Students less exposed to computer programming than to computer literacy 56% of students who reported no computer courses or experience were girls BUT among students with programming experience, the percentage of girls has increased significantly Uneven Computing Preparation in High School Why Should Young Women Consider a Career in Information Technology?

Uneven Computing Preparation in High School

High-school Girls Too Seldom Participate in Advanced Computing

Disproportionate Numbers Among CS AP-Takers 56% of 2.2 million U.S. AP exam-takers were female BUT only 19% of those who took a computer science AP exam were female Present a hands-on activity to middle-school students using Outreach-in-a-Box In 2013:

Fewer Girls Doing CS in Science Fairs

Computing Not Drawing Top Math Achievers

First-year Students Not Interested in CS Major

Research Shows… Early, positive experiences with computing Adult encouragement (especially parental) Positive female role models Information about what computing professionals actually do …these factors encourage students to study computing:

Six engaging ways to introduce computing in class Recruit girls More teaching resources

Computing Education is Low Profile or Absent in Schools Advanced computing not taught in most schools More computing courses in schools will introduce more girls (and boys) to computing Rigorous computing teaches students design, logical reasoning, and problem- solving skills

Computing Ed Typically… Is not a graduation requirement Doesn’t count as academic graduation credit Is often classified as a “vocational course” or competes with music, foreign language, or sports electives Is taught by teachers with little tech background or by techies with little teacher training Is hard to integrate across curriculum because of education and testing requirements Tech standards (NETS) exist, but often translate into familiarity with office software.

Moving Beyond Computer Literacy: Why Schools Should Teach Computer Science Statistics about computing education and workforce in your area Offer Computing Workshops and Camps: They Benefit Both Students and the Teachers Who Offer Them

Targeted Recruiting Works Gender composition went from 12% girls to 33% girls 70% of his students pass the CS AP exam Actively recruiting girls and minority students results in more students overall and more female students. One high-school CS teacher recruited 65 students into 2 AP classes and had to turn away students. “We have enough students for the first time in four years to run an AP level Computer Science course.”

For yearbook: Using Java, they blended and color-matched pictures For National Honor Society: AP CS students programmed a card scanner to streamline roll-call How Did He Do It? Recruit girls in female-run student clubs Connect computing to girls’ existing interests Tell girls they will stand out as college applicants Embrace newbies as a blank slate For example:

Evidence-based Recruitment and Retention Strategies Can Help Encouragement Positive early experiences Advocating for a high-school computing requirement You can increase the number of girls in computing through…