Share Paper: Impact of After-School Learning Programs on High School Girls’ Confidence and Interest in Computing

  1. Swati Mehta, Michigan State University, United States
  2. Jonathan Good, Michigan State University, United States
  3. Phil Sands, Michigan State University, United States
  4. Aman Yadav, Michigan State University, United States
  5. Sarah Gretter, Michigan State University, United States
  6. Janice Levenhagen-Seeley, ChickTech, United States
Tuesday, March 27 10:15-10:45 AM Wright

Abstract: Despite increasing numbers of jobs and degrees, and the growth in interest in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM), the gender gap in these disciplines has not markedly improved. This STEM gender gap is more prominent in the field of Computer Science (CS). In the United States, only 26% of the CS professionals are women. At the secondary school level, only 23.2% of AP computer science test-takers in 2016 were girls. To address the persistent gender gaps in computer science, it is important to understand how we can engage more girls in computing. Co-educational environments where female students are underrepresented ...