Volume 1
Issue 1
16 March 1998
Gender
Inequalities in Education
The
Gender Gap in the Computing Field
Whitmore
High School: A Case Study of Computer Usage
Computer
Projects for Mother and Daughter
Expanding
Your Horizons in Math and Science
Computers
and Technology: Differences In Gender
Gender
Bias In Educational Software
Educational
Software For Girls
- Purple Moon: Thanks but No Thanks for Rockett's New School
- Girl Tech - Not Girl Friendly Enough
- Her Interactive
- Broderbund: Classroom Software Done Right
Computers
In the Classroom: What is the Effect on the Gender
Gap?
Beyond
Equal Access
"What troubles me about the gender gap is that women face a future as information have-nots. As business becomes more information-centric, everyday services from banking to retail to real estate will demand that their employees are technology-savvy. What will be the value of a computer-incompetent? And how will a technology-illiterate person exist in a world dominated by PC-enabled banking, travel, and research? Doing things the old-fashioned way in an infocentric world is unglamorous, fatiguing, and just plain dumb."--Currid
As we have seen throughout this issue, boys and girls have different attitudes about and experiences with computers. These differences help to reinforce gender stereotypes and continued inequities in schools and workplaces. However,"[i]n one study, researchers found that experience with computers reduces the attitude differences regarding boys' versus girls' abilities with computers, and, therefore, reduces the prevalence of sex stereotypes among boys and girls." (Mark) It is important, therefore, to ensure that girls and boys have access to and are encouraged to use computers.
Some researchers have found that boys and girls have different interests in computer software and games: "boys are more interested in competitive games... while girls are more interested in...word games, logic puzzles, art, music, "story" programs, and adventure games." (Mark) Girls will be more encouraged to use computers for fun if more titles are available which interest them--if the available entertainment software is oriented toward boys, girls are much less likely to become, or remain, interested in computers. When girls turn away from computers, even if the reason is merely a lack of activities interesting to them, gender bias is reinforced.
For this reason, it is important that computer usage in schools is structured so that girls are encouraged to continue using computers, and that software is available which will interest them outside of class as well.
A teaching strategy which seems effective in involving girls and boys with computers and promoting reduced gender stereotyping concerning computers is collaborative learning, or "groupwork." One study, in which a researcher and a classroom teacher structured computer-related activities in the classroom around the concept of groupwork, found that, while gender biases existed at the beginning of the school year, by the end of the year they had been reduced through collaboration among students. In this study, the teacher and researcher were careful to create "semi-autonomous functioning of the groups in a context where gender equality was a valued objective" (Pryor) In other words, the tasks assigned the groups were not the only objectives set before them--working together and making sure that everyone had a chance to participate was set as an equally important goal. As a result, the researcher found that "a system in which cooperation is given its full value is liberating for both girls and boys." (Pryor)
Other strategies are also important to retain girls' interest, not just in computers but also in math and science-related fields. Math and science teachers, as well as parents and other adults, should educate and encourage girls "that mathematics and science are important and relevant to their lives." (Mark) "Never assume that a girl won't want to do something technical." (Currid) At the same time, since girls, especially in adolescence, are "sensitive to perceptions of themselves in terms of social acceptance," (Mark) girls also need social structures which encourage them to participate in computer-related activities, such as girls-only computer clubs or computer periods.
These techniques can retain girls' interest in computers while at the same time showing boys that girls are equally able to use them as boys are. Simply introducing computers into schools without specific plans is not enough because it will not encourage girls to use them, nor will it positively affect gender stereotypes or gender differences. Computer use needs to be well-planned and integrated into curriculum so girls will find them useful and become comfortable with them--then perhaps sterotypes and gender differences will begin to disappear.
