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Professor Clem Herman

Profile summary

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Professional biography

Professor Clem Herman is Director of eSTEeM, the OU's Centre for STEM pedagogy (www.open.ac.uk/esteem) which promotes innovation, scholarship and enterprise in STEM open and distance learning. She is the University's Athena SWAN champion and chairs the OU Gender Equality Steering Group. Clem is Professor of Gender and Technology in the School of Computing and Communications and works on a number of projects to research and increase the participation of women in IT including leading the Open University's widening participation work as part of the Institute of Coding.

Research interests

The focus of my research to date has been to bring a critical gender analysis to the experiences of women who return after taking a career break to work in STEM related fields and in particular the locations, both temporal and spatial, in which their identities as scientists, engineers and technologists are developed, nurtured, curtailed or rekindled. I have published widely on the employability and careers of women returners and in particular the impact of career breaks for women in engineering and technology companies. I have recently completed an ESRC funded research project Gender Skilled Migration and IT: A comparative study of UK and India, and currently working on an eSTEeM funded project 'Gendered Choices and Motivations' looking at the recruitment and degree motivations of mature women in IT and Computing distance education.

Teaching interests

I am currently chair of TMXY475, the Apprenticeship Computing and IT Project

External collaborations

 Clem is the founder and Editor in Chief of the open access International Journal of Gender Science and Technology

 

Research groups

NameTypeParent Unit
Society and Information Research Group (SIRG)GroupFaculty of Mathematics, Computing and Technology

Publications

Using a Blended Learning Approach to support Women returning to STEM (2019)
Herman, Clem; Gracia, Rosaria; MacNiven, Lesley; Clark, Bernie and Doyle, Geraldine
Open Learning: The Journal of Open, Distance and e-Learning, 34(1) (pp. 40-60)


[Editorial] Innovations in STEM distance education (2019)
Herman, Clem and Butler, Diane
Open Learning: The Journal of Open, Distance and e-Learning, 34(1) (pp. 1-5)


Career change or career progression? Motivations of women studying computing as adult learners (2019)
Donelan, Helen; Herman, Clem; Hughes, Janet; Jefferis, Helen and Thomas, Elaine
International Journal of Gender Science and Technology, 11(3) (pp. 466-489)


The Triple Whammy: Gendered Careers of Geographically Marginalised Academic STEM Women (2018)
Herman, Clem and Hilliam, Rachel
International Journal of Gender, Science and Technology, 10(1) (pp. 171-189)


Combining feminist pedagogy and transactional distance to create gender-sensitive technology-enhanced learning (2017)
Herman, Clem and Kirkup, Gill
Gender and Education, 29(6) (pp. 781-795)


Returning to STEM: gendered factors affecting employability for mature women students (2015-11-01)
Herman, Clem
Journal of Education and Work, 28(6) (pp. 571-591)


Rebooting and rerouting: women’s articulations of frayed careers in science, engineering and technology professions (2015-06-21)
Herman, Clem
Gender, Work & Organization, 22(4) (pp. 324-338)


Creating a new Open Access Journal: A case study of the International Journal of Gender Science and Technology (2013-04)
Herman, Clem and Carr, Jenni
Research Intelligence, 120 (pp. 22-23)


Women scientists and engineers in European companies: putting motherhood under the microscope (2013)
Herman, Clem; Lewis, Suzan and Humbert, Ann Laure
Gender Work and Organisation, 20(5) (pp. 467-478)


Entitled to a sustainable career? Motherhood in science, engineering and technology (2012-12)
Herman, Clem and Lewis, Suzan
Journal of Social Issues, 68(4) (pp. 767-789)


Using creative multimedia in teaching and learning ICTs: a case study (2012-01-17)
Kouadri Mostéfaoui, Soraya; Ferreira, Giselle; Williams, Judith and Herman, Clem
European Journal of Open, Distance and e-Learning (pp. 1-11)


Presence for professional development: students in the virtual world (2011-10)
Peachey, Anna and Herman, Clem
Learning Technology, 13(4) (pp. 11-14)


After a career break: supporting women returning to ICT (2011-07)
Herman, Clem
International Journal of Gender Science and Technology, 3(2) (pp. 536-543)


Taking a lifecycle approach: redefining women returners to science, engineering and technology (2010)
Herman, Clem and Webster, Juliet
International Journal of Gender, Science and Technology, 2(2) (pp. 179-205)


Patterns of online networking for women’s career development (2009)
Donelan, Helen; Herman, Clem; Kear, Karen and Kirkup, Gill
Gender in Management: An International Journal, 24(2) (pp. 92-111)


Current issues for gender and SET: Perspectives from research, policy and practice (2009)
Herman, Clem and Carr, Jenni
International Journal of Gender, Science and Technology, 1(1) (pp. 146-160)


Learners in transition: the use of ePortfolios for women returners to science, engineering and technology (2008-02)
Herman, Clem and Kirkup, Gill
Innovations in Education and Teaching International, 45(1) (pp. 67-76)


Editorial Comment (2007-06)
Herman, Clem and Webster, Juliet
Information Communication and Society, 10(3) (pp. 279-286)


Still a gendered technology?: Issues in teaching ICT at the UK Open University (2003-03)
Bissell, Christopher; Chapman, David; Herman, Clem and Robinson, Lee
European Journal of Engineering Education, 28(1) (pp. 27-35)


From Visions to Reality: Changing Women's Perspectives at the Village Hall (2001-12)
Herman, Clem
ACM SIGCAS Computers and Society, 31(4) (pp. 15-22)


Women in Computing Higher Education: Students, Educators and Researchers (2021-07-26)
Herman, Clem
In: Arnold, Gillian; Dee, Hannah; Herman, Clem; Moore, Sharon; Palmer, Andrea and Shah, Shilpa eds. Women in Tech: A practical guide to increasing gender diversity and inclusion (pp. 48-68)
ISBN : 1780175612 | Publisher : BCS Publications | Published : Swindon


Skilled Migration and IT Sector: A Gendered Analysis (2019)
Sondhi, Gunjan; Raghuram, Parvati; Herman, Clem and Ruiz-Ben, Esther
In: Rajan, S. Irudaya ed. India Migration Report 2018: Migrants in Europe
ISBN : 9781138498167 | Publisher : Routledge | Published : New Delhi


Combining feminist pedagogy and transactional distance to create gender-sensitive technology-enhanced learning (2018-08-06)
Herman, Clem and Kirkup, Gill
In: Aneja, Anu ed. Gender and Distance Education: Indian and International Contexts (pp. 10-29)
ISBN : 9781138615427 | Publisher : Routledge India


Innovatory educational models for women returners in science, engineering and technology professions (2011)
Herman, Clem; Hodgson, Barbara; Kirkup, Gill and Whitelegg, Elizabeth
In: Jackson, Sue; Malcolm, Irene and Thomas, Kate eds. Gendered Choices: Learning Work Identities in Lifelong Learning. Lifelong Learning Book Series (15) (pp. 53-68)
ISBN : 978-94-007-0646-0 | Publisher : Springer | Published : London, U.K. and New York, NY, U.S.


Re/constructing engineering and technology careers: support for women returners in the UK (2010)
Hodgson, Barbara and Herman, Clem
In: Godfroy-Genin, Anne-Sophie ed. Women in Engineering and Technology Research (pp. 489-504)
ISBN : 978-3-643-10457-1 | Publisher : Lit Verlag | Published : Berlin


Online participation: Shaping the networks of professional women (2009-07)
Donelan, Helen; Herman, Clem; Kear, Karen and Kirkup, Gill
In: Dumova, Tatyana and Fiordo, Richard eds. Handbook of Research on Social Interaction Technologies and Collaboration Software: Concepts and Trends (pp. 270-280)
ISBN : 978-1-60566-368-5 | Publisher : Information Science Reference | Published : UK


Paying the price: The impact of maternity on career progression of women scientists and engineers in Europe (2009)
Herman, Clem
In: Beiträge von Ihsen, Susanne; Klumpers, Johannes; Pageler, Sylke; Ulrich, Roya and Wieneke-Toutaoui, Burghilde eds. Gender and Diversity in Engineering and Science(Report) (pp. 47-56)
ISBN : 978-3-931384-65-4 | Publisher : VDI - The Association of German Engineers | Published : Dusseldorf


Crossing the digital divide: experiences of gender and technology in a community ICT centre (2008)
Herman, Clem
In: Van Slyke, C. ed. Information Communication Technologies: Concepts, Methodologies, Tools, and Applications
ISBN : 9781599049496 | Publisher : IGI Global | Published : Hershey, New York


Crossing the digital divide: experiences of gender and technology in a community ICT Centre (2006-06-16)
Herman, Clem
In: Trauth, Eileen M. ed. Encyclopedia of Gender and Information Technology [2 vols.] (pp. 154-159)
ISBN : 1591408156 | Publisher : Idea Group Reference | Published : Hershey, PA, USA


Women’s training revisited: developing new learning pathways for women IT technicians using a holistic approach (2005-06)
Ellen, Debbie and Herman, Clem
In: Turner, Eva ed. The Gender politics of ICT (pp. 251-264)
ISBN : 190475046X | Publisher : Middlesex University Press | Published : UK


Becoming digital: empowerment, identity and community ICTs (2003)
Herman, Clem
In: Mortberg, Christina M.; Elovaara, Pirjo and Lundgren, Agneta eds. How do we make a difference?: Information Technology, Transnational Democracy and Gender (pp. 237-250)
ISBN : 9197256897 | Publisher : Lulea University of Technology/Luleå Tekniska Universitet | Published : Lulea, Sweden


ICT Changes Everything! But Who Changes ICT? (2018-10)
Corneliussen, Hilde G.; Herman, Clem and Gajjala, Radhika
In : 13th IFIP TC 9 International Conference on Human Choice and Computers, HCC13 2018 (19-21 Sep 2018, Poznan, Poland) (pp. 250-257)


Entering STEM in later life: examining the motivations of adult women studying computing (2018)
Herman, Clem; Donelan, Helen; Jefferis, Helen and Hughes, Janet
In : 4th Biennial Network Gender and STEM Conference: Reimagining Who Does STEM and Why (31 Jul - 2 Aug 2018, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR, USA)


Returning to another place? Boundary crossing and career transitions among women science, engineering and technology professionals re-entering employment (2012-06)
Herman, Clem
In : Gender Work and Organisation 2012: 7th Biennial International Interdisciplinary Conference (27-29 Jun 2012, Keele, UK)


Changing discourses in women and science policy: responding to austerity in gender and SET (2012-04)
Herman, Clem; Morton, Pat and Butcher, Jane
In : British Sociological Association Annual Conference 2012 - Sociology in an Age of Austerity (11-13 Apr 2012, University of Leeds)


Distance travelled: supporting women returning to STEM careers (2012-04)
Herman, Clem; Whitelegg, Liz; Kirkup, Gill and Chicot, Katie
In : HEA STEM Annual Conference (12-13 Apr 2012, London, UK)


Returning to SET: reflections on an online module (2011-11-08)
Herman, Clem
In : European Gender Summit: Quality Research and Innovation Through Equality (8-9 Nov 2011, Brussels, Belgium)


Second Life, second chance: using virtual worlds to supportwomen returning to SET (2011-03-08)
Herman, Clem and Peachey, Anna
In : 6th European Conference on Gender and ICT (08-10 Mar 2011, Umea, Sweden)


“I should be so lucky”: women returners narratives of transition between family and work (2010-07)
Herman, Clem
In : Equality Diversity Inclusion Conference (14-16 Jul 2010, Vienna, Austria)


‘Accommodating’ female scientists and engineers: changing organisational cultures or just being exceptional? (2010-06)
Herman, Clem; Lewis, Suzan and Humbert, Anne Laure
In : Gender Work and Organisation (21-23 Jun 2010, University of Keele)


Part time working as a gendered sub-culture in SET: A cross cultural study (2009-07)
Herman, Clem; Lewis, Suzan and Humbert, Anne
In : Equal Opportunities International Conference (15-17 Jul 2009, Istanbul)


Articulating Work Life Balance: Perspectives of Women Returners to STEM (2008-07)
Herman, Clem and Hodgson, Barbara
In : International Conference of Women Engineers and Scientists (ICWES 14): 'A Changing world: new opportunities for women engineers and scientists' (15-18 Jul 2008, Lille, France)


Empowering women to return to their SET careers (2008-05)
Herman, Clem and Carter, Ruth
In : Proceedings of 12th International GASAT Conference (3-8 Sep 2006, University of Brighton)


Re/constructing engineering and technology careers: support for women returners in the UK (2007-10)
Hodgson, Barbara and Herman, Clem
In : Women in Engineering and Technology Research: PROMETEA International Conference (26-27 Oct 2007, Paris)


Public discourses private lives: East and West European Women’s careers in Science, Engineering and Technology (2007-08)
Herman, Clem
In : 5th Gender Equality and Higher Education Conference (28-31 Aug 2007, Humboldt University Berlin)


Women's experiences of online networking for career progression in science, engineering and technology (2007-03)
Donelan, Helen; Herman, Clem; Kear, Karen; Kirkup, Gill and Whitelegg, Liz
In : 3rd Christina Conference on Women's Studies (8-10 Mar 2007, Helsinki, Finland)


Women IT Technicians: moving through the glass partition (2005-08-01)
Herman, Clem and Ellen, Debbie
In : Crossing Cultures Changing Lives: Integrating Research on Girls Choices of IT Careers (31 Jul - 3 Aug 2005, University of Oxford, UK)


Vendor-specific certifications: lessons and experiences from two women’s training centres in the UK offering MCSE training (2005-07-13)
Ellen, Debbie and Herman, Clem
In : JVET Sixth International Conference Researching Policy and Practice in Vocational Education and Training (13-15 Jul 2005, University of Oxford, UK)


Cyborgs in groups (2002-09-11)
Kear, Karen; Monk, John and Herman, Clem
In : ALT-C 2002: learning technologies for communication (9-11 Sep 2002, Sunderland, UK)


Staying the course: retention and participation in on-line learning in Singapore and the UK (2002-06)
Herman, Clem
In : European Distance Education Network (16-19 Jun 2002, Granada, Spain)


People Like Me Evaluation Report (2018-05)
Herman, Clem; Kendall-Nicholas, Jane and Sadler, Wendy
The WISE Campaign, Leeds.


It's not the break that's the problem: Women SET professionals and career breaks in European companies (2009)
Herman, Clem
DG for Research: European Communities, Brussels.