Sister Circles: An Intersectional Method in Computing Education

Recent scholarship reveals that Black women who live at the intersection of race and gender are having a very different experience in computing education. For example, Black women testify to incidents of gendered racism in K-16 education, and in some cases, choose to leave the field of computing altogether. Additionally, the use of Eurocentric methodologies and tools that position intersectional populations as objects of study rather than agents of knowledge reinforces power differentials that continue to marginalize intersectional populations in the field of computing. In contrast, we advocate for developing appropriate intersectional methods that center intersectional populations in computing education research. As proof of concept, we apply Black feminist epistemologies or Black women's ways of knowing to center the experiences of Black women, an intersectional and underrepresented population in computing. Recognizing Black women students, faculty, and industry professionals as knowledge agents or intellectuals, we introduce the concept of sister circles - counterspaces designed to support Black women in computing as they engage in intimate conversations with each other about their experiences pursuing computing degrees and careers. Content analysis of the sister circles informs how scholars can apply this method as (1) a valid knowledge-production process and (2) an intersectional method for data collection.