Required Electives by Emma

Required Electives by Emma - June 2018 Scholarship Essay

When I was in eighth grade, I took a class called technology education, or tech ed for short. In this course we learned about technology and how it affects the world around us every day. I fell in love with the course as we covered a multitude of topics such as design and environmental planning. But in order to properly explain why I believe this class should be required, let's take it back to my very first day.

The first day of eighth grade, I walked into a large classroom full of machines, computers, and various projects. I was fascinated by everything around me, from the wood shop to the posters on the wall. The only thing that threw me off on that first day of school, was that I was the only girl in the class. I waited and waited but no girls showed up. This didn't scare me, as I was used to being around boys, but it definitely shocked me that no other girl wanted to learn about technology.

Ever since that class, I have taken various technology based classes such as Techno in ninth grade and Technical Drawing and Design in tenth grade. This year, I chose to attend C.S. Monroe Technology Center to take a college course called Computer Integrated Engineering and Design, and I am still amazed at how many boys there are compared to girls.

I believe that Tech Ed should be a required class because it would expose girls to technology based learning, and make it more normal for girls to take more classes like that later on. Girls would therefore be more involved in technology based careers.