Is Inequity Cumulative? The Relationship between Disadvantaged Group Membership and Students' Computing Experience, Knowledge, Attitudes and Intentions

Abstract

The study used a pretest/posttest design to investigate the relationship between disadvantaged group membership and students' participation in computing activities. Disadvantage was defined by gender, school ability, SES level, and ethnic background. The sample of 951 students was drawn from four elementary and three secondary schools which were substantially increasing their computing resources. Following class computing experience there was a cumulative effect of membership of disadvantaged groups with the more disadvantaged students reporting significantly less participation in class computing activities and non-class computing activities, gaining lower computing knowledge scores and having less positive attitudes to computing. Thus, inequities were created rather than reduced. Class computing participation was positively related to prior participation in non-class computing activities, with those students with no prior non-class computing experience participating less in class computing activities. The results were interpreted as demonstrating a general cumulative effect of “disadvantage” which is based on differences in voluntary non-class computing experiences. Strategies for reducing these inequities are implicated.