David Redden’s Post

The number of girls in England studying for a GCSE in computing has more than halved in less than a decade, according to research by King’s College London, prompting warnings about the “dominance of men in shaping the modern world”. In numerical terms, 40,000 female students took ICT GCSE in 2015, with a further 5,000 taking computer science. In 2023, with ICT no longer available, just 18,600 females took computer science. Asked to give their reasons, girls who chose not to study it said they did not enjoy computer science, or it did not fit in with their career plans. How can we encourage more female students to consider technical sciences? https://bit.ly/3VM0882 #ReedEducation #Education #ComputerScience #GCSEs #Computing #Schools

🤔 Are men going to continue to dominate the Tech world? Last week The Guardian shared that the number of girls in England studying for a GCSE in computing has more than halved. This decline was since the Government changed "ICT" to "Computer Science". Girls have said that computer science does not fit with their career plans. We've heard similar statements through our work at InnovateHer - but we also know that students lack understanding about what they can do with a subject like computer science. We need better information, industry support and guidance. We need to bring the curriculum to life. This is what we do. What are your thoughts about computer science GCSE and the change that was made from ICT many years ago? Share them below 👇 https://lnkd.in/e7mX36uC #Education #Tech #ComputerScience #Inclusion #DiversityinTech

I am interested to hear the findings from the latest SCARI computing report today at King's College London - worrying but not suprising reports of a decrease in girls taking a computing related GCSE. What do we need? ✅ Real world applications of computing skills ✅ Meaningful projects that link directly to the world around us ✅ Creativity and collaboration Our computing curriculum in England purpose of study embodies these things but they are getting lost and it is putting a wide range of learners off the subject. There aren’t any opportunities for a broader computing GCSE so the experience gets narrowed at KS3. We can do better! We will do better! See a summary in the Guardian: https://lnkd.in/e5rB-wPi #Inclusion #Computing

Extract-Number of girls in England taking computing GCSE plummets, study finds The number of girls in England studying for a GCSE in computing has more than halved in less than a decade, prompting warnings about the “dominance of men in shaping the modern world”. The sharp decline in female participation follows government qualification changes that led to the scrapping of the old information communication technology (ICT) GCSE and its replacement with a new computer science GCSE. While the government’s reforms were aimed at creating “more academically challenging and knowledge-based” qualifications, the introduction of the new syllabus has had the unintended consequence of driving female entries down, according to new research by King’s College London… “However, these successes have coincided with a general decline in computing and digital skills education at the secondary school level, particularly affecting girls, certain ethnic groups and students from underserved socioeconomic backgrounds,” it said. The report included a series of recommendations calling for urgent reform of the curriculum, better support for computing teachers and a change to the “current narrative around computing to focus beyond male tech entrepreneurs”. Its authors warned: “The lack of women in computing may lead to heightened vulnerabilities and the dominance of men in shaping the modern world.”.. https://lnkd.in/eRjUtjHs

The Guardian has highlighted a worrying trend on the uptake of GCSE Computer Science amongst females in this article: https://lnkd.in/euTdP8gh With a couple of quotes standing out: “...the introduction of the new syllabus has had the unintended consequence of driving female entries down, according to new research by King’s College London.” Also: “...In 2015 43% of candidates for ICT GCSE were female, compared with just 21% of those who took GCSE computer science in 2023….” Senior figures within the educational field of computing are urging curriculum reform, noting that many students perceive Computer Science as ‘difficult’ and that the overt focus on programming skills might be deterring girls from taking it up. Dr Peter Kemp also notes that we need to encourage girls to take up the subject and to allow them to develop the sort of digital skills that they will need in the future. What do we think about this? I taught the old ICT curriculum for many years, and yes it was very MS Office-heavy but it could also be very motivational and was a popular choice for girls. Have we gone too far down the road of programming just for the sake of it, making it the preserve of ‘geeky’ males? Are there any home schoolers who are attempting the GCSE in Computer Science who can vouch for it?!

An interesting article in The Guardian highlights the drop in girls taking GCSE computer science... "In 2015: 43% of candidates for ICT GCSE were female, compared with just 21% of those who took GCSE computer science in 2023. In numerical terms, 40,000 female students took ICT GCSE in 2015, with a further 5,000 taking computer science. In 2023, with ICT no longer available, just 18,600 females took computer science." 😲 We employ brilliant women and proudly support the CyberFirst Girls' Competition, a great initiative to encourage girls to take up computer science - but this can only reach so far. Wondering what small changes many people in our industry could make in encouraging girls to consider a future in tech. 🤔

What’s in a name? A lot apparently, indeed, the power to alienate a huge part of our society from being prepared for work.   The article tells us in 2015, 43% of ICT GCSE candidates were female and now only 23% are taking the ‘new’ Computer Science GCSE. This is so significant that it made me upset, angry, and in despair, and there has to be immediate action to stop this trend. There does appear to be a direct link as suggested by The Guardian, between the change of GCSE courses and the massive drop off in girls taking a technology GCSE. It appears that the title ‘Computer Science’ has really put them off, in their thousands! There are two significant consequences here, first, as outlined by the article, that there will be a disproportionate number of men designing and ‘shaping the modern world’, and this is going to have consequences. Secondly, we are not preparing a significant (perhaps say at least 50% of the population) to do their jobs once they leave school, as so many roles now need computing skills of one kind or another. Girls could therefore already be at a disadvantage when they leave school.    I have certainly seen the difference when a team is described as Digital as opposed to IT. The former attracts so many more women. The term 'digital' helps everyone understand there are a breadth of roles within business and technology teams, it’s not just about data science or pure programming!   We all need to notice that these small things matter and try much harder. https://lnkd.in/eBB3Rt9x

The switch from ICT GCSE to Computer Science has seen the proportion of girls taking it plummet. 📉 According to this article, “In 2015 43% of candidates for ICT GCSE were female, compared with just 21% of those who took GCSE computer science in 2023.” 👩🏻💻 The tech field heavily skews away from women, and one part of that is lack of girls choosing to take these subjects and enter the field. For an equitable future, we need to find a way to encourage our girls to consider technology as a viable career. https://lnkd.in/eXeFtNmk

This article says In 2015 43% of candidates for ICT GCSE were female, compared with just 21% of those who took GCSE computer science in 2023. What are secondary schools and primary schools doing to encourage girls to have confidence in their computing skills? This is a case of curriculum development AND parent and teacher attitudes to what girls can and cannot do because they are girls. And of course the boys in their schools telling girls they can’t do it cos they’re girls.

Need to find a way to get more girls taking GCSE COMPUTER SCIENCE. Number of girls in England taking computing GCSE plummets, study finds https://lnkd.in/ec-Vx6w2