Questioning Gender and Technology Use

Have I observed differing gender approaches in the way students use present classroom technology?

  

I am a Grade 6 classroom teacher. Currently I have 15 students, 9 girls and 6 boys. Within my classroom students have access to 6 iPads, 5 desktops, and 4 netbooks. My students are not assigned to a specific device and may choose the device that best fits their abilities, comfort level, interest level, and need. Students may also bring their own device to class to use in the learning process.

These are the observations I made in during a one week period on students' approach to technology use within the classroom:

Approach to Technology	Girls	Boys	Additional Comment
BYOT	3 bring their own laptops, 1 of which also brings their iPod. They all access the curriculum using these devices; however they also access personal content during free time.	0 boys.	1 boy did bring his own tablet, however stopped since he found using the class desktops easier and more functional.
Desktops	2 use them fairly regularly, mainly to access Moodle and for word processing. These same girls will occasionally play Club Penguin during free time.	3 use them daily to access Moodle, for word processing, and web searches. 2 separate boys will play Club Penguin during free time almost daily.	The 2 boys using desktops daily previously used iPads and netbooks; the 3rd use to bring is own tablet.
iPads	3 use iPads on a regular basis for curricular use. Outside of curricular use, these girls frequently use the iPads camera features.	2 regularly use iPads for curricular use. During free time one frequently uses the iPads educational apps.	The boys gravitated more to the iPads at the beginning of the year. Now it appears the girls have a higher interest mainly due to the iPads camera technology.
Netbooks	2 use these regularly, mainly to access Moodle and for word processing.	2 use these regularly, mainly to access Moodle and for word processing.	There doesn’t seem to be as strong of a connection between students and netbooks as with the other devices.
Free Time Use	Club Penguin, iPad Camera, Music	Club Penguin, Surfing for Images of Cars & Snowmobiles	Many of these types of differences would be seen regardless if technology was involved or not.

When looking at technological knowledge on any of these devices or software, neither boys nor girls seem to hold an advantage. There is also not a defining separation in the displayed confidence level of use with both sexes sharing knowledge and ideas equally and freely.

With many of the examples of technology use by students, it is difficult to say for certain if this is due to gender or other variables such as access, age, maturity level, interest, or skill set.

Over the past months much of the novelty of having one-to-one computer devices has worn off. These devices have now become another way for the students to access the curriculum, much the same way as textbooks and teacher instruction.

 Does the type of technology being used make a difference in gender neutrality?  Have circumstances in computer mediation changed in the last ten years?

Firstly, technology integration in the classroom has to be sanctioned by school administration, district, and province, either through stated policy or through what has become acceptable practice. Within the classroom, technology use and integration lies in the domain of the teacher. It is teacher directed to meet the goals and objectives outline by the Provincial curriculum. From my experience, although there may be some differences in integration and use of technology from student to student, this difference is due to individual needs and not gender motivated.

When given the choice, gender often does affect how students interact with and utilize technology. For generations and generations, our society has promoted and encouraged gender differences, ingraining these beliefs almost to the core of our being. Many researchers note that girls tend to be not as confident as boys when using technology and the boys are more willing to explore the limits of technology without guidance. Why should this be surprising with regards to technology when historically we as a culture have instilled risked taking behaviour in males, while at the same time imparting in females the necessity of nurturing and playing it safe.

Throughout history many innovations in technology have been the result of risk taking behaviour of males. This is much the same with computer technology. Unintentionally or not, society of the time saw computers as a mainly male domain and many of the resulting spin-off technologies were male focused.

Today, we still see remnants of these antiquated beliefs, although it is quickly fading. When given the choice, gender often does affect how students interact with and utilize technology. Boys tend more frequently be attracted to gaming that promotes competition and risk taking. They tend to be more confident when interacting with technology and will to explore and take risks. Girls tend to gravitate more to social networking and collaboration. They also tend to follow guidelines and procedures of using computer technology more closely and not stray outside of these parameters. This is a result of socialization and not genetically predetermined behaviour.

Although today our society has become more aware of the inequalities and injustices created by beliefs regarding male and female role identities, we do not have to look far to see propaganda that still promotes separate identities and roles for males and females. The helpless Princess Peach must still be rescued by the mustache touting hero Mario even 30 years later.

But times are changing. Females no longer see themselves as needing a male provider or protector (sorry Mario). Females are encouraged to believe in themselves and that anything is possible, to take risks and be proud of their accomplishments. Although gender differences are still visible they are quickly changing. The technological advancements made in the modern, post-industrial society have been tremendous.

Hanna Rosin, in the article The End of Men (July/August 2010 Atlantic Magazine), questioned if the modern, post-industrial society might simply be better suited to women. To back up this view she notes that in 2010, women for the first time in U.S. history became the majority of the workforce. She also points out that most managers are now women and that for every two men graduating with a college degree in 2010, three women will do the same.

In many ways, gender has become less of a moot point - in society in general and specifically with regards to the use of technology.

  

Do females participate differently when on-line?

From personal experience, I have noticed that many men use the Internet differently than their female partners. My experience is supported by the June 2012 article The Internet – Men and Women Have Different Preferences by MNT Medical News Today. Based on research over the past 10 years, men were more likely to visit entertainment, games and music websites. On the other hand, women spent more time checking out social networking sites.

In the September 2012 article, More Women On Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest Than Men, Britney Fitzgerald reported that there are significant difference in how men and women use social networking sites. According to marketing firm Digital Flash NY, women make up 64% of Facebook users, 58% of Twitter users, and 82% of Pinterest users. Although women’s majority share of the social networking market has widened in the past few years, they don’t dominate every site. Men make up 71% of Google+, 84% of the social news site Reddit, and 63% of the professional networking site Linked In.

Based on informal observations this trend appears to be similar with school age students. When given the choice to choose an online activity, boys were more likely to visit games and entertainment websites. Girls on the other hand often choose websites that had a higher social interaction content.

Do I agree with the views and steps that need to be taken to insure gender equality in use of computer technology?

We have come a long way towards gender equality in use of computer technology. This is highlighted in the hottest trend in computing – mobile devices. For a three month period ending June 2012, TechCrunch researched the tablet and Smartphone audience, age 13 years and older. The results (below) show very little difference between males and females across devices.

This trend toward gender equality is also visible in online use. In the article Boys, Girls and Computers: Gender Differences in Technology Usage (October, 2012), Bobby Miller recognizes the gender gap in online use, however he is quick to point out that this gap is increases with the age of the individuals studied. For example, 34% of men over age 65 use the Internet compared to 21% of women in the same age group. These people grew up in an era that was more gendered and less technological than recent generations. This clearly influences their views on technology, as gender differences in Internet usage fall drastically when looking at the total population. Specifically, 68% of males and 66% of females in the U.S. access the Internet regularly. Miller also looked at trends in new tech gadget use. When considering the traditional gamer, 60% are male and 40% are female. Comparing this to the mobile social gamer, we see a significant reduction, and even reversal, of this gender gap with 47% being male and 53% female.

As the January 2012 article, Survey: Women Closing Computer Gender Gap by Greg Risling, clearly points out, women are closing the gender gap when it comes to computer use. A record 78.5% of first-year students said they regularly used computers before attending college. Breaking this down based on gender the figures for women and men were 77.8% and 79.5% respectively. The evidence appears point toward an ever shrinking gender gap.

But Risling delves a little deeper to look at what is happening behind the scenes. Although the use of computers is nearly the same, women were half as likely as men to rate their computer skills as above average, and were five times less likely to pursue careers in computer programming – 9.3% compared to 1.8%. In a work force increasingly dependent on technological proficiency, women’s relative lack of computing confidence is likely to place them at a disadvantage.

As a society, it is our responsibility to identify areas of gender inequalities and work to remedy these disparities.