with a positive disposition towards science and the capacity for critical thinking about science in everyday life.

Cell Explorers has chosen to meet young people where they are, in their community. Through this approach we have learned that what is needed is a call to move from deficit framing towards equity-oriented engagement, considering young people’s access, belonging and sense of agency, rather than focusing purely on participation numbers. This requires moving beyond outreach to changes across education systems, institutions and STEM workplaces, asking not only who participates but also how is participation shaped? This requires us to ask: Are we solving the right problem?

Figure 1: Draw a scientist: Responses made by girl participants on their feedback forms following a Cell Explorers session

References

Kaufman, K., & Keane, E. (2025). (Un)Confidently aspiring: The perspectives of children from diverse social class, migrant and ethnic minoritised backgrounds about their future careers. Irish Educational Studies, 44(4), 601–621.