Fair Play: Design & Discovery

	Brenda, 12 With her Dual Alarm Clock
	Courtney, 14 Presenting the Period Panties
	Victoria, 13 Working on the model for the Easy Clean Microwave
	Casandra, 13 With her model of the Miracle Migraine Minimizer

Everyone benefits when girls and women contribute to the design of the world around us. With increased gender diversity, better solutions emerge.

Unfortunately, that is not what is happening. For many years an incredible gender gap has existed in the fields of engineering and technology. Worse, the gap continues to widen. According to the National Science Foundation, women constitute 46% of the workforce, yet only 22% of scientists and engineers. A true crisis looms – not just for companies directly involved in engineering and technology, but for our entire society. The Fair Play: Design & Discovery program aims to address this crisis through one simple premise: Experience the design process.

To learn more about the Fair Play: Design & Discovery program, download the "I Can" best practices booklet. (PDF, 2MB)

Fair Play: Design & Discovery works. Download the evaluation report for more information. (PDF, 5.5MB)

Fair Play: Design & Discovery in the news. Read the ASEE article (PDF, 338KB) and the LEADER article (PDF, 1MB).

Program Benefits

Girls have a "light bulb" experience about their ability to solve real-world problems using engineering, design and technology.

Fair Play: Design & Discovery connects the dots for girls between physics, math and technology, and paints careers in engineering and technology as important and accessible.

Fair Play: Design & Discovery councils partner with universities, local corporations and engineering societies to provide role models for girls.

Program participants consistently ask to return to the program or seek further STEM opportunities.

Fair Play: Design & Discovery provides vital education in subject areas where schools have failed girls.

Girl Inventions

What will girls think of next?
From solar powered air conditioners to an inflatable booster seat for the vertically challenged, there is no limit to the variety of inventions and solutions girls will contribute to the world. What better way to "make the world a better place" then by solving problems like clean water, energy or safety.

Brenda, 12
Problem: Brenda shared a room with her older sister who worked evenings at a restaurant. Her sister came in late and would get irritated when the alarm would sound in the early morning to wake Brenda for school. Solution: Brenda designed an alarm clock with two separate alarms with remote speakers. The speakers could be placed under the pillow or near the head of the "wakee" and could wake one person without disturbing the other. Her "Dual Alarm Clock" project received an Honorable Mention in Engineering at the NW Science Expo. Watch the video of Brenda talking about her project.

Erika, 12
Problem: A middle school student with a talent for music, she used the design process to solve a problem from her own life; holding proper hand position while playing a stand-up string bass. Her instructor would wrap rubber bands around Erika's two middle fingers and stuff balled up paper from the garbage between the other fingers in order to hold the proper position. He called it the "garbage hand." Solution: After creating a series of prototypes and testing multiple materials, Erika invented a flexible plastic hand positioning device known as Bass Space. Erika's project won first place in engineering at her local science and engineering fair. She continues to work on the commercial development of the Bass Space and hopes to patent her invention. Watch the video of Erika talking about her project.

Courtney, 14
Problem: Sometimes tampons and pads can leak and cause embarrassing spots on your pants. Solution: Courtney created "Period Panties," a panty with a plastic barrier inside the crotch to prevent accidental leaks.

Meagan, 14
Problem: Living in sunny New Mexico, home cooling and energy costs are a big issue. Meagan noted that air conditioners sit in the sun all day but use electricity from the house for power. Solution: Meagan thought, "Why not equip the AC units with solar panels? It seems so logical." Though still in the research and development phase, her project holds great potential for reducing the cost of air conditioning in sunny climates.

Samantha, 13
Problem: Samantha loves to swim but needs glasses to see. "I hated that I couldn't see in pools and prescription goggles are very expensive." Solution: Samantha came up with a goggle design that fits over most pairs of glasses. It may look funny, but it sure beats swimming blind.

Victoria, 13
Problem: Victoria hates to clean the microwave. It is difficult to reach inside and often the food is "cooked on." Solution: Victoria devised the Easy Clean Microwave that features a removable hard plastic liner that can be put into the dishwasher or sink. Now cleaning the microwave is a snap.

Casandra, 13
Problem: Like many of us, Casandra suffers from migraine headaches. Solution: Casandra designed the Miracle Migraine Minimizer – a hat lined with gel packs that can be applied either warm or cool to minimize migraine pain and suffering.

Resources

The Fair Play: Design & Discovery curriculum is available free to anyone at www.intel.com/education/design. The Web site includes detailed lesson plans a well as tools for planning and implementation.

Thanks to generous support from Motorola, Girl Scouts of the USA has a limited number of Design & Discovery design card key fobs available (PDF, 728KB). You may order these for free from Kammaria Samms at ksamms@girlscouts.org. Please specify how many you need and how they will be used to benefit girls.

The PBS reality show Design Squad has educator and event guides with activities that support and complement Design & Discovery.