Facing sexism in my computer science classes

At 16 years old, I knew that I wanted to pursue a career in science, but wasn’t sure of what exactly I wanted to do. Then I got the incredible opportunity to partake in Girls Who Code’s seven-week summer immersion program. Over those weeks, I discovered computer science and decided that I wanted to pursue a career in the field. While Girls Who Code made it clear to participants in the program that women in STEM face obstacles in the male-dominated field, though, I didn’t fully realize at the time the extent to which gender-based discrimination is common yet deceptively subtle in the field. I learned that as a computer science major in college.

The first thing I noticed was the gendered experience gap in my introductory-level computer science class freshman year. Most of the boys came into the class with coding experience, and often their questions were framed at a higher level of understanding than the majority of the girls in the class possessed. Their questions not only discouraged those who did not even understand what concepts their question referred to, but also meant that the professors began to cater their classes to that level of understanding, leaving many students, very often girls, in the dark. This spoke to a problem programs like Girls Who Code are well aware of: a pipeline problem in encouraging girls to learn about STEM at younger ages.

I was more surprised at the blatant sexism directed toward women in my computer science classes. In fact, of the 25 students present in my programming class, only five were women, and all have experienced sexism first-hand in this class and others. When any of us have asked for help from our male classmates to combat this sexism, they have criticized us for asking for help and not being “independent enough” to handle it on our own, or at times even blatantly stated things like “I would love to help you over dinner Friday night.”

It’s not just female students targeted, either. I’ve witnessed male computer science students ignore or question the help of female teaching assistants as well. Even though TAs are usually graduate students, and therefore clearly more educated than undergraduates on the subject of the class, male undergrads ask female TAs things like if they are sure that the methods they are suggesting are true and if they can certify that the method they’re teaching is accurate.

Last year, this phenomenon was proven to be widespread when the computer science department at the University of Maryland published a teaching assistant’s handbook which addresses female teaching assistants and male teaching assistants separately. The original post has since been deleted, and the handbook was taken off of the university’s website, but screenshots of the text, included below in full, still circulate on social media:

“To Female TAs - Your students may experience some difficulty accepting you fully in a scientific field which they may, for whatever reasons, associate with male activity. Male students especially (but not exclusively) may try to challenge your authority, to trip you up, or (more subtly) to try to compromise your status by flippancy or suggestive remarks. Friendly but firm and repeated assertion of your competence and authority to direct their study of computer science (asserted through deed and attitude, as well as through word) will probably take care of the situation. Such 'challenging' behavior should fall off rapidly.

That such assertion should even be necessary is admittedly annoying, but be patient. Besides, it's unfortunately the kind of practice you're going to need at some time in the future; students may not be the only ones who will have difficulty accepting you as a professional."

“To Male TAs - You may also experience some degree of 'testing' or challenging of your authority, but on the whole, it'll be to a lesser extent than that experienced by your female colleagues. For some reason, male students seem reticent to ask questions (admit ignorance) in front of their peers — especially with a male TA in charge. You may need to sensitize yourself to the apparent fact that your male students may have a harder time seeking the help they need.

A few female students may attempt to capitalize on the male-female dynamic to their own advantage. Most of these attempts are fairly transparent unless you are particularly susceptible to flirtatious or provocative behavior. Lest you be too flattered, it's very likely that it is the lure of your position or (even more callously) a grade that they're after, not you. Common sense should tell you this is a potentially damaging situation for you if you don't recognize and avoid the dangers."

This note subsequently went viral after a teaching assistant posted it on Twitter. Many people responded by sharing angry comments focusing on disappointment that the university’s computer science department accepted such blatant sexism as a norm their teaching assistants would just have to deal with. The University of Maryland’s Department of Computer Science responded to the criticism by publishing a letter, which denounced the viral handbook passage but also defensively touted the department’s record on improving gender equality.

While the instructions in that specific handbook blatantly placed more value on the comfort of sexist, but presumably talented, students over the dignity of teaching assistants, that dynamic is not exclusive to the University of Maryland. Female students and teaching assistants in computer science departments across the country are led to believe that they are studying and working within institutions of higher education that are meant to be places of opportunity for all within them. Instead, they are told they cannot expect men within these institutions to take them seriously, and that this is apt preparation for a professional world in which this behavior will persist. Students are made to feel insecure about asking questions of their male TAs for fear of sounding unintelligent or like they are using their sexuality to get help, while female TAs are essentially told to take their male students questioning their right to be there with a smile because it’s the same treatment they should expect in the professional world.