In the modern-day family, the unwritten social norm for gender roles is that the mother takes care of the children, feeds them, nurses them, and teaches them, while the father works. Surprisingly, it is an entirely different situation in my family. My mom, a high-school graduate, is the sole breadwinner of the family; while my dad, a "househusband," is the primary caregiver of the children and is the homemaker of the household. Despite the Orthodox of gender ideology in Chinese culture, which is a very male-dominated society, they swapped their "traditional" roles. To be honest, I am proud to be a part of this revolutionary family. Growing up as the eldest sister at home, I never assume that housework is my personal task-to-do. Nevertheless, my dad always taught us that every member of the family has to take on the responsibility of sharing the burden of the household chores. Inevitably, my mom is always my number-one-mentor and my driving force to brace challenges. She is the heroine of the family, and will eternally be my superwoman in my life. Her dedication and perseverance proved that "woman can do anything." She inspires me not to give up on anything despite the adversity and always believe in myself regardless of my ethnicity, gender, religion or sexuality.

 

         Prior to this class, I thought that I was a lone ranger in pursuing this technology field. To be a woman in technology is always an uphill battle and a pathway less traveled by most people. I will never feel alone anymore in this journey after I attended this class. Through lectures and required readings, INFO 102 helps to promote the sense of belonging and believing in our potential for intellectual growth in IT. Notably, the readings help me to identify the internal, mental constraints that unconsciously associate gender identity with IT and leadership role. Also, I was enlightened by the quote from Nandini Ramani, the VP of Engineering at Twitter; “Don’t use all of your energy fighting something that’s reality. Instead, find ways around it. Find people who can help you” (Vuong). I believe that this resonates honestly with any women in any workplace environment, especially in the IT and STEM field. We should accept and embrace the truth that "men dominate the world," but at the same time endure and find great mentors and people who can help, rather than try to stand alone against the system. 

 

         I am touched by the story of this pair of husband and wife - Sanare and Anna - in "Two Superpowers We Wish We Had" (Gates). I am amazed by how Sanare Recognized the imbalance and took the initiative to help his wife. At first, the other village men made fun of him and even accused Anna of witchcraft. However, this process had a chain effect after they started Redistributing the work with him. Now that they have Reduced, no matter who goes to get water, Anna or Sanare, it is a lot closer—and they both spend more time with their kids.  The world is making progress by doing three things economists call Recognize, Reduce, and Redistribute (Gates). Through this story, I believe that we can make a difference by taking the first step in figuring out what's happening in the real world. For instance, the sad reality in workplaces around the world: Women help more but benefit less from it, was mentioned in "Women Doing Office Homework" article (New York Times). For women, the most significant change starts with a shift in mindset: If we want to care for others, we also need to take care of ourselves. Instead of quieting down, men can use their voices to draw attention to women’s contributions. Men can also step up by doing their share of support work and mentoring. 

 

         Indubitably, these readings reaffirmed my interest towards technology and motivated me to pursue the leadership role in future. Although I cannot deny the reality that there is gender bias in this industry, I firmly believe the success is not gender-driven; instead, it is the passion that drives success.