For more information about the presentation at ISTE, please click here.

Teaching Resources

Background

The idea for this project came about whilst thinking about ways we could increase the number of students accessing programming at school. Our students had the opportunity to participate in the GDST Space Technology Diploma but a GCSE-level Python was required and only those taking Computer Science had that.  Coupled with the predictions from the World Economic Forum's Future of Jobs Report 2023 that "The fastest-growing roles relative to their size today are driven by technology, digitalization and sustainability”, understanding the sector will allow our students to be best-placed to succeed in their future.

The British Computing Society noted that in 2021, there was 4.3 male computer science students at university in the UK for every 1 female. This had a knock-on impact to the industry and the products it designs. There are examples of AI bias where ethnicity is not represented in the development, and Apple came under fire for making phone sizes aimed at the average male hand, not taking into account the smaller average hand size of women.

But is hasn't always been this way; history is littered with examples of women in Computer Science, and in many cases they were pioneers. 

Ada Lovelace met Charles Babbage in 1833 when she saw his Difference Engine. She became obsessed by it and spent many years with him, working on problems. 10 years later, in 1843, she published a series of notes how Babbage’s newer Analytical Engine could be used, and it was Note G, describing the algorithm that would allow a user to compute Bernoulli numbers that is cited as the first computer programme. The programme was never tested; the engine was never built. Although the Difference Engine was completed 22 years ago in 2002 – a mere 153 years after it was designed.

Margaret Hamilton, pictured standing next to the hand-written code she wrote that was used on the Apollo Missions for the Lunar and Command Modules. It was within this code that an error detection system designed to prioritise mission critical tasks was written which played a part in ensuring that the Apollo 11 moon landing was the success.

Mary Coombs has a special place in this for us as not only was she a pioneer in her field, she was also a student at Putney. She was the first female programmer of the LEO computer developed by J Lyon & Co. to run payroll.

So our students have some fantastic role models to look up to, and we needed a way to build opportunity for coding in to the curriculum.

The poster is being presented at the ISTE Conference in Denver on Monday 24th June, and a version of the presentation is being delivered at the Internation Coalition of Girls' Schools in Baltimore on Wednesday 26th June.  Slides and notes will appear here after the conferences.

If you would like more information, please do not hesitate to get in touch with James and Chris would be more than happy to share thoughts, ideas and resources.

j.mutton@put.gdst.net / c.hopkinson@put.gdst.net