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Chelsea Clinton At NCWIT: More PE, Less Zuckerberg

Posted by Unknown on from the pizza-and-mountain-dew-considered-harmful dept.

theodp (442580) writes "Among the speakers at last week's National Center for Women & Information Technology (NCWIT) Summit was Chelsea Clinton, who spoke fondly of the Commodore she received as a kid on Christmas Day in 1987. During the Q&A, Clinton was asked (Vimeo), 'What do you see as some of the right policies that could help put Computer Science — which is undeniably the most important 21st Century skill — into our classrooms?' To which the former First Daughter responded, 'I won't quibble with the fact that I think it's very important. I also think other things admittedly are important.' Such as? Aligning Computer Science with Common Core, for one thing ('Ensure that Computer Science is part of the definition of science'). Using state budget surpluses to hire additional physical education teachers for elementary and middle school students, for another ('For Computer Science, as any subject, kids that are well-fed with healthy food and who have been activated in their bodies will able to learn and retain information in any subject better than if they're not'). And, last but not least, 'continuing to tell stories of people that are not...people who don't look like Mark Zuckerberg as successful in Computer Science and technology.' NCWIT, by the way, was listed as a "major partner" on last December's Hour of Code, which arguably made Mark Zuckerberg the face of Computer Science for K-12 students in the nationwide campaign embraced by President Obama during CSEdWeek."

13 of 255 comments (clear)

  1. Wait... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Why do we care what she thinks?

    1. Re:Wait... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Insightful

      "Clinton rattled off a series of discouraging numbers that relate to tech education. The share of female computer-science grads has declined during the last decade, from 21 percent in 2001 to as low as 16 percent, a trend she finds “deeply challenging.”"

      Well female graduates from veterinary science programmes have been steadily rising to the point women now outnumber men in the practice of veterinary medicine. I dare say veterinary science is more difficult and demanding than any computer science curriculum. Who's smarter - women choosing a career in veterinary science or women not choosing a career in computer science? I'd say they're both smarter than most men pursuing a career in computer science which in most workplaces means some IT role where a science background is all but useless.

    2. Re:Wait... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

      We don't. She's just a mouthpiece who happens to have famous parents.

    3. Re:Wait... by TheRaven64 · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Not sure about the USA, but veterinary graduates in the UK have the highest suicide rate of any discipline. It turns out that most people who go into the subject do so because they like animals, and much of the job of a qualified vey (especially a newly qualified vet) involves killing animals. With that in mind, a career in IT doesn't sound so bad.

      Here, by the way, the veterinary school has the most unbalanced gender ratio of any department in the university (more so than computer science), but (as you say) it's female dominated. I suspect that the reason this is seen as of less concern is that our society is increasingly dependent on computers and decreasingly dependent on animals.

      I don't believe that an uneven gender ratio is necessarily a bad thing, but I do mind that we're not getting the best students in computer science, and when only around 10% of our applicants are female then it looks like there's a good chance that we're missing some very competent people.

      --
      I am TheRaven on Soylent News
    4. Re:Wait... by tommeke100 · · Score: 4, Insightful

      There was a girl in our first year of CS who was a very hard worker, but just couldn't handle the advanced math.
      She switched to med school after she flunked and passed with flying colors.

      It really depends on what you take as basis for a 'tough' curriculum.
      Med school and veterinary school may require you to work 'harder'. But with CS and Math, if you don't get it, you just don't get it. No matter how hard you work.
      I wouldn't be able to do Med school though, I faint at the sight of a needle ;-)

  2. Role Models by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Why, Chelsea herself demonstrates that there are options for people who don't look like Mark Zuckerberg. All you need to do is be born into the right family and you too can be Vice Chair of a foundation you basically can't be fired from.

    1. Re:Role Models by youngone · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Of course it means that she won't be a force for good. She'll be exactly what every member of the American ruling class is: a force for whatever is good for the American ruling class.

    2. Re:Role Models by Trepidity · · Score: 4, Insightful

      While we're at it, it's worth noting the other person mentioned in this headline, Mark Zuckerberg, is also part of the American ruling class, and acts accordingly.

      He was raised nearly from birth to fill that role, too, attending an elite private boarding school that's basically a finishing school for members of that class.

      --
      10 PRINT CHR$(205.5+RND(1)); : GOTO 10
    3. Re:Role Models by bouldin · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Can we please choose a role model for children in CS who is not ethically challenged?

      Zuckerberg may have escaped arrest when he stole passwords to build his hot-or-not website (he should have been arrested), but he was clearly caught red handed.

      Combine that with all the dishonesty and contempt for individual privacy he has expressed, and I would feel like a parental failure if my kids turned out like him.

  3. How is she relevant by Gothmolly · · Score: 5, Insightful

    She's just a political Kardashian, why do people pay any attention to her?

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    I want to delete my account but Slashdot doesn't allow it.
    1. Re:How is she relevant by fuzzyfuzzyfungus · · Score: 5, Informative

      Because Americans love dynasties. Duh!

      It's weird. You go and found a country that forbids noble titles and state religions and you get the US. You head across the pond to the UK, and you've got a monarchy less influential than some congressional committee positions and a state religion that can't even get people out of bed and into church one day a week(and the remaining subscribers are greying out pretty dangerously).

      Not sure how that happened.

  4. Re:uhh... by phantomfive · · Score: 5, Interesting

    OK, after watching the movie, it was the interviewer who claimed that CS is the most important 21st century skill. Chelsea looked at the interviewer as though it was the stupidest thing she had ever heard, and then said, "uh.....it is very important, but there are other things that are also very important."

    --
    "First they came for the slanderers and i said nothing."
  5. Re:I Don't see CS as being that important by cluening · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Computer science _is_ the math. If you ignore the math, you're ignoring the entire field.

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    Posted from the wireless couch.