Teachers’ perceptions and implementations of technology in EFL classroom: a case study of using e-books for EFL reading

Technologies have emerged as a powerful tool for education. Teachers are the catalysts for integrating technology in the classroom. This study, by using the E-book as the most commonly used educational technology, explored EFL teachers’ perceptions and implementations of the technology in public and private primary schools in China’s first tier cities. A mixed-method approach underpinned the study by using both questionnaire and interview protocols. An online questionnaire on how teachers define and perceive E-books in their personal and professional lives was distributed, 155 EFL teachers responded. Follow-up interviews were then conducted with ten teachers to gather more in-depth interpretations and the reasons for using or not using E-books in the classroom. The results showed that EFL teachers have very different personal interpretations of E-books.The findings also revealed that basic knowledge and a positive attitude to CALL does not guarantee eventual CALL implementation in teaching practice. A number of factors that appeared to influence Chinese EFL teachers’ technology use were identified.The present study contributes to an understanding of the CALL climate in China, especially in the private EFL education sector. Although CALL integration has been addressed in China’s English Curriculum Standards and teachers have given the technology a positive reception, its implementation is still problematic and hindered by the school environment.