Internet use in EFL classrooms an investigation of teachers ‘attitudes and concerns in the teacher training school of Constantine

Abstract

Today, throughout the world, there is an awareness of the indispensable role of the Internet in

education; yet, many EFL teachers are reluctant to its use. This research aims at investigating the EFL teachers’ attitudes, beliefs, and concerns regarding the use of internet in their teaching. In particular, the study attempts to provide answers to the following questions: To what extent are language teachers familiar with internet use in the classroom? Is the use of internet in class an important issue for them? Will the teachers be willing to use the Internet in their teaching? What concerns do the teachers raise over the internet use in the classroom? A mixture of qualitative and quantitative approaches were used in the data collection process. A questionnaire was e-mailed to 50 teachers from the department of English in the Teacher Training School of Constantine. Based on the results of the questionnaire, a sample of 10 teachers was selected for a follow-up interview.The findings of both the questionnaire and the interview revealed that all the respondents are not only quite familiar with the Internet technology, but they express their strong willing to integrate it in their teaching too. To a large extent, the results corroborate with otherexperimental studieson ICT in educational settings.Based on the questionnaire and the interview findings, some suggestions and recommendations are provided as to help teachers overcome their apprehension and implement the Internet technology in their EFL classrooms.