Subject:
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Mindfest Panel on "Why are so few Girls Tinkering"??
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Newsgroups:
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lugnet.edu
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Date:
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Sun, 31 Oct 1999 18:59:52 GMT
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tking@together/StopSpam/.net
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Subject: Mindfest Panel on "Why are so few Girls Tinkering"??
(This was passed along from Richard Wright <rwright@pcsedu.com> and
added to this discussion with his permission, by Terry King):
The topic of the panel was "Why are so few girls tinkering?" ( There was some
discussion of the appropriateness of the title among the audience
afterwards..."tinkering" is a mechanical term and may not be apt when
discussing how girls approach science, engineering and technology ).
( Note: These are my scribbled notes...anyone please feel free to correct me
if I goofed somewheres ).
The Moderator ( Amy Bruckman ) had several interesting points...that research
shows that there is no big differences between gender abilities ( re: girls
can program robots like the boys...my words ), and that any study of "girls" is
difficult because they are a moving target ( girls are very different today
than say 5 years ago ).
Laura Allen ( VisionEducation ) noticed that among girls:
1) Initial tinkering without a specific project is intimidating;
2) An interest in mechanic only grows if girls understand the why ( as opposed
to boys who are willing to jump in and fool with something without paying
attention to the underlying purpose or role of what they are tinkering on );
3) Thy become motivated by the presentation and artistic characteristics of
their creations;
4) They need to know the connection to the real world;
Boys on the other hand charge right in, have no need to define what they do,
find that robots are more interesting than girls, and respond to competitions.
Her suggestions for strategies:
1) Develop and engage girls to larger world issues when working with them;
2) Research and connect their work;
3) Encourage, compliment, and recognize success both publicly and privately;
4) Do field trips.
5) Live mentoring---not just "online";
6) Create some "Girls Only" situations ( really really important );
7) Discuss how science is male oriented, and may as a career be financially
advantageous.
Dorothy Bennett ( Center for Children and Technology )
http://www2.edc.org/CCT/cctweb/about/bio.asp?5
focused more on the metaphors of learning...how do boys and girls express how
they are learning. She felt that girls "tinker" as boys do, but do it in
different fashions.She talked about research using "Fantasy Tasks" ( create a
device of your own liking....males tend to be object oriented,focused on parts
and instrumentation, and escaping natural boundaries...whereas females tend to
envision multi functional devices and focused on purpose and content ), "The
Orange Peeler," ( male and female professionals asked to figure out the
function of an antique Mexican Orange Peeler...men use functional metaphors and
cause and effect, women used imaginative narrative ), and ethnographic
observations.
Justine Cassell ( MIT Media Lab ) described her research involving video games.
( Her presentation is somewheres at http://justine.www.media.mit.edu/people/justine/
)
( Her book is "From Barbie to Mortal Combat" ).
She talked about the trends in the video game market, discussed how things are
very "context dependent," and said that "boys are more likely to see the
computer as a recreational toy while girls tend to view the computer as a
tool."
The questions at the end were very interesting:
...someone said "technics are all male
..." someone said "...women have always tinkered..."
Laura Allen suggested that most problems ( of trying to get girls involved in
tinkering ) work themselves out if their initial experiences were good. The
research provided by Bennett and Cassell is very important, and I liked the
hands-on suggestions provided by Allen. ( Especially as it mirrored much of
what we do at PCS and the Academy of Engineering ).
--
Regards,
Terry King ...In The Woods In Vermont
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