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Making Computer Science Attractive to High School Girls with Computational Thinking Approaches: A Case Study

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Emerging Research, Practice, and Policy on Computational Thinking

Abstract

Computational thinking is a fundamental skill that extends beyond computer science. Conceptually it involves logic, algorithms, patterns, abstraction, and evaluation. The approach for developing a computational mind-set may involve experimenting, creating, debugging, and collaborating. Due to certain implicit biases and societal and cultural factors, girls may not be exposed to these computational thinking concepts and approaches. This has resulted in a decrease in the number of women in computer science since the 1980s. This chapter summarizes some of the challenges faced when teaching introductory computer science to high school girls and the approaches taken to overcome those challenges.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    http://wtp.mit.edu/.

  2. 2.

    http://research.collegeboard.org/programs/ap/data/participation/ap-2015.

  3. 3.

    http://research.collegeboard.org/programs/ap/data/archived/ap-2014.

  4. 4.

    http://research.collegeboard.org/programs/ap/data/participation/ap-2015.

  5. 5.

    https://www.eecs.mit.edu/news-events/media/tamara-broderick-woman-technology.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA

    Oshani Seneviratne

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  1. Oshani Seneviratne
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Correspondence to Oshani Seneviratne .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. 150K MCKB, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah, USA

    Peter J. Rich

  2. Georgia Southern University, Statesboro, Georgia, USA

    Charles B. Hodges

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Seneviratne, O. (2017). Making Computer Science Attractive to High School Girls with Computational Thinking Approaches: A Case Study. In: Rich, P., Hodges, C. (eds) Emerging Research, Practice, and Policy on Computational Thinking. Educational Communications and Technology: Issues and Innovations. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-52691-1_2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-52691-1_2

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-52690-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-52691-1

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