Women and Minorities in Computer Science and Software Engineering

Data indicates that both women and minorities are underrepresented in the community of IT developers. However, in this section we focus on the issue only as it is expressed with respect to women. Let us explain this choice. First, women comprise about 50 percent of the world population and account for half of the current workforce, yet are only 20 percent of the technology professionals ( www.acm.org/technews/articles/2003-5/0321f.html#item3 ). Second, the absence of women in the high-tech industry is almost a worldwide phenomenon , at least in the Western countries . Third, as each country has its own minorities, and it is reasonable to assume that local factors influence the level of their involvement in the IT economy, it would be impossible to deal with all these local differences. Even though the focus in this section is on the under-representation of women in the IT workforce, we believe that based on this discussion, readers will be able to make relevant conclusions with respect to minorities.

In the discussion that follows , we do not explicitly distinguish between computer science, software engineering, and the other IT professions . In some contexts, the data we present refers to the study of computer science; in other cases, the data describes a phenomenon related to women in the IT professions in general. However, as it turns out, one message is reflected by all these numbers . The percentage of women who enter these areas is relatively low, and some action should be taken to increase the presence of women in these professions. Indeed, the topic of women in the IT field currently gets a lot of attention. Still, real impact and change have not happened yet.

In research published in 1997 by Tracy Camp [Camp97] and later in research published by Vanessa Davies and Tracy Camp in 2000 [Davies and Camp00], a phenomenon called the shrinking pipeline was identified. This phenomenon addresses the fact that the number of women who studied toward a bachelor degree in computer science decreased from 37 percent in 1983 to about 28 percent a decade later and to 15 to 20 percent in the second half of the last decade . In addition, the percentage of women who hold higher positions in the universities decreases the higher the position is. A similar phenomenon has been identified in other countries as well.

These findings led many organizations ( especially academic ones) to take action to increase the percentage of women who study computer science. For example, starting in 1995, in the Carnegie Mellon University School of Computer Science, an interdisciplinary program of research and action was initiated. The research aspect of this project aimed to understand students attitudes toward computer science; the action component aimed to devise and effect changes in curriculum, pedagogy, and culture that will encourage the broadest possible participation of women in the school. As it turns out, all these efforts have raised the entering enrollment of women in the undergraduate computer science program at Carnegie Mellon University from 8 percent in 1995 to 42 percent in 2000. The full story of this project is described in Unlocking the Clubhouse: Women In Computing [Margolis and Fisher02].

A relevant question is why bother? In other words, why is the under-representation of women in the IT professions considered a problem? We present three arguments that explain the importance of increasing the number of women in the IT sector in general, and in the computer science and software engineering professions in particular. First, there is the general issue of female equity in opportunities. Because these professions promise, in most cases, high salaries, women should share in them. Second, as computer science and software engineering are relatively young disciplines, if women become part of the professional community, they may influence the way these fields are shaped. Finally, sometimes computational systems are designed in a way that do not fit women s needs. If women take an active role in the design of these systems, it is more likely these systems will answer women s needs as well. Examples of such systems are presented in [Margolis and Fisher02].

Tasks  

1. How would you explain the fact that the percentage of women who study computer science and software engineering is relatively low? What factors might influence their professional choices?

2. How would you approach the problems?

There are many reasons that lead women not to study computer science and software engineering. First, the image of these professions is that only nerds work in these areas, and that a typical workday is made of long hours of coding, coding, and coding, without any human interaction [Jepson and Perl02]. As a reader of this book, you must realize that this image is wrong and that human aspects are a major component of software development. However, the incorrect conception of these professions that women hold, and their tendency to prefer jobs that are based on human interaction, causes many of them not to consider studying IT-related professions at all. This contradiction can be solved in different ways. For example, at Carnegie Mellon University, as part of the project mentioned earlier, several actions in this direction took place. Among other activities, an undergraduate immigration course was instituted. The aim of the course was to present students with a broader view of computer science than the traditional view they usually get in the other first-year courses they learn.

Another factor that influences women not to study high-tech professions is their early education and exposure to technology [Fisher and Margolis02]. To get an idea about the dominance of this fact, it is sufficient just to compare the variety of computer games that are offered to girls and to boys. Go to any computer game shop and see the huge assortment of games aimed at boys, relative to the almost absence of games offered to girls [G ¼rer and Camp02].

Tasks  

1. Outline the main features of a computer game that in your opinion fits and may appeal to young girls.

2. Conduct the same task for a game that fits and may appeal to young boys.

3. Are there differences between the two games? If yes, what are the differences? If not, what do these types of games have in common?

A third factor that influences women not to study the high-tech professions is the lack of role models ”women with whom young women can identify [Pearl, et al.02]. Role models may increase young women s attention to the fact that women can succeed in these areas. To let young women see that there are women who work and succeed in the high-tech world, several programs that pair female high-school students with mentors in the industry have been established. These programs aim to let young women experience for several days what a career in the tech fields means. The hope of these programs is that the young participants will be inspired and consider college and university technology and science programs.

Tasks  

1. Anita Borg was a computer scientist who passed away on April 7, 2003 at the age of 54. Among her activities in response to the low number of women in the computer industry, Borg founded Systers, an e-mail list designed to provide women with an online community where they could network and mentor each other. Search for information about Anita Borg, her professional achievements, and her contribution to the education of women in the high-tech jobs. Summarize your findings. You can start by looking at www.iwt.org/news/anitaborg/inmemory.htm .

2. Make a similar search for a woman who works in the IT area in your country. How did she make it?

The following paragraphs illustrate that although in general women are underrepresented in the IT fields, there are programs and educational initiatives where women take an active part.

We start with a local initiative. The second annual Lego League Rhode Island State Robotics Tournament was notable for the number of pre-teen and teenage female participants. This tournament was supported by a state grant and was intended to set up a girls-only robotics program. As it turned out, the number of girls who signed up for the tournament rose from 20 in 2001 to more than 50 in 2002. In one part of the competition student teams built a robot out of Lego blocks and pre-programmed it to perform a series of moves designed to fulfill a particular mission.

From a more global perspective, research work has shown that girls and young women learn scientific topics in a better way when they study in all-female classes [Galpin02]. The idea is to let female students be dominant in these classes and not be afraid to ask questions in front of their male classmates. Positive findings about this structure of science and technology classes have been found all over the world and particularly in some of the countries that do not suffer from the under-representation of women in the high-tech sector.