IT’S BORING: A comparison of male and female students’ experiences of ICT GCSE/ A-level and Computing A-level lessons and their impact on student motivation

The declining numbers of women in computing is a cause for concern for those in education and the IT industry alike. The need for a diverse workforce is necessary in order to have a creative balance in the IT Industry. The reasons for this decline are varied and can be attributed to factors such as schooling, parental influences or the media. This article focuses on comparing the experiential differences between male and female students in GCSE ICT and A-level computing lessons and their impact on students’ motivation. Questionnaires were used to provide statistical outcomes, and interviews were conducted to probe deeper into the thoughts and feelings of students. The results show that both male and female students have very different experiences of computing at school, which inform their perceptions and influence educational decision-making. This article focuses on qualitative finding