Ethical and Social Issues

        Education is a sensitive topic since it is such an important factor affecting a child’s future. One of the ethical issues that is brought up by older educators is the belief that technology is diminishing the quality of education since it is not done in the tried-and-true traditional way (Torres, 2012). Research has shown otherwise, however, and more education about the effectiveness of interactive whiteboards will clear up this ethical issue. Another ethical issue that is brought up is the funds that need to go toward purchasing an expensive product like an interactive whiteboard. Educators need to know that a product like this will benefit the school system before purchasing the product. Since interactive whiteboards have been proven successful, this ethical issue has been overcome in most school districts (Torres, 2012).  However, before purchasing the product, the school should make sure the students and their parents are aware that this expense is beneficial and proven to be so. A social benefit of interactive whiteboards is that the student to teacher interaction is mediated more by the actual lesson material. (Torres, 2012) A student engaging with the material, as with an interactive whiteboard, becomes more engaged in the lesson. Frequently, students are not engaged in lessons because the teachers cannot or do not engage their students on a personal level. Interactive whiteboards allow the teacher to engage the student with the material through the interactive whiteboards (Kaufman 2009). This allows for both more interaction with the teacher, since they can personally engage the student if the student is brought to the board to interact, and the information, since the material is displayed in engaging and interactive ways.