EFL TEACHERS’ PERCEPTIONS OF TECHNOLOGY INTEGRATION IN ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHING: A STUDY IN THE NORTHERN AREA (ELSHAGOUR)

Abstract

This dissertation examined English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teachers’ perceptions of the benefits and challenges associated with technology integration in English Language Teaching (ELT), analyzed the influence of contextual factors—including infrastructure and institutional support—and explored the relationships among teachers’ attitudes, professional development, and digital literacy. Employing an explanatory sequential mixed-methods design, quantitative data were initially collected via a structured questionnaire from 60 secondary school EFL teachers in the Northern area (Elshagour). Subsequently, eight participants were purposively selected for semi-structured qualitative interviews to elaborate upon and contextualize the quantitative findings. The quantitative results indicated that EFL teachers held overall positive perceptions toward technology integration, recognizing its value in enhancing learner engagement, facilitating the explanation of complex concepts, and providing access to authentic target-language input. However, despite these recognized pedagogical advantages, teachers reported critical operational challenges, notably excessive lesson preparation time, technical disruptions during instruction, and unreliable Internet connectivity. The qualitative findings corroborated these results, emphasizing that successful instructional adoption remains heavily contingent upon environmental and institutional factors. The study concludes that sustained professional development, robust infrastructure, strategic leadership support, and targeted digital literacy initiatives are essential to optimizing technology integration in EFL contexts.