The Little Girl Geek Wants to Play

Jennifer Argüello

{SheCodes} Conference

August 9, 2013

Your First Geek Moment

A Computer Scientist is Born

~10 million HS Students

State of US CS K12 Ed

Women in Computing

Deterrents from computing

Irrelevant curriculum

Lecture based instruction instead of project-based

Teaching styles that discourage collaboration

Failure proof environments

Absence of role models and mentors

Limited visibility or inaccurate perceptions of computing careers

Are we doomed?

The Future is NOW

CS in the classroom

CS 101

Benefits

Just showing you exist goes a long way

Engaging and teaching youth grows your facilitation skills and increases subject area mastery

You become a better learner and problem solver

They inspire you more than you think you inspire them

YOU ARE CREATING THE CHANGE YOU WANT TO SEE!

How to get involved?

Volunteer for programs

Ask your company for financial and in-kind support of CS schools and programs

Be a mentor

Advocate for CS Certification and adoption of CS curriculum standards

Let the Little Girl (or Boy) Geek

Play

Thank you!

www.jenniferarguello.comjarguello@gmail.com

@engijen

Exposure to Computer Science Matters

Students that take the AP CS Exam are 8 times more likely to major in CS

Summer of 2010, Googlers were surveyed98% of CS majors exposed to CS before college vs.

45% of the non-CS majorsCS majors more likely to have known CS was a

possible career path when in high school