| The purpose of this study was to explore Freshman English teachers' and learners' beliefs toward computer use in language instruction. Two self-report questionnaires, a Teacher Survey and a Student Questionnaire, were administered to 13 Freshman English teachers and 180 students, respectively, in Changhua and Yunlin Counties in Central Taiwan. The data were analyzed by percentages.; The results showed that the majority of teachers and students had minimum computer knowledge. Word processing, e-mail, and surfing the Internet were used most often by the participants. Regarding multimedia equipment and services on campus, most teachers were not aware of them. Responses from three teachers (23.1%) indicated that they integrated computers into language instruction because they would like to make instruction more interesting, improve their teaching, provide students chances to write more as well as use popular technology. They asked students to search for materials on the Internet, to submit assignments on line, and to communicate with others. Teachers and their students thought the computer facilitated language teaching and learning as well as motivated students to learn a language.; Both computer-use and non computer-use teachers shared some beliefs toward computer use. They felt that the computer improved the quality of language instruction; however, their role would not be enhanced, but degraded. Nine out of thirteen teachers expected to integrate the computer into language instruction; however, four did not because of lack of technical support. The majority of students hoped that the computer could be incorporated into language instruction more than it was; nevertheless, they did not think the teacher could be replaced by the technology. The majority of teacher and student participants thought the teacher could be a guide mentor or a language advisor, whereas the computer could serve as a facilitator or a supplement to instruction. |
