Females in Technology Classes
Why is female enrollment in Computer Aided Design classes so low?
Darla J. Hartung
Females in Technology Classes
In our school system we offer technology classes, such as computer-aided design (CAD).
We try to encourage females to participate in programs, such as WIT (Women in Technology).
My Problem:
Need to increase female enrollment in technology classes. First year, 111 students enrolled – 89 males/ 22 females. Second year, 132 students enrolled – 109 males/ 23 females. Third year, 137 students enrolled – 108 males/ 29 females.
Last
year, 154 students enrolled – 112 males/ 42 females.
This
year,
160 students enrolled –
125 males/ 35 females.
Percentages of Males & Females
2000-2001 Enrollment 96 2001-2002 (Began Teaching) Enrollment 111 2002-2003 Enrollment 132 2003-2004 Enrollment 137 2004-2005 Enrollment 154 2005-2006 Enrollment Maximum # we can accommodate 160 Males 79/ 82% Males 89/ 80% Males 109/ 83% Males 108/ 78% Males 112/ 73% Males 125/ 78% Females 17/ 18% Females 22/ 20% Females 23/ 17% Females 29/ 22% Females 42/ 27% Females 35/ 22%
Enrollment has increased 60 % overall.
Study
Sought to see whether or not exposure to possible careers in technology would increase interest in enrolling in high school technology classes. 38 female students from 7th and 8th grade were surveyed to gain knowledge regarding their exposure & personal feelings towards science, math & technology related classes. Similar variables as the same technology teachers, the same technology curriculum and content exist. Research project design consists of four stages: the pre-test, the treatment, the post-test and the interviews.
Literature Review
Middle school girls appear to enjoy tech. ed. & have confidence in their abilities, but emerging sexism among peers begins to differentially affect participation on the basis of gender. – Boys monopolized the tools. – Boys rush off to get supplies. – Boys made fun of girls trying to use the equipment. – Teachers sometimes let them get away with it. – Boys sometimes criticized girls, resorting to stereotypes about girls’ lack of technological skills.
Literature Review
Middle school girls are discouraged from taking more tech. ed. in high school because of two factors which tend to reinforce each other: – Technology until recently has been a field dominated by men. – Evidence confirmed that traditional stereotypes about male/female occupations are still operating & are strong enough to outweigh girls’ positive feelings about experiences in tech. ed. classes.
Literature Review
Lack of information regarding technology is a key factor in the low female enrollment in technology classes. Girls were uniformed about economic realities & the world of work. Females lacked basic information about careers, including salaries or the amount of education & training needed to pursue different occupations.
Literature Review
Eighth grade females don’t’ make the connection between what they are doing in the classroom & the world of work. Unaware of the kind of technology classes they can take in high school. (Silverman & Pritchard, 1994) Gear technology classes towards females & their interests. (More Gender Neutral) Keep classes up to date & interesting.
Young Women Need Role Models
The power of role models cannot be underestimated. Young women need to see images of competent, confident & respected women in non-traditional roles in order to know that they are capable of achieving the same success. Role models are needed to promote a more holistic approach to appreciating a diverse engineering & technological community.
(Young women need to be aware that many women have careers
involving computers including : IT, Graphic Design, Desktop Publishing, Engineering, Architecture & Interior Design)
My hypothesis…… If we
…..imagine that girls know more about technology that is related to different types of careers, they will be more likely to enroll in technology classes in high school.
I hypothesize that if we expose females towards technology related career pathways, improve awareness of technology education at the middle school levels, enrollment might increase.
Research Design
Pre-test for baseline data to establish interest towards science, math &technology classes. Treatment consists of: technology awareness presentation by female engineers in the community, WIT presentation, visit to the high school CAD Lab, industrial design video & interior design/architecture portfolio presentation. Post-test administered to see if interest has increased as a result of the treatment.
Two participants who showed the most increase & two that showed a decrease were interviewed. Results of the pre- and post- tests, and interviews were analyzed to help me form my conclusion.
Data Analysis
Data was collected from two sources: First source:
Questions pertaining
to interest in & exposure to technology related classes & careers using a Likert scale ranging from “love it” to “dislike it a lot”.
General questions were
used to gain a better sense of how students feel about careers and technology.
Data Analysis
Second source: – To add triangulation a second source of data was collected through interviews. – Survey data was analyzed & compared to determine differences after the treatment.
Limitations of the Study
Low number of participants from one school in the district. Second, the small population size and lack of a random sample. Finally, the length of the study. Ideally it would take place over a longer period involving a larger grouping from several different schools.
Results (Interest & Exposure to Technology)
Survey data showed that there was an increase in interest in technology related fields as a result of the treatment. Students’ exposure to various technology fields generated interest especially when they learned that the career involves things that they enjoy. Using the data collected, it becomes evident that exposure to technology related fields could in fact influence & motivate students towards this career pathway.
Figure 1
7th G rade P re/P os t R es ults Interes t & E x pos ure to T ec hnology
37 said they would try CAD as a result of their exposure
8th G rade P re/P os t R es ults Interes t & E x pos ure to T ec hnology
160 150 140 130 120 110 7th G rade P re/P os t R es ults
160 150 140 130 120 110
8th G rade P re/P os t R es ults
Are you interested in becoming an engineer?
Pretest: Yes 1 Posttest: Yes 7 Unsure 23 Unsure 24 No 14 No 7
(19 students answered that they are interested in learning more about engineering)
Mean Pre/Post Test
7th Grade Pre/Post Results Interest & Exposure to Technology
Mean Standard Deviation Median Mode 143 19.87785619 139 139 148 14.7341723 150 150
8th Grade Pre/Post Results Interest & Exposure to Technology
Mean 135 150
Standard Deviation
Median
16.1819337
136.5
23.34296338
139
Mode
154
163
Discussions and Conclusions
In an ideal situation, every student, both male & female, would have more exposure to possible career pathways.
Though my research addresses a small pilot study, the results were encouraging. Data indicates that there was an increase in interest in technology related fields as a result of the treatment.
AAUW (American Association of University Women,
1992)
“There is a need to change girl’s perceptions and
involvement with technology & this can be accomplished by guidance, inspiration, & leadership.. ..The bottom line is that while more girls are on the train, they aren’t the ones driving. To get girls under the hood of technology, they need to see that it gets them where they want to go & for a large part of the population, that process must start in the clossroom.”
References
Boudria, Theodore, J. Journal of Research and Practice. Implementing A Project-Based Technology Program For High School Women. Vol. 26, 2002, 709-722. Brown, Bettina Lankard. Women and Minorities in High-Tech Careers. ERIC Digest No. 226. (Electronic Version). Retrieved July 20, 2003, from http://www.ericfacility.net/databases/ERIC_Digests/ed452367.html Butler, Deborah. Clearing House. Gender, Girls, And Computer Technology: What’s the Status Now? Vol. 73, Issue 4, Edsco Publishing, 2003. Burghardt, David M. Developing the Field of Children’s Engineering. 1999. New York: McGraw Hill. Flowers, Jim Ph.D. The Technology Teacher. Improving Female Enrollment in Tech Ed.. October, 1998, 21-23.
Gavin, Katherine, M., Reis, Sally M. Gifted Child Today. Helping Teachers to Encourage Talented Girls in Mathematics. Vol. 26, No 1, 2003, 32-44.
Gender Issues. An Educator’s Guide to Gender Bias Issues. (Electronic Version) Retrieved July 20, 2003 from http://lrs.ed.uiuc.edu/wp/access/gender.html 1-5.
References
s
Gilbride, Kim A., Gudz, Nadine A. Outreach Programs for Young Women in High School, Women in Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science, 2000.
Green, Michelle. National Education Association. Inside Scoop: Why Aren’t Girls More Tech. Savvy? (Electronic Version). Retrieved July 31, 2003, from http://www.nea.org/neattoday/0011/scoop.html
Levin, Barbara, B., Barry, Sean M.. Journal of Computing in Childhood Education. Children’s Views of Technology: the role of age, gender, and school setting. 1997, v.8 n.4 p. 267-90. Mark, June. Digest. Beyond Equal Access: Gender Equity in Learning with Computers. June, 1992 (Electronic Version). Retrieved July 27, 2003, from http://www.edc.org/WomensEquity/pubs/digests/digest-beyond.htm., 2-5. Mau, Wei-Cheng. The Career Development Quarterly. Factors That Influence Persistence in Science and Engineering Career Aspirations, March 2003, Volume 51.
References
s
Rounds, Lori Treyvaud, Robyn. Tech. Learning. Integrating Technology into the Lives of Girls. June, 2003, (Electronic Version). Retrieved July 26, 2003 from http://www.techlearning.com/db_area/archives/WCE/archives/geekchic.htm,1.
Silverman, Suzanne, Pritchard, M. Alice. Journal of Technology Education.. Building Their Future: Girls and Technology Education in Connecticut, Spring, 1996, Volume 7, Number 2, 41-53. Swain, Sandra L Harvey, Douglas, M. Tech Tends. Single Sex Computer Classes: An Effective Alternative. 46 no. 6 2002, 17-20. Retrieved July 20, 2003 from http://www.aauw.org/2000techsavvy.html Swanson, Janese, Miller, Emily. Professional Development Collection. Technology: Are We Helping Our Daughters? April, 1998, 1-3. The American Association of University Women. (1992). How schools shortchange girls Executive Summary (1992).
The American Association of University Women. (2000). Tech-Savvy: Educating girls in the new computer age. (ElectronicVersion).
Thom, Mary. Education Digest. Girls in Science and Technology: What’s New, What’s Next?. January, 2002, Vol. 67 Issue 5, 5-7.
Questions
s
Darla Hartung, Taunton High School
(508) 821-1161 dhartung@tauntonschools.org