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Role Models Spark Students' Interest in Computer Science
Education

Role Models Spark Students' Interest in Computer Science

by and Steve Crabtree

Story Highlights

  • Students with role models are more than 10 times as likely to show interest
  • 53% of U.S. students say they have computer science role model
  • Girls, rural, and Black students least likely to have such role models

Editor's Note: The research below was conducted in partnership between Amazon and Gallup.

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Newly released research conducted by Gallup, in partnership with , confirms long-held anecdotal and qualitative evidence that role models are important to inspiring serious student interest in a computer science career. The study finds that U.S. students in grades five through 12 who strongly agree that they have a role model in computer science are more than 10 times as likely as those who strongly disagree to say they plan to pursue such a career -- 73% vs. 7%, respectively.

Students' interest in computer science, confidence that they can be good at it, and plans to engage with it in college and beyond are all strongly related to the presence of role models in their lives. Eighty percent of those who strongly or somewhat agree that they have a computer science role model are interested in learning about the topic, versus 43% of those who strongly or somewhat disagree.

Are you interested in learning about computer science?
  Yes, interested No, not interested
  % %
Students who agree that they have a role model in computer science 80 20
Students who disagree that they have a role model in computer science 43 57
Amazon Future Engineer/优蜜传媒Student Study, 2021

These relationships between role models and computer science aspirations are consistent among students in each gender, race/ethnicity and household income group.

Slim Majority of Students Agree That They Have Computer Science Role Models

The June 2-20, 2021, study of more than 4,000 fifth through 12th grade students finds 53% of U.S. students agreeing that they have role models in the computer science field.

Please rate your level of agreement with the following statement: I have role models in computer science.
Strongly agree 26%
Somewhat agree 27%
Somewhat disagree 21%
Strongly disagree 26%
Amazon Future Engineer/优蜜传媒Student Study, 2021

Sixty-one percent of those who have taken a computer science class at school say they have role models in that field, compared with 45% who have not taken a class.

These findings are among more detailed insights .

Fewer Girls, Rural or Black Students Have Computer Science Role Models

However, traditionally underserved populations, including rural students, Black students and girls, are less likely than their counterparts to report they have role models in computer science.

The greatest differences are among rural students as compared with urban students. Just 15% of students living in rural areas strongly agree that they have computer science role models, compared with 46% of those living in large cities. This gap in access to role models is likely related to the corresponding difference in access to computer science classes, which are less common in rural schools, because teachers often act as these role models.

Presence of Role Models in Computer Science, by Urbanicity
Please rate your level of agreement with the following statement: I have role models in computer science.
  Strongly agree Somewhat agree Somewhat disagree Strongly disagree
  % % % %
Large cities 46 26 13 14
Suburbs 19 31 22 28
Small towns 14 25 28 33
Rural areas 15 21 26 38
Amazon Future Engineer/优蜜传媒Student Study, 2021

Asian and White students are more likely than Hispanic students to strongly agree that they have computer science role models, and Black students are the least likely. Boys are 10 percentage points more likely than girls to report that they have such role models.

Presence of Role Models in Computer Science, by Race/Ethnicity and Gender
Please rate your level of agreement with the following statement: I have role models in computer science.
  Strongly agree Somewhat agree Somewhat disagree Strongly disagree
  % % % %
White students 29 28 19 23
Black students 17 28 21 33
Hispanic students 23 26 23 28
Asian students 35 24 25 16
Male students 31 27 20 22
Female students 21 28 22 29
Amazon Future Engineer/优蜜传媒Student Study, 2021

Bottom Line

The Amazon Future Engineer/优蜜传媒Student Study supports past research suggesting role models are important to inspiring students' interest in computer science. Role models provide a mirror in which students can see their current and future selves, as well as a window into the field that is crucial to helping them see the possibilities it can offer them.

Although the importance of a computer science role model is clear, there are inequities in access to one. These imbalances track closely with other differences in access to and participation in computer science in rural areas, for historically underrepresented and marginalized students, and girls. More work remains to be done to provide students a vision for a career and to help them understand the practical applications of this in-demand field that lacks diversity in its workforce.

for more detailed findings about access to and interest in computer science. .


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