The Effect of Age and Gender on High School Students' Attitudes towards Using Computers in the Foreign Language Classroom

Abstract

This study explores the views of Jordanian high school students on using computers in the English classroom. It focuses on the effect of age and gender on their attitudes towards this technology. The data were collected from 10 public high schools through questionnaires and structured interviews. The results show that the participants tend to have positive perception of the computer use for general purposes and for learning English but with various degrees depending on their age and gender. The older learners seem to be more interested in the general applications of the computer while the younger ones tend to be more excited about its implementation in English lessons. On the other hand, gender appears to have slight influence on their responses to the computer use in the two domains. These results have implications for decision makers in foreign language education..