Examining the Relationship between Educational Technology and Morality: A Case Study of an American Catholic Middle School

The growing interest in educational technology is matched by a corresponding increase in concern about its effects on children and adolescents. With demand for implementing technology on one hand, and the moral consequences that could result from it on the other hand, integrating a one-to-one computing program (1:1 program) in Catholic schools remains a subject in need of more thorough study. This study sought to examine the various advantages, challenges, and ethical questions related to implementing the 1:1 program in a Catholic middle school. While several studies demonstrate the positive impact of 1:1 program on students’ engagement and academic achievement, this study examines the pros and cons of the 1:1 program for the teachers and students, as well as its possible relationship with the students’ moral virtues, which constitute their moral intelligence. In order to examine the integration of 1:1 program and its intersection with morality, a variety of methods were used to collect data, including a survey (quantitative approach), document analysis, classroom observations, and interviews (qualitative approach). In short, this study contributes to a better understanding of how the 1:1 program has been implemented in a Catholic middle school, his advantages and disadvantages for teachers and students, to what extent Catholic leaders are navigating educational technology with morality, and of any possible correlation between students’ use of digital devices and their moral growth.