Slashdot Mirror
Young Women Encouraged to Go For IT
An anonymous reader writes "Wednesday Microsoft Canada's vice president of developer and platform evangelism encouraged 9th grade girls to head for an IT career with a presentation that debunked key myths. Apparently IT isn't geeky or socially isolating. From the article: "Some issues (the girls) brought up included fears that their friends will think (working in IT) is a geeky thing to do, and that IT work is not very social...They were concerned that there were limitations for women in this area of technology, and they felt there is a stigma associated with IT in terms of it not being a very exciting place to work."
I can't believe these are even real concerns among women. Why does your profession have to seem cool to other people? You do stuff because you think there's a challenge there or if it's interesting. Who cares what your friends think? What the f is wrong with women in the US and Canada? If they think like this, I almost don't even want them in the IT industry. I want free thinkers.
Anyone who's studied even a bit of psychology and perhaps some communications will realize male's and female's naturally excel in certain area's and are also drawn to those things. There's a REASON why you don't see many girl geeks... why try to force this on them by basically lying about it?
While it may just be "stigmata" about the socially isolating aspects, it surely isn't about the "boring" aspects. I promise you my girlfriend just wouldn't ever enjoy spending 6 hours recompiling and securing a *nix system. Where as I find it to be quite relaxing and a fun challenge at times.
Maybe it's just Canadian specifics, but I am still
yet to meet qualified professional programmer who
is unemployed. Not self-taught 'PHP hacker' or half-
baked VB 'programmer', but a CS graduate with decent
diploma and a hint of passion for IT.
...you should focus on being a careful thinker.
That would include, for example, not drawing inferences about "women in the US and Canada" based upon the reported meanderings of 14 year olds.
Why?
I won't let my daughter go into IT if I have any say. If you don't go into IT management, your options shrink when you get into your mid 40's and after. Plus, global competition is eating away at both salaries and opportunitees. Business and sales have more long-term opportunities and safer from cheap offshore labor. If she has the knack, that is where I will encourage her to go. IT is fine if you really dig it for technology's satisfaction alone; otherwise it is a dead-end wallet-drainer going the way of manufacturing.
Table-ized A.I.
I haven't noticed a stigma with the several girls here at work. I have however noticed that if any one of them ever runs into a problem in their code or admining in general, they generally have half a dozen guys fighting to give them a hand ;-)
Which can very often be exactly the problem. Many girls in IT have a disadvantage because they have not had as much chance to solve problems independently. Helplessness is a habit that is very easy to acquire but can be very harmful in the long run.
Seattle Eastside Math and Science Tutoring
Here's the problem with that assumption. The IT training industry isn't based in reputable universities, its based in flimflam diploma factories and accreditation outfits. These 'institutions' have basically been responsible for the retraining of a large portion of the population with the underlying assumption that a small and and generally specialized set of skills (PHP monkey, VB programmer) will land you a modicum of financial stability. What they have in fact done is recast the IT professional as a new class in our society, one which, for all intents and purposes, replaces the dwindling blue-collar worker. The IT training industry guarantees a disposable, cheap, and never-ending source of labour for information companies. With this in mind it's little wonder that outfits which depend on such labour would seek to double their training pool?
Unlike boys, I suppose?
Because, as we all know, young male geeks are always the most popular kids in high school. They're never social outcasts. They're never isolated. They always have girlfriends. They never EVER get bullied.
See the point?
In your rush to play knight in shining armor to these "victims" who don't feel "encouraged" enough, you've completely ignored the fact that boys have traditionally never been encouraged to get into these fields either. They've typically received harsher treatment, including physical violence, just for being geeks. But notice, they didn't give up, they didn't run off and major in business or medicine, no, they stuck it out.
Remember when Jon Katz tried to make a big deal out of bullying? Most Slashdotters would have nothing of it, even though many were themselves victims of bullying. At worst they might crack the occasional joke about it, but they seldom--if ever--complain.
Why can't women do the same? Why can't they just stop complaining, STFU, and do their work just as men do? Why do they always need special treatment, special privileges, and special protection?