SESSION THREE - WOMEN AND MINORITIES
Responses by category/topic
Q 1) What can you do with
few resources?
Recruitment
- more trips to High Schools providing information
to students about computer science field
- outreach to High Schools
- inviting high school students for informative
presentations on computer science (this includes displaying selected final
year projects)
á
encourage (explicitly)
individual students to study CS
Addressing non-traditional
Students
- increasing minority groups to computer science program
through different approach
- improve teaching in general: should benefit women
more
Curriculum
- CS 1 and CS 2 courses being taught with more
attention & to the student [H&K interpretation: 2 independent
ideas: higher priority on CS1 & CS2, and more attention to students]
- background - knowledge preparation
Faculty beyond the
classroom/mentoring
- start advising majoring from the first semester
and establish close relations with the students. Make them comfortable to
come & talk to you.
Student tracking
- track performance (grades) by sex - possibly
curve independently
- need tracking data on retention Ð snapshots and
long term
Institution wide
- CSU Departments can work together - share the
limited resources
Student Involvement
á
ask students what should
be done
á
encourage students to
volunteer to help mentor, could be self sustaining over time
á
invite student input
& buyin
- give students credits to do something (department
service = credit)
á
fireÐup students to do
something
á
units of independent
study (or class projects) based in the problem to animate student passions and
research
Social Networks
- we have a service learning requirements, develop
a good "ROLE" model group
- leverage student organizations like SWE Ð
encouragement suggested projects, É (LUG?) Faculty discuss issues to come
up with a list of priorities - appoint a student committee to research
and report with recommendations to the faculty (can get students
involved in Dept. issues increase "ownership". encourage student
discussion of issues)
- start a support group
- ACM-W club/society
- start an ACM-W chapter
- focus group Ð done well
- idea of encouraging more
social interaction, study groups
Q 2) What are the barriers
to doing these?
- IRB Ð Human Subject
á
don't know exactly what
to do
á
background in social
science research methods (lack of)
THEME
- LACK OF RESOURCES
á
lack of money and
commitment (of State/Admin)
á
Time
á
Time
- lack of time and other needed support
- professor/student TIME is prioritized with survival
- assign more advising release time to faculty
THEME
Ð CULTURAL BARRIERS
- convince the majority of students that they need
to contribute to their own education
- how to make that (ACM-W) club
a vibrant social force
- but what if students donÕt
participate (in ACM-W chapter)? (wide fluctuations in regular club participation)
- how do, again, so attractive to
students (study groups, social)?
á
cultural issues both
students and faculty are major barriers
- the Department Chair needs to
make a commitment to diversity