The digital divide separates society along many dimensions, including wealth, race, and education. These key factors are often mentioned as determining whether or not a person will develop technological fluency. While sometimes overlooked, gender is also a powerful predictor of whether or not a person will fully participate in the digital revolution. Women are profoundly underrepresented among technology professionals and a growing body of research suggests that their distance from technology begins in early schooling.

Divide

Impact

Bridge

Is there a Gender Divide?
While accurate statistics on practicing computer science professionals are difficult to find, a number of figures related to education suggest that a severe gender gap exists in the technology sector and that the gap is widening. In 1985, the National Center for Education Statistics found that women accounted for 37 percent of the bachelors, 29 percent of the masters, and 10 percent of the doctorate degrees awarded in computer and information science. By 1995, female representation among doctorate programs had increased to 15 percent but representation dropped from 37 to 28 percent among bachelor degrees and from 29 to 26 percent among masters degrees. Even in the doctoral category where female participation improved, the low base of 15 percent still suggests a striking absence of balanced female presence. Research into the primary and secondary school experience of girls provides some insight into the causes of the gender imbalance. The American Association of University Women highlighted the inequitable treatment of girls in K-12 with its groundbreaking report How Schools Shortchange Girls. This 1992 study found that girls receive less attention than boys in public school classrooms, are discouraged from pursuing math or science related courses, and suffer sexual harassment with increasing frequency. The AAUW recently updated the study in 1998 and while the researchers noted increased awareness among educators and improvements in some areas, the general bias against girl engagement in math and science curricula continues.

What are the Causes of the Gender Divide?
A number of factors appear to discourage girls from pursuing education and careers in computer science. As the previous section indicated, public education in K - 12 seems geared toward encouraging male participation in math, science, and computer coursework. Peer pressure tends to reinforce the perception that computer activities are unsuited to girl interests. Computer games and activities often center on action and violence that girls find unengaging. Instead, these games attract boys and create an environment where boys learn to interact with computers. This early experience fosters familiarity and the potential for involvement with computers later in life. The combination of inappropriate computer content for girls, biased social constructs reinforced through peer groups, and an educational system that encourages male participation in math and science curriculum helps explain the absence of female participation in computer science.

Does the Gender Divide Matter?
The mere existence of gender imbalance in any field does not in itself suggest that the imbalance is troublesome. It is possible that men and women simply exhibit diverse interests and their varied perspectives drive different career preferences. However, a number of aspects of the computer science field in particular make the gender imbalance especially dangerous:

Computer science promises the best professional opportunities of all scientific and engineering fields. Information technology jobs are high-skill and high pay. The shortage of skilled professionals in the field has contributed to extraordinary wage levels for those qualified. The fact that many regions across the country want to significantly increase the size of their software industries suggests that the demand for computer science professionals and their wages will only increase in the future.

The country's economic health depends on an adequate supply of technology workers. In its Emerging Digital Economy Report, the U.S. Department of Commerce found that information technology producers accounted for less than 10 percent of the gross domestic product but accounted for 35 percent of real economic growth between 1995 and 1998. The controversy surrounding the shortage of skilled workers and the H-1B visa program highlights the urgent need for new sources of qualified technology professionals. The untapped female population is a well educated and highly promising pool of workers to address this shortage.
Computer Science appears to have made the least progress in expanding female involvement over the past decade compared to other scientific and engineering fields. The computer science AP exam has the smallest rate of female participation (12 percent) compared to all other AP subject areas, including other math and science-related subjects. As previously stated, the percent of bachelor and masters degrees awarded to women in computer science has fallen over the past decade.
Training in computing is vital to careers in many fields. As technology becomes increasingly required as a tool in business, scientific research, and communications, women will need technology related skills to compete outside the computer science field. The absence of female skills acquisition in technology bodes ill for the future of female leadership in these and other fields.
As information systems impact the lives of all people, a representative group of people is required to build the information systems. An increasingly diverse nation requires information technology that reflects and responds to the varied needs and preferences of its citizenry. The absence of women in technology implies that the technology changing society will have a homogeneous quality that may not engage or improve lives throughout the community.

What can be done to Bridge the Divide?
A number of organizations and individuals are already working to increase female involvement in technology. Efforts generally focus on engaging women at different points in their lives with the benefits of technology and equipping them with the skills to use technology. Specific efforts to bridge the gender divide include:

Changing the content of games and other technology applications to stimulate girl involvement. A number of sites, such as GirlTech and Purple Moon, have targeted games and communication features to engage girls. The sites emphasize interaction with other girls, writing projects, and exercises that enhance Internet skills.
Reorienting education to provide girls increased exposure to science, math, and technology. Organizations, like the American Association of University Women, fund research that ultimately helps educators understand the impact of their biases on girl development. Other foundations, including the Institute for Women and Technology and the Committee on the Status of Women in Computer Science and Engineering, focus resources on women in higher education or professional life and hope to increase female leadership in the technology field.
Improving the public perception of computer scientists. A number of commentators have observed that the general perception of computer scientists as introverted misfits discourages women from exploring the field. Efforts to challenge the computer scientist stereotype and highlight the dynamic personality required in many sectors of the computer industry might foster increased enthusiasm among women.
Developing policies and practices that support the family in higher education and the workplace. Women still bear a disproportionate share of child-rearing responsibilities even in double-income families. Family responsibilities for single mothers make training and education particularly difficult. Efforts to alleviate family duties through subsidized childcare or remote learning should improve the accessibility of technology training to many women.

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