Hello World podcast
How can we empower girls in computing?
A key part of digital literacy is ensuring that all learners, regardless of their background or gender, have equal opportunities to develop computing skills and confidence in using technology.
In this episode the Raspberry Pi Foundation’s Chief Learning Office, Rachel Arthur, sits down with Dr Jessica Hamer from King's College London's School of Education and Becky Patel from Tech She Can to discuss the current state of girls’ engagement in computing. A wide-reaching and important conversation exploring how we can empower more girls in computing through school, university and their careers.
Meet our guests
Rachel Arthur
Rachel Arthur is the Chief Learning Officer at the Raspberry Pi Foundation, leading the development of computing education resources, research, and teacher professional development worldwide. She is a former teacher with 10 years of classroom experience, is passionate about ensuring all young people have access to high-quality digital skills education. She works to empower educators with the tools and knowledge they need to confidently teach computing and technology.
Dr. Jessica Hamer
Dr. Jessica Hamer is a Research Associate at King's College London's School of Education. Her research focuses on expanding opportunities and supporting young people in making informed subject choices, particularly within STEM fields. She was a member of the SCARI Computing project team, which investigated factors influencing girls' performance and participation in secondary-level computing.
Becky Patel
Becky Patel is the Head of Education and Learning at Tech She Can, a UK-based charity dedicated to increasing the representation of women in technology. With over a decade of teaching experience in both primary and secondary education, Becky has been instrumental in developing the Tech We Can free educational resources since joining the organisation in 2018.
About us
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In our next episode we'll be debating about “digital natives” and asking our panel of educators ‘Are young people who grew up with technology around them truly tech-savvy, or are they dependent on digital tools without understanding how they work? In the meantime, you can get in touch with your questions or comments about the current episode at podcast@helloworld.cc. If you can, please take a moment to give us some feedback on this episode or our podcast generally.
Useful links
General:
Subscribe to Hello World magazine
Find out more about the charitable mission of the Raspberry Pi Foundation
Explore the topic of Digital Literacy further by downloading Issue 26 for free
Download our special issues, The Big Book of Computing Pedagogy and The Big Book of Computing Content
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Episode links:
Read UNESCO's report - Global education monitoring report 2024, gender report: technology on her terms
In 2024 in England:
Computer stereotypes begin to emerge among children as early as age six
Read about the Raspberry Pi Foundation's large-scale piece of research in 2019 - 2022 that found that girls’ interest in computing starts to decline as they move from primary school to secondary school
Read more about the SCARI - Subject choice, attainment and representation in Computing project that Dr. Jessica Hamer contributed to
Find out more about Tech She Can and the work that Becky Patel leads
Read Tech She Can Templeton Survey Report January (2024)