|
References
This bibliography consists a range of articles that consider aspects of gender and computing in South Africa. If you have an article or document that we can add to this list, please contact us. The items are categorised by type of publication, and within each category they are ordered alphabetically by first author. |
|
The paper discusses a Computer-Based Training (CBT) system used to teach computer literacy to full-time students at the University of Western Cape. The approach was successful in creating computer literate students as well as creating an opportunity for students from previously disadvantaged schools to enter the Computer Science course. 68% of the class was male. The data was not analysed in terms of gender.
240 students from primary and secondary schools in the Western Cape and Gauteng covering all socio-economic groups were surveyed. There were no significant differences in terms of perception of the importance of computers, computer enjoyment and lack of computer anxiety between the male and female students. Female students were significantly more positive about women's ability to use computers. 30% of male students gave a computer-related profession in their three top careers compared to 19% of female students. Male students liked wordprocessing significantly less than female students and female students like communicating with email significantly mnore than male students. There was no significant difference in computing experience and the research showed a positive correlation between experience and attitude. Female students were encouraged in computer use by both their parents, whereas male students where more encouraged by their mothers. Students at the girls-only schools were more positive in their attitudes and women's ability than female students at co-ed schools. No significant differences were found between the students at the boys-only school and the male students at co-ed schools. Male and female students from the two township schools (lower socio-economic status) had less positive attitudes and were less positive about women and computers than the students from the other schools, but were more interested in careers involving computers. Additionally, they had less exposure to computers.
The University of Port Elizabeth has used various selection methods over the previous number of years. This article reports on the findings on setting selection criteria and standards that have been established for 1992 first year Computer Science students using matriculation results. The main objective of the study was to investigate the use of matric marks and a Swedish point-based system to predict first year Computer Science results. A total of 222 students participated in the study, 146 of which were male and 76 female. The selection method did not use gender as a criteria.
Attitudes to computers were measured of two groups of first year university students separated by a period of twelve years (1985 and 1997). Attitudes of students were compared based on their prior experience with computers, their gender and their first language. The 1997 results showed that there was no significant difference on any factor between males and females. The earlier study (Finnie, 1987) indicated very clear differences in that females had less a positive view of computers, a greater fear of computers in society and less technical appreciation of computers.
This paper proposes that the social and ethical implications of computers need to be understood by computer professionals and should be included in undergraduate computing courses. Clarke discusses course content relating to gender under the topic of sociology. He notes that while it may be possible to build a case of discrimination between men and women in physically demanding jobs, it is not possible to do so with more intellectual pursuits such as computing. He points out the fact that computing technology appears to be more accessible to men and hence reinforces male dominance, and notes that it is important to consider why this is the case and how the role of women (in both education and industry) can be recognised and encouraged.
This paper presents a study at a South African university that was previously done in 23 other countries. Students were surveyed in order to compare their levels of technological sophistication and technophobia. Results from the 23 other countries suggest that males are more anxious about computers than females and yet have more positive cognitions about them. In the South African sample males tended to have more positive cognitions about computers than females, and there was not a significant difference in terms of anxiety.
This paper discusses a study of attitude changes toward computers exhibited by novice student users during a first course in Business Computing. Finnie compares the attitudes of females and males before exposure to computers (before the start of the course) and at the end of the course. Females had a less positive view of computers and a higher score on negative aspects before they were exposed to computers. At the end of the course there were no significant differences of any factor between males and females, This was due to strong attitude changes within the male group as they had higher expectations of the value of computers before the course.
This article considers perceptions of Computer Science among first year students and how they change. Female students became significantly more confident of their understanding of the nature of Computer Science, although they remained more uncertain than male students about the content of Computer Science courses. Female students also became more aware of jobs during their first year, although some of these jobs did not require a Computer Science degree. No other changes in perception showed differences between male and female students.
In this paper, the authors consider computer self-efficacy and the contribution it makes to the participation of students in computing. In particular, the paper looks at the relationship between computer self-efficacy and gender and educational background. Studies into self-efficacy were conducted and it was found that male university students had greater feelings of self-efficacy than their female counterparts. In contrast no significant difference in self-efficacy was found between secondary school boys and girls.
This paper presents figures that describe the situation with respect to male and female registration, persistence and success rates in Computer Science at a South African university. The figures indicate that the percentage of female undergraduates has been smaller than that of male undergraduates over the previous few years, at around 25%. It was also found that the persistence rates and pass rates for both female and male undergraduates are similar. The authors suggest that a good understanding of the factors that contribute to this situation is essential in order for the situation to be improved and hence conducted further research which is reported in Sanders and Galpin (1994).
In this article the author looks into the training and employment of IT professionals and discusses the current demographics of the South African IT industry. Demographics show that the number of non-white IT graduates is increasing and that the gender distribution in these groups is even. However, it was found that in the white population group the amount of female IT graduates remains lower than that of males. Only one fifth of white IT graduates are female.
This report discusses the absence of black women from Science and Engineering disciplines as occupations. More than 50% of the South African population is female and most of them remain in service and support occupations. Martineau argues that it will become essential for women to enter the field of science and engineering since economies are becoming more linked to the extensive use of computer-based technologies. Martineau continues to say that parental and societal expectations and beliefs, the lack of suitable role models (as most science teachers are male) and the masculine image of science discourages young women and drives them away from science classes and that creation of a `woman-friendly' environment would help women take their rightful place in science and technology.
This paper is about a study amongst matric students whose aim was to determine whether South African females are more negative towards computers than their male counterparts. Factors that influence attitudes towards computers were explored. It was shown that computer ownership, direct experience and doing mathematics give a positive influence of attitudes towards computers. All students had positive attitudes towards computers, but male students were more positive. Neither male nor female students regards the computer as more suitable for males. There was generally more computer use by male students. It was concluded that more studies are needed to determine other sources' influence and hopefully come up with some guidelines that parents and teachers can use to best prepare children of both sexes for the computerised world.
This article gives the findings of a study performed on matric student in the Western Cape. The aim of the study was to investigate whether and to what extent the attitudes towards computers of students intending to enter a number of different careers (that include computer-related professions) differ and also to test whether attitudes of males and females were the same. It was found that students intending to enter computer-related careers had a better attitude towards computers than the other students. No significant attitudinal differences were found between male and female students.
This paper considers matric scholars in the Western Cape and whether they planned to major in Information Systems or Computer Science. Male students were more interested in Information Systems than female students and female students were more interested in Computer Science than in Information Systems. There was no gender difference in interest in Computer Science. Female students without access to a computer at home were more interested in Information Systems and/or Computer Science than those with access, and lack of access to the Internet was associated with more interest in Information Systems and/or Computer Science for both male and female students.
This paper addresses how the Department of Computer Science in the University of the Witwatersrand attempts to make Computer Science accessible to students who have been disadvantaged by the apartheid system. To achieve this, the department looks into issues relating to gender and race. Previous studies have shown that the perception of Computer Science as male-dominated is one of reasons why a lot of women choose not to study Computer Science. Therefore the department has attempted to make the environment less male-orientated by a careful selection of problems and examples in laboratories and tutorials.
This article is about the implementation of a peer-tutoring programme in which senior students assist first year students by tutoring them on a one-on-one basis. The Department of Computer Science at Wits has found that there are students whose potential to succeed is affected by poor secondary education and lack of exposure to technology. It was also found that some female students did well academically but lacked the skill and familiarity to achieve their full potential. Both mixed-gender and same-gender tutor-tutee pairs were successful, although not every pair was successful.
This article reports on research about attitudes of first year Computer Science and Information Systems students at a residential and a distance-learning university in South Africa. The sample of 561 male students and 511 female students. Female students were found to be more apprehensive about the power of computers and male student held more negative sentiments towards computers. In comparison with the research of Clarke and Finnie (1998), both the male and female students had a greater appreciation of the benefits of computers, less fear of computers and a more realistic understanding of computers.
This paper discusses the development of a user classification model for first year students at the University of Port Elizabeth. The model classifies students into either novice, intermediate, or expert computer users. Students ware asked to complete a tutorial as fast and as accurately as they could. Differences in performance were found and can be attributed to factors such as: previous computer and software experience, attitude towards computers, gender, home language, etc. Male users were found to be faster than their female counterparts. There was no further analysis into gender.
The paper describes research investigating interest in scientific fields of study. Secondary school children at three Afrikaans-medium schools in Pretoria were surveyed. It was found that there was a significant difference between female and male students in terms of interest in computer sciences, with male students having greater interest. There was no significant difference with respect to mathematical sciences.
This paper looks at the problems that occur when diversity is ignored, some techniques of dealing with diversity (especially when using group work) and gives results of case studies where some of these techniques apply. Gender is a source of diversity that can bring problems to group work. Group work is often seen as a positive learning method for females more than for males and gender can be an issue in preference for roles within a group because females may have better social skills and males better technical skills. Cultural influences can be responsible for the way women and men behave in each others' presence and this may cause stereotypical choices or assignments of roles in a group which may result in dissatisfaction of members, complaints or conflicts.
The paper is about a study in a research program aimed at achieving a better fit between university courses and professional practice of information systems. The paper reports the results of a survey of student attitudes towards incentives and conditions of employment. It was found that female students are more attracted to Flexible Working Conditions and Supportive Superiors than male students. There were no significant differences in the other conditions.
The authors investigate whether the majority of South African students can be expected to complete a Computer Science degree within three years. Data was collected from three groups: the first group (UWC CS) consisted of first year students in the UWC three year degree stream; the second group (UCT CS) first year students in the UCT, three year degree stream; and the third group (UCT ADP), first year students in the UCT four year degree stream. It was found that all groups were male dominated with 61% males in UWC CS, 67% the UCT ADP and 75% males in UCT CS. The data was not further analysed in terms of gender.
A software instrument was developed to evaluate students basic computer skills. It was applied to Computer Science and Informatics students at the University of Orange Free State. A test was done to investigate whether and to what extent language of instruction, experience, gender and Spatial Visualisation Ability (SVA) affect a student's computer proficiency and it was found that no single factor is responsible for significant differences in computer proficiency. However, the results showed that experience combined with SVA and either sex or language of instruction is responsible for significant differences. It was found that low SVA, especially in the case of female users could be a hindrance in obtaining a high level computer proficiency.
The original technology acceptance model (TAM) indicates that the three main factors that influence intentions to use technology are: perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and user attitude. In this research, gender and attitude are included in the TAM. This study aims to examine the role of gender on the adoption of the Internet as a learning tool. It was found that perceived usefulness influences males more than females and that user attitude influences females but not males.
This panel discussed the state of women in computing in nine different countries. For each, the major barriers were identified and strategies for going forward were discussed with the audience.
This panel considers what the term computing means to university students who are currently preparing themselves for careers in the computing field. The authors discuss the perceptions of where computing will lead women and the issues that influenced these perceptions. Research was conducted in five universities of five different countries. In South Africa, results showed that most students agree (though there was more disagreement from women) that there are more men than women in the computing field. More male students agreed that it does not matter that there are fewer women than men in the computing field.
This presentation covers international trends, as well as suggested solutions to the shrinking pipeline problem. These trends are related to the situation and current research at the School of Computer Science at the University of the Witwatersrand.
This presentation presents an overview of research in gender and Computer Science at Wits. Additionally, it gives the demographic breakdown of the student population, both in terms of race and gender.
This presentation investigates the perceptions of new students at Wits over the period 1999 to 2002. Over this period, students have become less certain that they know what computer science involves. However, they consistently believe that computer science and maths are closely related and that there are good jobs for people with computer science degrees. Female students appear less certain about the content of computer science, but are definite that the field is not only appropriate for men. Male students are more ambivalent about the field being more appropriate for men.
This panel considers the status of women in computing internationally. The panel aims to increase awareness about the situation of women in computing in different countries, to facilitate interaction between these women, and to introduce the ACM-W Ambassador Program. The statistics indicate low participation by women of South Africa. Suggestions are given on how to increase women's participation in computing.
This paper was a contribution to an event organised by the Oxford Internet Institute, University of Oxford in association with the British Computer Society (BCS) and Association for Computer Machinery (ACM). It highlights the low participation by women in computing, the need for global as well as local strategies, and assessment of strategies to encourage women into computing.
This paper provides an overview of current evaluation techniques in the Department of Information Systems. A survey on students' perception was done to explore the different attitudes towards peer evaluation and feedback. Questionnaires were distributed to first year and second year IS students in order to determine their feelings with regard to evaluation and feedback with respect to presenting a seminar in their third year, The first section of the questionnaire gathered demographic information. It was found that there is an even balance between male and female respondents with 53% males and 47% females. The data was not analysed further in terms of gender
This paper considers computing and programming self-efficacy differences between male and female students. Few differences were found. In terms of computing gender stereotypes, the female students rejected those that were negative of women and accepted those that were positive, and the male students did the opposite. The relevance of female head of households was also considered.
This research reports on a survey into the perceptions of students of e-Learning. The sample consisted of 108 men and 57 women. No further analysis was done by gender.
This article is about a survey among first year science students at a South African university whose aim was to determine why a smaller percentage of Computer Science I students were female. Questionnaires were used to obtain information about students exposure to computers, possible role models in their families, their attitudes to computers and to preconceptions about computer science. Results showed that male students who are registered for Computer Science I had more informal exposure to computers and felt comfortable using them while their female counterparts were less confident and more likely to have gained exposure through formal channels. Females who are not registered for Computer Science I had the least exposure (except for computer games), had negative perceptions and gave the impression that they were not clear on the content of computer science while males not registered for Computer Science I also had low levels of exposure and negative perceptions. Female students seemed to be more influenced by role models than males although those who chose Computer Science I are more likely to have male family role models. Female role models seemed to be influential to those female students who chose not to do Computer Science I.
In this document, the authors investigate attitudes that entry-level university students may have regarding computers. The attitudes of female and male students, students that speak English or Afrikaans and those that speak other indigenous languages and other groups of students are compared to determine if significant differences exist among these students. It was found that females were more fearful of computer power than their male counterparts. No other significant differences were found with respect to gender.
This paper aims to introduce Honours Start-up Week program, a program offered by the Rhodes University Department of Information Systems, and to provide some insight into the success of the program to date. Honours Start-up Week is designed to help students become appropriately equipped to deal with a variety of non-technical issues that will provide them with many challenges about their careers. Demographic details of the Rhodes University Information Systems honours class show that the number of female students has been less than that of male students since the beginning of the honours course in 1991 to 1998, ranging from 0% (1996) to 50% (1991) with no clear trend. The average was 25%.
This research investigates preferences for concept mapping versus standard hyperlinks. The sample consisted of 23 Masters students: 4 female and 19 male. The female sample was too small to allow for conclusions about gender differences in preference. The male students appeared to prefer concept mapping.
This report considers the situation of women in science in South Africa, and highlights their low participation. Of the fields considered, Computer Science had the highest participation by women as instruction staff in higher education (46%) and as research staff (41%). A graph of participation by subfield can be found on the Statistics page.
The report presents a method of assessing the participation and performance of women in science and technology. The authors propose a number of constructs that can be used for measurement and highlight the differences between monitoring and evaluation.
This report profiles a number of industries from their Employment Equity Act company reports. ISETT covers the Information Systems, Electronic and Telecommunications Technologies industry, and this includes computing companies. In 2000, women made up 14.4% of top managers, 20.9% of senior managers, 24.0% of the professionally qualified, 27.9% of skilled employees, 40.9% of semi-skilled employees and 24.8% of unskilled employees. Overall, 32% of employees reported on in this industry were female, with 28% of skilled staff female and 23% of management female. The recruitment, termination and promotion rates were higher for male employees.
This report has three main components: a general literature review of reasons for why there are gender imbalances in computer science and what can be done to overcome these imbalances, statistics describing the gender imbalances in Computer Science at the University of the Witwatersrand, and finally a discussion of what can be done in South Africa, including an analysis of an innovative first year Computer Science course at Wits which moves away from the traditional introduction to programming approach.
This paper is a more detailed version of the journal article (Galpin et al, 2003). Here the authors give more details of the studies they conducted in exploring the issue of computer self-efficacy and its relationship to gender and educational background. The findings were: students that had prior programming experience had higher self-efficacy, predicted that they would succeed, and succeeded with higher marks; students with no experience were more negative about their course-specific abilities; female students that had no prior programming experience had lower self-efficacy.
This report represents the research findings at the University of Witwatersrand into how the perceptions of Computer Science students change during their first year. The research highlights that many students do not have a clear understanding of what Computer Science entails. Gender differences are also considered in the report. Female students became more confident about their understanding of the nature of Computer Science, although for all students, there was not a noticeably deeper understanding when asked about specifics. Female students also became more aware of female Computer Scientists. When asked gender-related questions, there was a slight tendency for the response to be more sexist later in year, indicating a possible change in attitudes during the year.
This report supplements the results of the gender research (Herbert, 2000) investigating first year Computer Science students at a South African university. Gender and population group figures are considered in this report. Analysis of the data was broken into three components, namely: the absence of female role models, the perception of Computer Science as a male dominion and the perception that there are limited careers for women in Computing. The report contains full details of the results.
This report is about research conducted into the low percentage of female students enrolling for Computer Science in a South African University. The hypothesis of the research was that the lack of positive women role models in Computer Science has entrenched the stereotype of Computer Science as a male domain and encouraged the belief that Computer Science careers for women are limited. Results showed that there is a lack of positive female role models in Computer Science and that the Computer Science field remains male-dominated and hence the the hypothesis was accepted. It was found, however, that both male and female students agree that women can learn and understand Computer Science if they choose to.
This paper gives the initial overview of information and telecommunications (IT) facilities and applications, the IT human resource and IT policy initiatives in South Africa (SA). Issues such as the IT infrastructure of SA, the application of IT in major economic areas, and IT human resources are discussed. Statistics on the size and make up of the IT community are given and distortions based on race are highlighted. In 1992, 67.5% of IT professionals were male, and 82.8% of IT managers were male. This paper also gives assessment and commentary on the level of computer literacy in the population of SA.
This book presents remuneration figures for graduates in South Africa. It gives figures for various computer and IT related jobs, as well as average pay for men and women.
This book presents remuneration figures for graduates in South Africa. It gives figures for various computer and IT related jobs, as well as average pay for men and women.
This document presents a comprehensive review of the status of women in ICT in South Africa. It covers defining the ICT sector, ICT education, ICT statistics, the ICT workplace, and support for women in ICT. A related publication is (James et al, 2006).
This documents six possible interventions to improve the status of women in ICT: a resource centre, strengthening research capacity in the area of women and ICT, improved measurement of ICT statistics, training programmes for teachers, training programmes for young women, and ways to disseminate information about ICT. A related publication is (James et al, 2006).
This report presents research into why women do or do not study computing. The sample consisted of male and female students, who were mostly BCom students, and were divided into those taking computing to degree level and those that were not. It was found that female students had less experience with computers and were less confident, but had more exposure to educational applications. Female students who had done computing at school were more likely to take it at university. Female students did not consider computing professionals to be mainly male, but male students did. Female students did not consider computing to be mathematical, were not discouraged by their parents and did not feel there were a lack of role models.
No information currently available
This book chapter considers the supply of ICT workers in South Africa. The authors highlight the difficulties in obtaining the data. The percentage of ICT management staff who are women is found to be 13% and the percentage of ICT skilled workers who are women is found to be 21%.
This document is a condensed version of the full report.
This report provides a policy framework for gender and race in SET (science, engineering and technology). The goal is to ensure that women are able to fully participate in SET and that they benefit from it. A specific aim is to achieve gender partity by 2020 and as a milestone to this goal increase the number of women in the SET workforce by 3000 by the year 2014. The report identifies barriers: historical aspects, specifically, apartheid; gender stereotyping; barriers in education; and barriers in the workplace. It also emphasises the importance of measuring progress.
The aim of this report is to describe the current status of the IT industry. As part of the report, a survey was done of jobs and skills in the industry. In chapter 13, the results are broken down by gender for a number of different areas of IT. Computer architecture and hardware had the lowest percentage of women (13.7%) and IT education, training and development had the highest (39.2%) with End User Computing (36.4%) and Information Technology Sales and Marketing (36,1%) also high. However, the highest percentage was in the unspecified category (47,1%). The percentage for the total sample was 27.2%. Gender breakdown is also given by province.
This report provides feedback from two workshops held to examine issues for South African women with respect to their involvement in ICT. The workshops considered women participating in the ICT industry, women using ICT, policy and legislation, and development. Each of these categories was broken down into subcategories and an analysis of each subcategory in terms of challenges, threats and opportunities was presented. Full details are given in the report.
This document presents statistics obtained from the National Learners' Records Database (NLRD), and profiles higher education in South Africa over a ten year period. The data has been compared to the SAPSE system which was published by the Department of Education. Included are the graduation trends according to gender in both universities and technikons. To view selected figures from this report go to the Statistics page.
This book compiles figures for University graduates in South Africa across a range of disciplines. It considers gender, race, type of qualification, province and trends. The figures for Computer Science and Information Technology are summarised and discussed on the Statistics page.
This report describes research conducted on the factors that affect the achievement of first year Computer Science students in the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits). The research examined the relationship between self-efficacy, prior programming experience and gender. On gender and self- efficacy it was found that female students were less confident in their ability to use computers in general. It was further observed that female students have lower self-efficacy beliefs for overall achievement in all parts (i.e. both the theoretical and practical aspects) of the first year course.
This report presents research that investigated the perceptions of South African school children of the field of computer science. Perceptions of women in computing were investigated. The results showed that girls felt that the field of computing was more male-oriented than boys did. Also, girls from the girls-only school felt that computing is more male-oriented than the girls at the co-ed school. There were no significant differences between girls' and boys' self-efficacy levels even though girls from the co-ed school had a higher level of computer self-efficacy than those from the girls-only school. 48.98% of the boy intended to study computer science while only 18.42% of the girls have the same intention. Girls were found to have less computer experience compared to the boys.
This document dsecribes the current state of the ISETT sector of industry. This covers Information Systems, Electronic and Telecommunications Technologies and includes computing companies as well as other companies. For the companies surveyed, of their technical employees, 23.8% were female, and of their non-technical employees, 51.5% were female. Educational institutions were also surveyed and 54% of students studying subjects in the ISETT area were female. For university undergraduate degrees, 49% of students were female, and for diplomas, 41.6% of students were female.
This article describes a programme whose aim is to make technology accessible to South African women in business. This programme was launched by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and the Department of Arts, Culture, Science and Technology. The programme called `Technology for Women in Business' aims to use technology to create quality and sustainable jobs in South Africa. Part of the programme is to encourage young women to enter the field of science and technology. Ambassadors for the programme will be selected from women who have successfully integrated technology into their business, through an awards giving ceremony that will be held each year.
This article consider women in technology in South Africai, and the fact that there are few women in senior management of technology companies. It also highlights individual women working in these areas.
This is the central article for a cover story on women in the new economy. It mentions declining number of women IT graduates in South Africa. Other articles give brief interviews with top women in IT in South Africa.
This article touches on different problems that have been encountered within the Information technology (IT) Industry with regards to the employment and training of new black IT professionals. The article also provides some statistics from large IT companies that compare the percentage of employees classified by gender and race.
Total IT Staff Males Females Black 11.18% 14.62% Coloured 12.76% 5.38% Asian 15.08% 6.38% White 60.98% 73.62%
Management Males Females Black 1.69% 5.04% Coloured 12.85% 0.3% Asian 13.31% 3.14% White 72.15% 91.53%
This article discusses research into South Africa's IT industry done by Forge Ahead BMITechKnowledge. The research showed that only 11% of black IT professionals are women, and that black technology companies' turnover was less than 12.5% of the total industry turnover.
|
[ Home |
Programs |
Statistics |
References |
Conferences |
Other Resources |
Contact Details ]
|