redressing the gender balance
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Redressing the gender balance. Dr. Mark Bradshaw Senior Lecturer Department of Fashion & Textiles De Montfort University Leicester, England. Introduction. Setting the scene Industry Education 3 strategies for working with schools Project INTX Conclusions. Setting the scene. - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
Redressing the gender balanceRedressing the gender balance
Dr. Mark BradshawSenior Lecturer
Department of Fashion & TextilesDe Montfort University
Leicester, England
IntroductionIntroduction• Setting the scene
– Industry– Education
• 3 strategies for working with schools
• Project INTX
• Conclusions
Doom and GloomDoom and Gloom• Textiles has a bad press in the UK
– Public perception is poor– Factory closures– Low paid, unskilled employment
• Fashion has a good press– Glamorous image– Plenty of exciting jobs– Designers become famous
Setting the scene
This was then ….This was then ….• 15 years ago ….
– Thriving industry– Many students– Predominantly male– Many BSc Textiles courses nationally, easy to attract
students– Leicester Polytechnic had an international reputation
Setting the scene
… … and this is nowand this is now• Mass manufacturing nearly gone
– Niche manufacturing strong, technical textiles and corporate clothing (BA, MOD etc) are buoyant
• Many students– Most study BA Fashion or Design– Nearly all female
• Nationally– More than 90 BA Fashion courses, few BSc Textiles– The UK textile and clothing industry (including retail) still
demands technically competent graduates
Setting the scene
Strategy 1. Going OutStrategy 1. Going Out• Goal – increase application numbers by educating
the prospective applicants
• Go to colleges and schools
• Total success– Everywhere we went, we recruited students– “No one ever told us textiles was like this!”– Time consuming and expensive– Would need repeating yearly
Strategies
Strategy 2. Coming InStrategy 2. Coming In• Educate the educators• FREE COURSE FOR TEXTILE TEACHERS• Industrial Design & Practice
– Intensive 1 day course– Very practical– Supported by lectures
• Runaway success• Ran it 3 times the first session and 4 times a year
since
Strategies
Industrial Design & PracticeIndustrial Design & Practice• The Textile Industry
– the globalisation, international sourcing, product development.
• Textile Design & Production– fabric specifications and manufacture, CAD/CAM,
modern fabrics (Gore-Tex, etc).
• Finishing and coloration
• Garment Design & Manufacture– specifications, construction techniques, PDM, quality and
QA, product lifecycle, performance evaluation.
Strategies
Educate the educatorsEducate the educators• Seen our application numbers rise dramatically
– This was our goal and will remain so– Our priorities have changed along the way
• Understand the National Curriculum for Textiles– Very interesting, technical, industrial, exciting, new
technologies – a course you would want to study!!– Most teachers have little or no industrial background, or
access to suitable materials– Textiles in schools is art based/interiors/the cat walk
Strategies
Strategy 3. SupportStrategy 3. Support• Build working relationships
• Develop our portfolio of courses– CAD/CAM– Smart Materials
• Taster days for GCSE/A level students– Testing – snagging, strength, elasticity, burning– Coloration – multifibre strips, metamerism– CAD/CAM
Strategies
Strategy 3. SupportStrategy 3. Support• Support them in the classroom situation
– Developing classroom resources – project students– Making materials available online
Strategies
Project INTX (Project INTX (ININto to TTeeXXtiles)tiles)• Traditionally, not many boys at school study textiles
• “Textiles is GAY”
• Project INTX aims to dispel the myth that textiles is just pink dresses and cushions
• Aimed at Year`8 boys before they choose GCSE subjects
• It is not difficult to turn boys on to Textiles!
Project INTX
Project INTX (Project INTX (ININto to TTeeXXtiles)tiles)• 3 day event
• Boys presented with a lively textile industry
• Challenges their perception of what textiles are
• Boys invent millionaire-making textile product
• Present idea to the group
• Whole event is aimed at the “WOW” factor
Project INTX
Day 1Day 1• Day 1
– Presentation techniques– Visit local skateboard park and have skateboard
demonstration from a local team– Lecture on textiles in Formula 1 racing from BAR chief
designer– Practical experiment comparing strength of traditional
textile materials with Kevlar using an Instron– Lecture on Textile Futurology from scientist at Unilever– Brainstorming event – killer product that will make them a
millionaire
Project INTX
Day 2Day 2• Day 2
– Visit to Military Clothing base– Lecture from serving soldiers on different types of military
clothing, flak jackets, etc– Tour of military clothing testing facilities– Talk on ballistic impact and bullet proof jackets
Project INTX
Day 3Day 3• Day 3
– Talk from MD of skateboarding footwear company– Prepare presentation– Student presentations and awards
Project INTX
OutcomesOutcomes• Outcomes
– Local school has seen interest in textiles from boys soar– In a cohort of 60, number of boys has risen from 5 to 19.– From the universities perspective, it is a longer term
investment
Project INTX
RationaleRationale• Reasons why boys don’t study textiles
– Stereotype images – “textiles is gay”– Peer pressure – their mates are taking Resistant
Materials– Parental influence – low paid, female oriented career– On open days, parental influence is different!
Project INTX
Widening ParticipationWidening Participation• Government wants 50% of young people to go
through Higher Education• Supporting this with WP money• We have used WP money to fund much of our
outreach work
Project INTX
ConclusionsConclusions• The UK textile industry needs technically competent
graduates• We have developed a range of support mechanisms
for school textile teachers• We have seen our student application numbers rise
as a result• Project INTX has shown that boys want to study
textiles, they just don’t realise it yet!
Conclusions