Supporting Girls' Computational Thinking Skillsets: Why Early Exposure Is Critical to Success

Introduction

From smart home devices to cell phone applications, the fields of technology, engineering, and computer science drive the development of everyday innovations we all rely on. So what happens when female voices are not represented in these fields? We see “innovations” like cell phones that fit men’s hands better than women’s (Tufecki, 2013; Ryan, 2013) and health tracking apps that ignore women’s menstrual cycles (Duhaime-Ross, 2014). We see virtual assistants that have a harder time answering women’s questions than men’s – that can suggest help for a heart attack but not for domestic violence or rape (Chemaly, 2016; Miner et al, 2016). In short, we see masculine biases in almost all of the technology we engage with on a daily basis. Although most of the issues in these particular examples have been addressed by developers since coming to light, they are issues that would have been unlikely to occur to begin with if female voices had been equally involved and valued during the development of these technologies.

The problem is that female voices¹ are not – and historically, have never been– well represented in the fields driving innovation. While this issue of female under-representation in technical STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) fields is not a new one, it is a persistent one. Despite decades of research and interventions, the disparity between the representation of men and women in technical fields in the United States continues to persist. According to the most recent Bureau of Labor Statistics numbers, only 21.1% of computer programmers are women and only 16.5% of engineering and architecture positions are filled by women (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2020).

Although there is a major spotlight on workforce representation of women in technology, it is important to note that the issue of female representation in engineering and computing fields begins long before the career years. Beginning in early childhood and throughout their middle and high school years, girls and young women are exposed to stereotypes that inform ideas about their identity, abilities, and interest in STEM fields (e.g., McKown & Weinstein, 2003; Kuhn, Nash, & Brucken, 1978; Signorella, Bigler, & Liben, 1993; Metz, 2007; Steele, 1997; Sullivan, 2019). By high school, research has shown that male students are more likely than female students to take the standardized exams closely associated with the fields of engineering and computing (Corbett & Hill, 2015).

With the rise of the K-12 coding and computational thinking education movement in recent years, educators have a renewed opportunity to begin addressing this divide from an early age – and potentially address the gender and STEM gap before it becomes pronounced. This chapter will explore best practices for gender-inclusive computational thinking curriculum that can be implemented during the foundational early childhood years (kindergarten through second grade). While the focus of this chapter is on increasing STEM access to girls and women (and as such the research and language used will focus on those identifying as girls) the ultimate goal of this line of work is to encourage researchers and educators to develop curriculum and technologies that are bias-free, gender-neutral, and equally appealing to all young children.

Through the lens of a curriculum unit called “Helpful Robots,” this chapter will highlight suggestions for choosing appropriate tools, curricular themes, and adult role-modeling practices that can positively engage girls – and all students, regardless of gender identity– in playful computational learning from an early age, with the ultimate goal of ensuring all young children are afforded equal opportunities to succeed in STEM and beyond.