An examination of belongingness and confidence among female computer science students

Abstract

Feelings of isolation as one of few women in her undergraduate computer science program motivated lead author Pooja Sankar to create Piazza, a free discussion tool for STEM students. Piazza researchers recently completed an exhaustive study on more than 1 million student enrollments over a two-year period and found that feelings of isolation, as exhibited by a measurable gap in willingness to ask and answer course-related questions openly, persist among many female computer science and STEM students today. Female STEM students studied were both less likely to answer course-related questions and more likely to use an anonymity tool than their male peers. Undergraduate female students studying humanities, social sciences and business did not demonstrate the same gap. This paper reviews the findings of the study as well as related research both on the causes of isolation in the classroom as well as potential solutions to address it.