Articles

Digital Divas is a single-sex elective offered to female Year 8 students at Brentwood Secondary School in Glen Waverley, in Melbourne's eastern suburbs. First trialled in 2008, the program continued this year, and has been oversubscribed by girls wanting to enrol. The program involves four 48-minute teaching periods each week over one semester. The students participate in group work around creative and interesting activities using multimedia and spreadsheet applications, aided by informal mentoring from female university students undertaking ICT degrees. There are also regular presentations from young women working in a variety of areas within the field of ICT, an approach designed to demonstrate the diverse career pathways available. The speakers are encouraged to talk about their own secondary school experiences and the factors influencing their career choices.