Leveling the CS1 playing field

Abstract

This paper includes several reasons for the underrepresentation of women in computing, and then describes two low-cost project instances that address the reasons for the decline in women's enrollment in computing classes. One project spans seven semesters from fall 2000 to spring 2006 at a small liberal arts school; the other, the spring 2006 semester at a large research institution. Concluding sections provide anecdotal and statistical evidence that the project is successful over two time periods within two diverse schools.