Outsiders Within: How Do Black Girls Fit Into Computer Science?

• In Event: The Multiple Dimensions of Equity: Exploring a Computer Science for All Initiative Through Different Lenses

Abstract

Objectives
At the K-12 level, there are many efforts to increase equitable access to and participation in computer science (CS). However, there are many open questions about the implementation and effectiveness of these policies including the extent to which exposing young people to CS early on can shape their longer-term CS interest and engagement. In this paper, we examine CS participation among 6th-8th grade Black girls—and assess whether CS participation during middle school shapes CS interest and engagement during their first year of high school.

Perspective
Black women and girls forge trajectories through STEM fields in myriad ways. However, a growing body of research has highlighted a “double bind” faced by Black women in these domains because they confront multiple, overlapping systems of oppression related to gender and race and/or ethnicity (Collins, 2015; Ong et al., 2011; Scott et al., 2017). Girls have long been underrepresented in computer science (CS) education, starting as early as elementary school (Tsan et al, 2016), and the gaps for women of color, and Black women in particular, are much more pronounced.
Methods and Data Sources
We use a mixed methods design for this paper, drawing on quantitative and qualitative data to make inferences about the CS participation and outcomes of Black girls. We draw on descriptive analyses of survey data focusing on student attitudes and beliefs about CS; descriptive and inferential analyses of students’ administrative records, including CS course-taking among the cohort of students who began 6th grade in 2016-2017; and interview data from 4 experts in curriculum and pedagogy. All of our data come from one large urban district in the Northeastern U.S. We employ a comparative lens in this paper, contextualizing the CS experiences and outcomes of Black girls to white boys, Black boys, and Latinx girls.
Results
We find that, troublingly, Black girls in this district are disproportionately less likely to receive CS instruction, especially relative to white boys and Latinx girls. Furthermore, Black girls are less likely than other students to report feeling like they belong in CS, have confidence in their abilities, or feel supported by family and peers in their pursuit of CS. Our interviewees pointed to two related factors that can hinder Black girls’ participation in CS and undermine their confidence and sense of belonging: teacher-held stereotypes or biases and the fact that CS classes have not historically been welcoming spaces for Black girls. Finally, we find that participation in CS courses in middle school does not increase the likelihood that Black girls will select high schools that offer CS courses or take a CS course during their first year of high school (see attached Figure 1 and Tables 1 and 2).
Significance
Our findings suggest that to increase equitable access and participation in CS, it might not be enough to simply expose students to CS coursework. We call for sustained attention to the experiences that Black girls have in their CS classes as well as broader structural barriers that might shape CS course-taking.

Authors

• Zitsi Mirakhur, University of Kentucky
  Presenting Author

• Cheri Fancsali, Research Alliance for New York City Schools
  Presenting Author

• Kathryn Hill, Research Alliance for New York City Schools
  Presenting Author