Encouraging Girls Make Require Change

The article outlines the benefits of a single gender classroom both quantitatively and qualitatively. It also presents the components of a successful program and some teaching approaches. ... See More

The article outlines the benefits of a single gender classroom both quantitatively and qualitatively. It also presents the components of a successful program and some teaching approaches. One of the benefits described was that students in an all female classroom were more comfortable taking risks. This might be a useful article for ways to improve female participation in what might be considered a male dominated career field.

The Positives of One Gender Classes

The article provides evidence that young women enter computer-related fields less frequently than men. The authors’ solution was to provide all-female computer science courses at the high s... See More

The article provides evidence that young women enter computer-related fields less frequently than men. The authors’ solution was to provide all-female computer science courses at the high school level. Through a doctoral study completed through the School of Psychology, University of Ottawa, it was found that in an all-female environment, students were more comfortable taking risks and had similar work patterns when tackling collaborative projects. For example female students tended to stick with a problem area until they felt they had mastered it as a group. Male counterparts begrudging participated in groups and tended to work alone to quickly create a piece of software that worked. The article provides some suggestions for how to promote an all-female computer science course and increase females’ interest in computer science.