SOME EXTRACTED POINTS FROM

Treu, K. and A. Skinner (2002). Ten Suggestions for a Gender-Equitable CS Classroom, inroads SIGCSE Bulletin, 34(2):165-167. Previously published in The Journal of Computing in Small Colleges, 12(2):244-248, 1996.

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Ten suggestions for creating an inviting, nurturing environment for women in the discipline of computer science:

• Address female students by name as often as men are addressed by name

• Establish eye contact equally with men and women

• Avoid gesturing more often when men respond to questions or make comments

• Refrain from interrupting female students more often than males

• Allow women as much time to answer questions as the men are allowed

• In those instances when a woman can't answer a question, do not regularly go to a man with the assumption of getting the correct answer

• Offer hands-on experience and spend time teaching the basic to reduce anxiety throughout

• Explain the relevance of labs, assignments and lecture material to other areas or disciplines

• Discuss issues involving the ethics of programming

• Emphasize the positive social benefits of computing