Traversing a Political Pipeline: An Intersectional and Social Constructionist Approach Toward Technology Education for Girls of Color

Abstract

First, this paper argues that applications of SCOT in feminist science and technology studies have largely focused on analyzing how gender and technology are coproduced, resulting in lack of scholarship that examines the mutually constitutive relationship between technology, gender and other intersecting categories, such as race, ethnicity, class, sexual orientation, and ability. Second, this paper argues that an intersectional view of technology can dismantle the language of objectivity deeply embedded in technological artifacts by revealing how identity categories, such as gender, race, and ethnicity, are integral components of “the social shaping of technology” and by extension participation in technological initiatives (Faulkner, p. 90, 2001). Finally, through a brief discussion of CompuGirls, a culturally responsive technology program for girls of color, this paper demonstrates how an intersectional, social constructionist approach to technology education can challenge stereotypes of girls of color as passive victims of technology and provide a counter-narrative that can empower girls of color to form generative relationships with technology.