Commonly Held Perceptions

1
(No Transcript)
2
Outline

• The challenge of achieving diversity in computer
  science
• Some data on the scope of the problem
• Why is it important to promote diversity?
• What makes computer science different?
• Initiatives at Stanford
• Women in Computer Science
• The Bermuda Project
• Concluding thoughts

3
The Challenge of Achieving Diversity

• The percentage of women majoring in computer
  science is small relative to that of men.
• Participation by African American, Hispanic, and
  Native American students is typically even
  smaller.
• Statistics on diversity in computer science have
  not improved in recent years, despite gains in
  other fields. For women, participation rates
  declined through most of the 1990s before
  rebounding slightly at the end of the decade.

4
BS Degrees in Computer Science
SOURCES
Susan T. Hill, Science and Engineering Degrees
1966-96. Report number NSF 99-330.
National Center for Education Statistics, Digest
of Education Statistics, March 2002.
5
BS Degrees in Computer Science
SOURCES
Susan T. Hill, Science and Engineering Degrees
1966-96. Report number NSF 99-330.
National Center for Education Statistics, Digest
of Education Statistics, March 2002.
Complete invention.
6
Useful Resources
7
CC2001 on the Importance of Diversity
Ensure that the curriculum is accessible to a
wide range of students. All too often, computer
science programs attract a homogeneous population
that includes relatively few women or students
whose ethnic, social, or economic background are
not those of the dominant culture. Although many
of the factors that lead to this imbalance lie
outside the university, every institution should
seek to ensure greater diversity, both by
eliminating bias in the curriculum and by
actively encouraging a broader group of students
to take part.
CC2001 Report, Chapter 13
8
Why Diversity is Important

• Equality of access is an important ethical
  principle.
• Greater diversity among those who create
  computing technology ensures that those
  technologies are relevant to and usable by a
  wider range of people.
• More specifically, the male-dominated tradition
  of computing leads to an overall culture of
  technological machismo, as evidenced by modern
  computer games.
• Despite the economic downturn, there continues to
  be a shortage of highly productive software
  developers.
• Becoming a high-productivity software developer
  requires a rare combination of skills,
  creativity, and temperament, making it all the
  more critical to look for such talent in as wide
  a population as possible.

9
C. P. Snow on Educating Women
It is one of our major follies that, whatever we
say, we dont in reality regard women as suitable
for scientific careers. We thus neatly divide our
pool of potential talent by two.
The Two Cultures, 1959
10
What Makes CS Different?

• Experience in computer use prior to college
  differs markedly with gender, ethnic background,
  and economic class in other technical fields,
  prior exposure tends to be more balanced.
• The flexibility of software allows computers to
  reflect their cultural environment more strongly
  than other technologies do.
• The culture of the computing milieu is different
  from that found in most scientific communities.
  Although it is by no means universal, there is
  some truth in the stereotypical images attached
  to programming and programmers.
• Computer programming tends to encourage highly
  focused behavior, almost to the point of
  obsession.
• Differences in individual productivity are much
  more highly pronounced in computing than in most
  disciplines.

11
Variations in Programmer Productivity

• In 1968, a study by Sackman, Erikson, and Grant
  revealed that programmers with the same level of
  experience exhibit variations of more than 20 to
  1 in the time required to solve particular
  programming problems.
• More recent studies Curtis 1981, DeMarco and
  Lister 1985, Brian 1997 confirm this high
  variability.
• Many employers in Silicon Valley argue that this
  productivity variance is even higher today,
  perhaps as much as 100 to 1.

12
Effect of High Productivity Variance
13
Employment Patterns by Discipline
Fraction of professionals with degrees in that
discipline
Fraction of disciplinary graduates employed in
that profession
SOURCE National Science Foundation/Division of
Science Resources Statistics, SESTAT (Scientists
and Engineers Statistical Data System), 1999, as
presented by Caroline Wardle at Snowbird 2002
14
Strategies to Promote Diversity

• Work to increase the number of students taking
  computer science, which will tend to increase the
  diversity of the program.
• Redesign the introductory sequence to make it
  accessible to a wider audience.
• Provide diverse role models for undergraduates at
  every level of the educational process, including
  those who are only one or two years more advanced
  in age and experience.
• Develop peer-support networks and provide funding
  for activities.
• Make sure entering students understand the range
  of opportunities in computer science.
• Establish bridge programs that target students
  who are at greatest risk of leaving technical
  fields.
• Engage undergraduates in both teaching and
  research.
• Give all students the opportunity to reach their
  own potential.

15
The Bermuda Project
In 1997, Stanford initiated a project to design a
new CS curriculum for Bermudas public secondary
schools. We now have three courses in place, the
first of which is taken by all students.
More information on the Bermuda Project is
available from the project web site
http//bermuda.stanford.edu
16
The Bermuda Project
Over the five years, many people have worked on
the Bermuda Project, from both Computer Science
and the School of Education.
Faculty Eric Roberts (Computer Science), Brigid
Barron (Education)
Project Director Caitlin Kennedy Martin
Students Rob Baesman, Shireen Braithwaite,
Caroline Clabaugh,       
Karen Corby, Katherine Emery, Nicholas Fang, Tom
Fountain, Maria Fredricsson, Anita Garimella,
Osvaldo Jimenez, Marissa Mayer, Jennifer McGrath,
Emma Mercier, Alex Osipovich, Kristin Pilner,
Michael Ross, Tenicia Sicard, Andrew Simons, Luke
Swartz, Shane Witnov
Computer Forum Support Suzanne Bentley Bigas
Principal Funders XL Insurance, Ltd. B-TEC
Foundation
B-TEC Producer and Inspiration Diane Miller
17
About Bermuda

• British overseas territory lying 600 miles east
  of North Carolina
• Local parliament with Labor majority since 1998
• Land area just over 20 square miles (one-third
  the size of Washington DC)
• Total population of 62,000 (roughly the size of
  Palo Alto)

• Two public high schools (Berkeley and
  CedarBridge), in which over 90 of the students
  are black
• Considerable national wealth from tourism and
  companies relocating to Bermuda as a tax haven

18
An Observation from Margaret Mead
Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful,
committed citizens can change the world. Indeed,
its the only thing that ever has.