Girls take charge in carpentry class

Charlottetown Rural High School has started a female-only carpentry class in an effort to attract more women into the trades.

Sarah Quinn is one of 10 students taking the girls-only class.

"Better communication, if it's just all girls," Quinn told CBC News Friday.

"When you're with guys it's kind of more difficult. Like here, we joke around a lot. And when you're with guys you can't really tell the jokes we tell."

Teacher Ian Hogg decided to try a girls-only class because he found they weren't getting the same experience as the boys.

"It just is a bit of an intimidation factor," said Hogg.

"We do a lot of group work and the boys will take over. I had to really be assertive in making sure that the girls in the class were getting the same experience as the boys. So in this environment, everybody's equal."

Hogg said technology has taken a lot of the physical work out of the profession, and there's no reason more women shouldn't be in the trades. Most of the girls in Hogg's class say they are considering a job in the trades.

"I find that when girls are more open-minded about stuff like this, for one, it opens more opportunities for them," said grade 11 student Jessica Storring.

"It shows that girls can do just pretty much anything a guy can do."

The course is a pilot project and will only continue if more girls sign up.