Gender-related effects of computer and information literacy education

Abstract

In the school year 1993-94 a new subject, Information and computer literacy' (ICL), was introduced in lower secondary education in the Netherlands. This article reports on a study of the effects of the curriculum materials used and of teaching behaviour in ICL lessons on changes in girls' and boys' attitudes towards computers, knowledge about ICL , and future plans. A second question focuses on the gender-linked ideas about the subject developed by pupils during ICL lessons. Students appear to enter the classroom with gender-linked patterns of behaviour and attitudes, but education plays an important role. After the course the differences in knowledge between girls and boys have diminished. However, the course was not able to remove gender differences in attitudes. Moreover, for students who worked with a non-genderinclusive method, gender differences in attitudes increased. The events and experiences in the classroom contribute to the extension of gender-specific repertoires of pupils.