Parent concerned about side effects of school learning tool

A popular learning tool used by several school systems may have an unlisted side effect; and one New Kent parent is making sure the word is getting around to other parents.

Holly Miller-Bopp spoke about the use of Promethean boards, a learning tool that takes computer images and displays them through light emissions onto a whiteboard. Her concerns arose when her son, a sixth grade student at New Kent Middle, came home with headaches.

“They started last year,” said Miller-Bopp, referencing the headaches and other health conditions of her son. “We took him to a pediatrician and an optometrist and they could not find anything wrong with him.

“During the summer, the headaches went away,” she continued. “But when he entered middle school, they returned.”

Miller-Bopp took her son to a neurologist, where it was determined he suffered from seizures that were induced by light-stimulation. She says that light radiated from the Promethean boards.

“For him in a classroom, it’s looking like looking at a strobe light all day,” said the concerned mother. “It gets him nauseated and gives him headaches.”

Miller-Bopp met with New Kent Middle School administrators, who instructed teachers to place her son in a location in the room where he could not view the Promethean Board.

“The staff and teachers have been wonderful,” added Miller-Bopp. “They are understanding of his needs and are doing the best they can with him.”

New Kent superintendent of schools David Myers spoke about the issue and the steps the school system has taken since learning about the situation involving Miller-Bopp’s son.

“We currently have staff researching and looking into the effects of not just Promethean boards, but smart boards as well,” said Myers in an Oct. 10 interview. “We are working to find all the information we need to address the issue.”

Myers indicated that he expects to speak with representatives of Promethean in an upcoming meeting. On the company’s website, there are no warnings about possible side effects of the boards. Miller-Bopp said she wanted to make other parents aware of those side effects.

“Once I started speaking up on the issue, I’ve been contacted by a lot of parents who were going through the same thing,” Miller-Bopp added. “I just want to know why these learning tools don’t have any type of warning labels.

“I find it strange that so many children are having headaches on a daily basis,” she added. “I just want them and parents to be on the lookout. I don’t want my child or any other child to have a seizure in the middle of class.”

An Oct. 14 meeting yielded a temporary solution for Miller-Bopp’s son as he will use a laptop computer. Meanwhile, with no definite information still not received, Myers elected to halt use of Promethean boards on a temporary basis.

Calls to Promethean representatives were not returned at the time this article was released.