The effects of gender and age on preschool children's choice of the computer as a child-selected activity

Computers and their accompanying information retrieval systems are supplementing the traditional way of acquiring information. For those who have the knowledge and equipment, it is possible to access information in their own home that previously was available only at the library. The impact of this technology may bring to fruition John Gardner’s vision of twenty years ago: a “Learning Society” in which people are constantly learning new information and new skills. We can only speculate on the significance this will have for the next generation. And as today’s children become highly competent adults, they will in turn have an effect on information science. The potential of the interaction between humans and technology is immense. The need for equality in technology seems obvious. Information must be available to all segments of society. In reality, however, some societal imbalances have already developed. Three out of four computer campers are boys, four out of five subscribers to computer magazines are men, and twice as many men as women have a computer at home [17]. While only a few individuals would advocate that computers are “for men only,” many believe in differentiating computer tasks. There are school policies which promote “word processing” for girls and programming for boys [9] . Certainly, many questions emerge for educators who are preparing children for this technological age. TWO have been selected for this study. When should children be introduced to computers? Is working on the computer perceived as a sex-stereotyped activity by young children?