Re:GitHub donates private repositories to women learning ope...
by anoncow on Saturday April 27, 2013 @02:45PM
(#5618677)
I certainly hope that a time comes when things are better. Not just for women and not just in IT. I don't know the situation on the ground and neither do I work in education. The views above are what I hold with the limited experience that i have had and are malleable.
Up to this point, I've not taken a stance on this particular program, but I will not. There's plenty of research that suggests that the impact of public ridicule on young women is different than the impact on young men. While the reasons for this aren't, necessarily, clear, the reaction is different. Allowing young women to develop their skills in a "safe" environment where criticism can be sought from trusted sources prior to making that work public has been shown to be beneficial. So, in the end, I do support the idea of making it easier for young women to to get private github accounts. As I also support "girls only" clubs that help develop their skills, and counter act the social pressures that push young women away from technology in the first place. These programs do exactly as you suggest, they attempt to level the playing field by giving women certain advantages and encouragement to balance the social, political, and economic advantages that men already have. Until such time as we actually have gender equality, these programs are necessary.