What if in trial runs, it were found that the boys were better at writing code under time pressure. What if girls disliked the experience? Would it then be OK to have all the coders at the competitions be boys, or should there be a gender quota system?
The math team our school sends to competitions is about 80% Asian and 80% male. I think that reflects who is best at math competitions. Impartial selection procedures often lead to some groups being underrepresented.
I agree. Those situations, in my mind, are a
reflection of the problem -- however, the underlying problem to be solved is that capable girls are not involved in math/coding/etc.
Someone told me their son was once on a sports team with all boys and one girl, who was quite good at the (contact) sport. Whenever she did particularly well up against another player, she'd casually toss her golden curls at them when they walked out after the game, shocked to be beaten by a girl. Personally, I would've joined every boys' sports team in town if I was athletic (pretty big if).
On another note, though, I think it's also important to tell both girls and boys that it is okay to do things stereotypically of their gender as long as they are not limiting themselves TO those activities. I'd be perfectly fine with a boy or girl who programs computers to bake pink, glittery cupcakes, because those shouldn't be mutually exclusive activities. However, it is much, much easier for girls to be discouraged in STEM pursuits, and boys in "feminine" ones.
