Article Review: “I Can Actually Be a Super Sleuth”: Promising Practices for Engaging Adolescent Girls in Cybersecurity Education

The Information technology (IT) field is ever-expanding. Modern civilization is heavily reliant on the infrastructure that IT provides. As the reliance increases, so do attacks on these systems. This problem is only growing and must be meant with a robust highly trained workforce to aid the challenge ahead. However, there is a significant shortage of cybersecurity professionals in the field. The issue has been addressed by one of the previous presidents, Barack Obama. He called for urgency to better prepare citizens for digital work within the scope of cybersecurity. A robust cybersecurity workforce needs to be dynamic by having individuals from all different walks of life to create a strong enterprise. Though, currently in the field of cybersecurity, females only account for 18% of cybersecurity professionals according to The Bureau of Labor Statistics (Jethwani, Memon, Seo, & Richer 2017).  This post will review a study conducted by the Columbia University School of Social Work on the “Promising Practices for Engaging Adolescent Girls in cybersecurity Education”.

In this article, the researchers examine how adolescent girls perceive the field of cybersecurity by exposing a group of female youths to cybersecurity education.  This study explores what themes in cybersecurity interest female youths. This study also examines the ecological and social role theories that could contribute to the field having low numbers of female professionals and how to address these unique sets of challenges. In computer science in general, females are underrepresented as evidence suggests that even though females are becoming increasingly more involved in STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) -they are less likely to be involved with computer science when compared to their male counterparts (Jethwani, 2017). This study was conducted by the human ecology theory which considers how an individual’s environment in the social context influences their development throughout life. The research for this article examines the microsystem of an individual’s immediate venue -the academic setting. A focus group was selected for the method of study as the researchers conducted a two-year experiment over two summers on a group of high school female youths. The purpose of the research was to provide insight into how female youths perceive cybersecurity when exposed to the subject in a setting that was supportive for them in ways of providing a curriculum, live tutoring, and exposure to female mentors. The approach to collect and analyze the data was derived from the “qualitative methodology of open coding” (Jethwani, 2017). The researchers asked focus group questions that explored the youth’s “experiences with the summer programs as well as perceptions and beliefs about the cybersecurity field” (Jethwani, 2017). They used the data points collected to form their findings. They found that…

“In light of this research, efforts to engage women in cybersecurity must demystify the field, build girls’ knowledge and confidence, and broaden the perception of who is supposed to be in the field. This study identified some promising practices for engaging adolescent girls in cybersecurity—single-sex settings and supportive teachers who promote collaboration and confidence, female mentors who challenge stereotypes about the field, and engagement in real-world and creative computing endeavors. Together, these promising practices challenge stereotypes about the field that exists in the United States and challenge traditional gender roles that restrict girls’ access to the field of cybersecurity.” 

(Jethwani, 2017).

My Thoughts

I found this study quite interesting as I am a female studying cybersecurity myself. I related to many of the findings and discoveries that the researchers revealed. I resonated with the female youths when the research showed that what they enjoyed about cybersecurity was the real-world application of cybersecurity and the creative qualities that the field offers. Before seriously considering cybersecurity as a profession, I had a preconceived unconscious notion that the field was a man’s job. It was once I started to see other females enter the profession is when I did a self-reflection to see where those biased perceptions came from. I would not be where I am today without the females in the profession now showing us that the field of cybersecurity is for anyone willing to learn. It is a critical field that needs support from all walks of life to help ensure protection and security and I am excited to one day be a part of that well-diverse team. 

Reference:

Jethwani, M., Memon, N., Seo, W., & Richer, A. (2017). I Can Actually Be a Super Sleuth. Journal of Educational Computing Research, 55(1), 3-25.