FIND OUT how many girls are in advanced computer classes at your daughter's school. Software companies haven't wanted to take the financial risks to develop games for girls because they think they won't sell. Even after years of consciousness-raising, as a society we expect different things from boys and girls. When the parents of a boy and a girl buy a new computer, one study found, it usually goes in the boy's bedroom. Brenda Laurel, co-founder of Purple Moon, a software company for girls, headed a research team that studied boys' and girls' play.
Girls tend to be interested in character and story and social complexity in their play.
They're not drawn to speed and action, or defeating opponents, or high scores for their own sake, or beating the clock. Differing expectations of girls and boys often are perpetuated in school. Nine students rushed to my desk - eight boys and one girl. She notes that teachers often allow boys to dominate computer classes. The less assertive girls, left by the wayside, often don't increase their skills much.