Iranian EFL Learners’ Attitudes Towards the Use of Computer-mediated PowerPoint Presentations

Abstract

The application of educational technology, especially in EFL learning and teaching, has remarkably increased. Although many previous studies have been done on the effect of educational technology on learners’ performance, a few of them investigated MA Iranian students’ attitudes towards PowerPoint presentation. Therefore, an attempt has been made in the current study to determine MA students’ attitudes towards the effect of PowerPoint presentations on their course-related behaviors and elicit the participants’ evaluating the effectiveness of their instructor’s performance in the PowerPoint classes in comparison with the traditional ones. Sixty MA freshmen TEFL students’ perceptions were investigated through 2 sets of questionnaires, as well as 10 sessions of class observation. The analysis of the results revealed that although PowerPoint presentation had positive effect on the learners’ class discussions and weblog usage, it did not enhance the students’ class attendance and note taking. The learners rated their instructor’s performance above average in the traditional classes, while they evaluated the teacher in the PowerPoint class average. The findings of this study can assist decision-makers to explore the merits and demerits of applying PowerPoint in classes according to the participants’ perceptions