The Socialization of Females

Sub-Question Ten

Sub-question ten inquires, "What obstacles did/do these women face in their technology-related career paths?" The responses indicated that some participants had to surmount many impediments. Socioeconomic difficulties, struggles with depression, or low self-esteem proved to be barriers for many of them. Eleven of the twelve participants indicated a drop in self-esteem during their adolescent years. These experiences parallel developmental research, which indicated that during girls' middle school years, many experience depression including suicidal ideation (Gilligan, 1990; Kantrowitz & Kalb, 1998; Mann, 1994). These experiences also call for continued attention to girls' vulnerable middle school years, and for educators to find methods to encourage girls' MST studies during this crucial time.

In terms of restraints, bias was a formidable opponent. All participants dealt with at least one occurrence. Some incidences were blatant and overt, such as Jo's loss (in the 1970's) of a full mathematics scholarship to college when the funding committee realized she was a woman. Jo noted, "It was awful. But what was really awful was that my parents were embarrassed that since I was a girl I shouldn't be doing this." On the other hand, most participants discussed the more pervasive subtle gender bias found in today's MST environments. Rachel noted, "In graduate school our instructors would often refer to the men by the last name…like Resnick thinks…whereas with the women it was…Rachel thinks. The ideas of men were already classified as having authority." Such descriptions of overt and subtle bias reiterate gender equity literature that indicated female students have a significantly broader spectrum of problems in MST environments than do their male counterparts, and that simplistic remedies will be ineffective in closing this gap (Canada & Brusca, 1991; Fennema, 1993; Hesse-Biber & Gilbert, 1994). On an incident-by-incident basis, micro inequities may frequently appear to be negligible. Some participants even prefaced certain remarks by noting that some experiences might not be "significant." However, I found that incidences of subtle bias were all too often a part of the collective experience on an ongoing basis, and need to be addressed.

Finally, a plurality of these women have experienced, or are currently experiencing, conflict in terms of family and career choices. This is typified by Marie, who remarked,

I'm in a profession that completely feeds on knowing what the latest and greatest is…yet my opportunities for those are limited. (As a single parent) I don't have a lot of outside learning time. And I'm not willing to sacrifice my parenting responsibilities. So I find myself in a position of always being behind.

This section looked at the ten sub-questions individually. Next, the overarching question and sub-questions in the aggregate will be discussed. In forming this overview, links are made to previous research. In addition, consideration of new findings will be incorporated.

Overarching Question & Discussion

In the investigation of internal and/or external factors that aided the participants' success in technological environments, or hindered their progress, the following representative topics from the literature can be linked to specific data from this study.

1. Role models and mentors are important motivators (Bandura, 1986).
2. Same-sex role models are important to counteract stereotypes (Cobble, 1980; Maccoby & Jacklin, 1974).
   
3. Collaborative, cooperative learning environments work well for female students (Rosser, 1989).
   
4. Scaffolding is important to encourage risk-taking (Vygotsky, 1978).
   
5. Reality based assignments work well for female students (Hesse-Biber & Gilbert, 1994; Rosser, 1989).
   
6. Video game playing aids in developing technology skills (Provenzo, Jr., 1992). Play activities are often effective learning environments (Pellegrini, 1995).
   
7. The perseverance in mastering a challenge depends on whether the activity is perceived as personally satisfying (Cope & Kalantzis, 1990; Leper, 1985; Keller & Suzuki, 1988).
   
8. Quiet reflection aids in cognitive growth (Dewey, 1938).
   

In addition to the above, other themes emerged that offer slightly different explanations for why these participants excelled in MST environments. For example, each had either (1) a strong constructive and creative impulse to make things; and/or (2) a cognitive impulse to find out "how things work." In this regard, fathers, male peers, or siblings were especially important as role model/mentors in tinkering environments. When one looks at tinkering activities and the way these experiences aided the participants' MST knowledge growth, one cannot underestimate the power of a child's (especially a girl) playing with gadgets and gizmos. Sissy remarked, "I took physics classes because I could play with all those machines…making things happen."