A review of current elementary mathematics software found that 41.7 percent of the software programs had main characters that were gender identifiable. Of these programs, only 12.5 percent of the main characters were female. Such bias can effect the attitudes and achievement of female students. The female main characters in the software all represented traditional female roles. There is a need for further research on the effects of the absence of females in software and the exclusive use of traditional roles for characters.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
SadkerM.SadkerD., Sex Equity Handbook for Schools, Longman, New York, 1982.
2.
American Association of University Women, How Schools Shortchange Girls, AAUW Educational Foundation, Washington, D.C., 1992.
3.
MendelsohnK. D.NeimanL. Z.IsaacsK.LeeS.LevisonS., Sex and Gender Bias in Anatomy and Physical Diagnosis, Text Illustrations, The Journal of the American Medical Association, 272: 16, pp. 1267–1270, 1994.
4.
WiersmaW.JursS. G., Educational Measurement and Testing(2nd Edition), Allyn and Bacon, Needham Heights, Massachusetts, 1990.
5.
BlumD. E., Slow Progress on Equity, The Chronicle of Higher Education, XLI: 9, pp. 47–51, October 26, 1994.
6.
HodesC. L., Relative Effectiveness of Corrective and Noncorrective Feedback in Computer Assisted Instruction on Learning and Achievement, The Journal of Educational Technology Systems, 13: 4, pp. 249–254, 1985.
7.
BeckerH. J., Using Computers for Instruction, Byte, 12: 2, pp. 149–291, 1987.
8.
EdwardsJ., PC Trends, Prodigy On-Line Service, December 26, 1994.
9.
National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, The Curriculum and Evaluation Standards for School Mathematics, Commission on Standards for School Mathematics, Reston, Virginia, 1989.
10.
CrabbeP. B.BielawskiD., The Social Representations of Material Culture and Gender in Children's Books, Sex Roles, 30: 1 & 2, pp. 69–79, 1994.
11.
Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry, Jobs for Women in Nontraditional Occupations, Pennsylvania Bureau of Research and Statistics, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, 1992.
12.
BiglerR.LibenL., Cognitive Mechanisms in Children's Gender Stereotyping: Theoretical and Educational Implications of a Cognitive Based Intervention, Child Development, 63, pp. 1351–1363, 1992.
MatlinM. W., The Psychology of Women(2nd Edition), Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, Fort Worth, Texas, 1993.
15.
ConroyM., Sexism in Our Schools, Better Homes and Gardens, pp. 44–48, February 1988.
16.
SgroiR.SgroiL., Mathematics for Elementary School Teachers, PWS Kent, Boston, Massachusetts, 1993.
17.
ScottK. P.SchauC. G., Sex Equity and Sex Bias in Instructional Materials, in Handbook for Achieving Sex Equity through Education, KleinS. S. (ed.), The Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, Maryland, pp. 218–228, 1985.