Confidence, Connection, and Comfort: Reports from an All-Women's CS1 Class

The computer science education community has long strived to create more equitable opportunities for students, such as initiatives to foster inclusion of women and other people from historically marginalized groups in CS. Despite these efforts, the gender gap has persisted, with less than a quarter of CS Bachelor's degrees awarded to women in the United States in 2019. As a community, we must strive to improve women's experiences in CS. This paper describes work conducted at a large research university which has traditionally offered CS1 through lecture sections ranging in size from 400-650 students. In Fall 2019, we offered an alternative small all-women's class (35 students) in addition to the traditional lecture class (601 students; 149 women). Both classes covered the same CS concepts but were led by different instructors. Students reported on their experience through a survey administered at the end of the semester. Students in the all-women's class reported significantly greater social connections and comfort collaborating with their peers compared to women in the traditional class. They also reported significantly greater feelings of support within their class, more confidence in their CS knowledge, and a more welcoming classroom environment compared to women in the traditional class. Additionally, the drop rate for students in the all-women's class was significantly lower (5.7%) than the drop rate for women in the traditional class (24.8%). In light of these positive results, we provide actionable insights for CS educators and discuss how to better support women in their CS endeavors.