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Introduction

In the given paper, the issues concerning the way students and teachers in Saudi Arabia access, use and treat the CALL standard in EFL instructions concerning the preparatory year program at the University of Tabuk are going to be considered and the existing approaches are going to be evaluated. Since the world is merging into a single entity and the relationships between various countries are becoming increasingly enhanced, it is necessary to consider the idea of using computer technologies as one of the fastest and the most efficient ways to establish relationships with the other countries and introduce the ESL standards into the Tabul English course curriculum. However, it must be admitted that due to the innovative nature of the CALL procedure, certain complexities concerning the implementation of the given ideas arise. Hence, the necessity to consider the existing CALL and assess its positive aspects and drawbacks, as well as find the root of the problem and offer possible solutions emerges. It is necessary to add that the given paper will contribute to the improvement of the CALL technologies and the development of the existing CALL programs.

Since the study we plan to do is essentially a survey of the available access to, actual use of, and attitudes to computers in EFL teaching, in a particular context (refer to section of ch1 where you told us this), we will review the following areas:

the Students Attitudes towards the Use of CALL Programs;
The Teachers Attitude towards the USE of CALL Programs;
The Comparison of Teachers an Students Attitude towards CALL;
The Problems of Accessing CALL Programs in the Arab World;
The Existing Computer Applications for ESL Learners;
The Teaching Approaches in CALL for ESL Students
Concept of Attitude,
Attitude and Language Learning,
Attitude toward Computers in Instruction,
Diffusion of Innovation Theory,
Applications of CALL,
Studies on Students Attitudes Towards CALL,
Studies about students attitudes towards computers in Arab world,
Studies on Attitudes of Teacher,
Teachers attitudes towards computer in Arab world,
Computer Attitude Scales,
Variables Related to Teachers and Students Attitudes in Using Computer.

An integrated summary of all the theories and concepts that will be utilized in the study will conclude the chapter.

Concept of Attitude

This study shows that attitude is very essential for the achievement of the goals and success of an individual with regards to their future endeavors and career. With such importance, it can also be derived that studying attitude in its entirety is best to gain insights on the complexity of its idea and how could it help ones goal to be achieved.

Eagly & Chaiken (1993) purported that the concept of attitude was the central theme when social psychology emerged and they argued that it is important that in any concept to be discussed it should be started where it begins. It is essential to add that in the given case, social psychology is not the object of the research, but rather the tool that allows to approach the issue in a more efficient way and consider it closer, since the research in social psychology permit to narrow the scope of the research since AL has learned from attitude research in social psychology. Thus, taking this argument into perspective the concept of attitude must be discussed in the light of Social Psychology.

Thurstone (1946), a pioneer of attitude research, offered a useful definition of attitude as follows: the intensity of positive or negative effect for or against a psychological object. A psychological object is any symbol, person, phrase, slogan, or idea toward which people can differ as regards positive or negative affect (p. 39). Hence, it is obvious that by analyzing peoples attitudes towards the idea of using computer technologies in language studying, one will be able to come to a certain conclusion concerning the efficiency of using computer technologies in ESL teaching and the issues that arise in the course of the CALL application. It is important to mark that Murphy, Murphy, and Newcomb (1937) define attitude in the following way: Attitude is primarily a way of being set toward or against certain things (p. 101). In another context, English and English (1958) defines attitude as an enduring, learned predisposition to behave in a consistent way toward a given class or objects; a persistent mental state of readiness to react to a class of objects as they are conceived to be (p. 42).

Mantel-Bromely (1995) further suggests that attitude has both emotional and evaluative nature as it indicates the level of ones liking or disliking a certain object. Such a contention was affirmed also by other researchers such as Rajeski, (1990) and Zimbardo and Leippe(1991) who believe that attitude is comprised of three components and these are: affect (the degree of liking of the object the person has); cognition (that means the persons knowledge about the attitudinal object); and behavior (reactions and intentions regarding the object).

Two basic definitions of attitude that will form the basis of this research are from Palaigeorgiou, Siozos, Konstantakis, Tsoukalas (2005) and Smith, Caputi, and Rawstorne (2000). The former is a general one, encapsulating the earlier ones mentioned above: attitude is a positive or negative sentiment or mental state, that is learned and organized through experience and that exercises a discrete influence on the affective and conative responses of an individual toward some other individual, object or event (p.39). The second is specific to our object of interest: it defines attitudes toward computers as a persons general evaluation or feeling of favorableness or unfavorableness toward computer technologies (i.e. attitude toward objects) and specific computer-related activities (i.e. attitudes toward a behavior) (p. 61). The choice of these particular definitions has been determined by the fact that they offer a versatile presentation of the concepts they denote, the definitions are up-to-date, and the wordings are applicable to the context of the proposed study.

Attitude and Language Learning and Teaching

It is during the twentieth century that the study of attitude came into prominence (Smith, 1971). Smith (1971) commented that something had been overlooked in the past which is an important factor that is only now beginning to be investigated and that is attitudes. Attitude is considered one of the affective variables that have a great role in second or foreign language acquisition (Ganschow et al., 1994).

Much has been researched about the role of attitude, in conjunction with motivation, as an individual difference of learners which may influence their language learning success (refer to Gardner, etc) maybe say a bit more but not a lot about that. However, in our study, the focus is on the role of attitude, of teachers as well as learners, in syllabus development/evaluation of a new method of teaching/learning (i.e. computers&) refer to materials evaluation/syllabus development literature. In classic research on motivation (Dornyei&) one reason for students being motivated, that emerges strongly is what has been termed intrinsic motivation. This is the motivation that arises from students having positive attitudes to the teaching methods and materials and so forth used in their course. Clearly, if students (and teachers) have positive attitudes to the involvement of computers in ELT, even if not much has yet been implemented, this suggests a great potential for students to be intrinsically motivated if more computer use was deployed. Hence the exploration of attitudes to computers in ELT is an important area to investigate while computers are being innovated into so many teaching situations. Elaborate on the use of attitude in syllabus/curriculum development studies and in program and materials evaluation.

The great importance of attitudes in language learning and acquisition has been emphasized by a number of other researchers (Ellis, 1985; Gardner & Lambert, 1972; Merisuo-Storm, 2006; Savigon, 1976). Savigon (1976), for instance, treated attitude as the most valuable factor in second language learning. Attitude plays an important role in the formation of motivation toward language learning itself; this means that attitude has an important connection with other affective factors (Gardner & Lambert, 1972). The same researchers, Gardner & Lambert (1972:134), mentioned that the learners motivation for language study, it follows, would be determined by his attitudes and readiness to identify and by his orientation to the whole process of learning a foreign language (p. 134). The same idea was supported by Merisuo-Storm (2006), who established a direct connection between motivation in language learning and stable attitudes in the mind of a learner.

Masgoret and Garden (2003) in their meta-analysis study explored and confirmed the significant relationship between second language achievement to five attitudinal or motivational variables adapted from Gardeners previous model on social education in comparison with the factors of availability of language in community and the age of learners to check if they have any moderating effect. The five variables under study were: integrativeness, attitudes towards the learning situations, motivation, integrative orientation, and instrumental integration. The study was based on 75 independent samples comprising 10,489 individuals. Fifty-six samples came from published sources while 19 were from unpublished articles and dissertations. The study results based on three hypotheses categorized three relationships under study: first, it showed that the 5 variables under study were found to be positively related to achievement in a second language learning. Second, it has been observed that motivation has a higher correlation in relation to second language achievement in contrast with the other variables. Finally, the results indicated that neither the availability of language in the immediate environment nor the age of the learners moderated language learning.

The role of affective factors such as attitude and motivation in language learning turned out to be a possible answer to the following paradox: how it is possible for some people to learn a second language perfectly and proficiently while other learners, though the same opportunities and setting to study language are available for them, fail their studies since all other answers attributed to teaching methods, knack, or pedagogical matters have failed (Gardner & Lambert, 1972).

Relevant to our concerns, Mantle-Bromley (1995) stated that attitudes influence the efforts that students expend to learn another language, then language teachers need a clear understanding of attitudes and attitude-change theory in order to address these issues in the classroom (p. 373). The change theory can be illustrated by its main hypothesis that says that the behavior of potential recipients is constrained or controlled by their attitudes towards the various aspects of a certain objects (Steinberg, 2000). Thus, the investigation of students attitudes would help educators figure out the learners, improve their teaching methods, probably, bringing positive changes and modifications to the course syllabus on the whole. This is precisely our goal in exploring student and teacher attitudes to computer use in ELT in our university.

In addition, it is necessary to discuss the Monitor Theory of Krashen as it is a valuable theory for second language acquisition that emphasizes motivation that is created by positive attitudes of a learner towards the knowledge and its acquisition which is relevant to the proposed study. The theory presents particular interest since it is greatly appreciated and criticized a lot at the same time. For instance, Omaggio-Hadley (1993) questions the propriety of the authors strict distinction between learning and acquisition and proves that the monitor fails to work as prescribed. The theory suggests that the affective filter in language acquisition has had a large impact on the role that affective factors play in language acquisition (Bacon & Finnemann, 1990). The hypothesis of Affective Filter by Krashen (1987) deserves some more attention as it is related to students attitudes in the form of variables that largely affect the situation along with the successful acquisition of language.

Krashen (1987) further stated in his study that the Affective Filter hypothesis reflects the link between the different affective variables and the course through which a second language is acquired by putting forth that learners vary based on the strength and effectiveness of their affective filters. Learners that do not have a positive outlook towards learning a second language will not only be weak at grasping existing instructions but will also be less likely to ask for input; however, they will also have a considerably strong affective filter. What this means is that such individuals, even if they comprehend the instruction, will not be able to process it to the parts of their brain that retain language acquisition. It was deemed from the study that those learners who have a more positive outlook towards the second language would not only learn faster but would also get more input and hence have a considerably weak filter which basically makes them more open to learning so that they will be able to get deeper( p. 31). Thus, it shows the value of the studied theory is in its establishment of the connection between effective factors and language acquisition.

Hence, the importance of the research conducted in the sphere of ESL teaching is one of the most crucial issues to consider. Once improving the teaching strategies and allowing students to use the modern technologies to acquire the necessary skills, one is likely to succeed in teaching English. Eliminating the existing problems is, therefore, the most important task for ESL teachers.

Attitude toward Computers in Instruction

Following the definition of Smith et al., (2000) (see the end of 2.1), attitudes could be applied not only to all aspects of computer technologies like attitude towards computer programs, training, and games but also to computer-related activities, such as taking certain computer tests to check the students progress, helping the students plunge into the atmosphere of the English culture, providing them with certain audio or visual activities aimed at mastering English communicational skills, etc. In fact, Mitra and Hullett (1997) found in their study that attitudes toward computers consist of many elements like attitudes toward computers in instruction, technical support for use of the computer, and attitude toward access to computers. Palaigeorgiou et al. (2005) illustrated that computer attitude evaluation usually involves statements that assess the persons interactions with computer hardware, software, other people relating to computers, and activities that include computer use. In the given study, the issues concerning peoples attitudes towards the new methods of teaching ESL students are going to be considered and commented on; in addition, probable solutions for the emerging problems are going to be offered.

The use of computers in instruction has opened the door for research to discuss all aspects of computer use in teaching. Students are one of the main sources that researchers have addressed to get more understanding of integrating the use of technology in classrooms. Students attitudes toward using technology in classrooms are crucial to the success of the implementation of technology. Al-Khaldi and Al-Jabri (1998) stated that students attitudes toward computers are significant determinants that might affect the success of computer implementations. The success of any integration of the use of computers in instruction depends greatly on learners and teachers attitudes toward them (Selwyn, 1999, cited in Palaigeorgiou et al., 2002). It is also essential to add that in the given paper, the actual studies of various manifestations of peoples attitudes towards the issues of CALL are going to be reviewed. Hence, the paradigm of the way people react to the novelties in the given sphere can be traced, which will lead to realizing the true concept of CALL that modern teachers and students have. Therefore, it becomes possible to provide the necessary changes to the existing CALL methods, adjusting them to the needs of the students and making the existing CALL means of teaching most efficient and providing the most fruitful results. Creating the auspicious atmosphere for studying the language, teachers will be able to help students absorb the knowledge better and faster, thus, contributing to the development of the students academic life and enriching their academic experience.

CALL Use and its Diffusion

Change is inevitable and this extends to language learning and teaching methods as much as anything else. Since the 1980s, there has been tremendous interest in the role of new technologies in the improvement of English teaching and learning processes. This has led to the development of many CALL applications such as we reviewed in (section& currently 2.5). One aim of our study is to explore reported access to and use of CALL in our context at the present time. As described in (refer to the section of ch1), this might help guide those in whose hands future teaching and learning development lie. In this connection it is useful, then, to review the way in which innovations spread.

Everett Rogers (1983) proposes a theory of the diffusion of innovation that can form a framework for understanding the rate of adoption of computers, the Internet, and CALL. According to Rogers and Scott (1997) diffusion is the course through which an innovation is dispersed through some defined channels over a period of time to different members of a particular social structure (see Figure 1). Rogers theory proposes that the classical S-curve is a good model of the cumulative rate of penetration of innovation (such as CALL) throughout a population (such as teachers and learners of EFL, in the world, or more specifically in KSA). Rogers was especially emphatic about the fact that innovation spreads at different rates: A slow advance, at the beginning, followed by rapid and uniformly accelerated progress, followed again by the progress that continues to slacken until it finally stops: These are the three ages of&invention&if taken as a guide by the statistician and by the sociologists, (they) would save many illusions. (Tarde, 1962, p.127) In Figure 1 the three innovations might be different teaching methods, such as communicative or task-based, or they might be different technologies, such as audio tape recorders, overhead projectors and computers. Or they might represent different specific CALL applications.

Figure 2 clarifies the theory that a tiny number of innovators are first to adopt the new idea, followed by early adopters. As the early majority climbs on the bandwagon, two things occur. First, the median point of the community or population is reached. Second, the new idea diffuses to the late majority and laggard segments of the population at about the same rate it spread to the innovators, early adopters, and early majority. The result is the classical bell curve (see Figure 2). Add here something about what point on the curve you think CALL is at in the world? In KSA in general? and In your university? (The last you promise to further illuminate from your study).

Figure 1: The S-Curve Defining Varying Diffusion Rate for Three Practices/Products

Although thinking more about economic and technological innovation than pedagogical change, Dodgson and Bessant (1996) brought up the key issue of absorptive capacity and defined seven stages of diffusion. The authors proposed that making resources available or distributing the new technology far and wide counts for nothing if the prospective beneficiaries do not possess the capability to put the resource to good use. This would be especially true of CALL too. As to the stages of innovation diffusion, their analysis was as follows:

The opportunity or need must exist and be recognized;
The change proceeds with a search for alternatives;
Comparison of available innovations, ideas and practices take place;
Opting for the most promising alternative
Acquisition or purchase;
Putting the innovation to use;
Re-learning and adapting after initial use.

Rogers conceded that early innovation is very often associated with the right attitude, as well as the intellectual and financial advantages, though there is nothing inevitable about the adoption of innovation. Hence in our study, we research attitudes of teachers and learners, as well as their current access to and use of the innovation.

Viewing sociology as he did a dynamic mass of minute interpersonal transactions Tarde realized the primacy of imitation and innovation (Place-Based Education Evaluation Collaborative, 2003). Other contributions by Tarde that resurfaced in the Chicago School were the group mind (underlying herd or crowd psychology) and economic psychology.

Figure 2: The Bell Curve Underlying the Cumulative S Curve

Diffusion theory essentially addresses the communication problem: how rapidly do new ideas enter the mainstream, as it were, and gain universal acceptance? As originally conceived, the theory glossed over the practical usefulness of a new idea or the balance of costs and benefits. Mass marketers and advertisers saw the potential, however, of being able to displace innovation curves to the left, i.e. induce a faster rate of acceptance in a community or national market. For us, understanding better, through our study, the current availability and use of CALL in our context might lead to us also being able to make proposals that would displace to the left the innovation curve in our institution, i.e. accelerate the adoption of useful CALL applications especially in relation to ELT.

As per the diffusion theory, there are over five varying stages during which the process of adopting any type of innovation occurs. To start the very first stage is of knowledge where one receives the idea of the existence of an innovation, ergo becoming aware of its existence. During the first stage, an individual will simply be aware of, but not have any real knowledge on the subject. The second stage is the stage of persuasion, where the individual then becomes highly interested in gaining knowledge on the innovation. The third stage involves decision-making for the individual as he/she looks at the pros and cons of the innovation in order to come to a conclusion on whether he/she should go forth towards acquiring it or not. The fourth stage has a more practical approach as it involves implementing the decision made in the third stage. The fifth and final stage involves confirmation.

There is a myriad of factors that help in determining the probability of an individual or a group of people actually adopting an innovation, along with the time frame within which they may adopt it. In general, terms, if a new innovation is of higher quality and utility than the corresponding one to precede it, the likelihood is that it will be adopted in eventuality. On the other hand, if the innovation is not aligned with the moral values of its target audience then it is most likely going to go ignored.

In the context of internet and computer innovation in Saudi Arabia, it was deemed by Sait, Al-Taweel, and Hussain (2003) that there has been already a considerable influence of the Internet and computer on Saudi social, economic, and education systems. Specifically, Saudi education systems are the first that had adopted and accepted innovation in the internet and computer since they had realized its importance in educating their students and broadening to knowledge. Early investigations of Internet adoption and diffusion in Saudi academia demonstrated that professors are in the early stages of adoption (Ghandour, 1999). More recent studies have reported similar trends (Al-Asmari, 2005). This only shows that there is now a huge and extensive growth coupled with slow adoption of innovation in the internet and computer in different sectors of the industry.

Types of CALL Application

Computers in learning can be used in different ways. Taylor (1980) and Levy (2006) both propose that computers in learning are used in three different methods: computer as a tutor, computer as a tool, and computer as a tutee. Computers as a tutor mean that students get tutoring from the computer, which attempts to play the role of teacher. For example, the computer provides material, gets the students responses, assesses those responses, then decides what to present next based on the learners responses (Taylor, 1980). Using computers as a tool means that students seek help from computers in different subjects by accessing the internet, or use computers as word processors, or the teacher uses it to present Powerpoint slides. Using computers as tutee refers to the process in which the student or the teacher gives the computer some information or talks in a language that the computer understands and the computer in some way responds. All these have been implemented for English teaching and we may expect to find some of them in use in our context.

Slightly differently, Warschauer (1996) divides CALL typology and applications in language learning into three different types: computer as tutor; computer as stimulus; and computer as a tool. Using computers as a tutor again means that the computer teaches things such as grammar, listening, reading, vocabulary, text reconstruction, writing, and comprehension. Using the computer as a stimulus means that the computer is used to help learners generate discussions, or synthesize critical thinking. Communication in support of collaborative writing, the internet, grammar checkers, word processing, concordance, reference, and authoring programs are again typical uses of computers as a tool (Warschauer, 1996).

Currently, CALL takes many forms that meet different learner needs in relation to many different language skills, whether via CDs or the internet on a computer, or most recently on mobile phones.

Warschauer and Healey (1998) illustrate different applications of CALL. Speaking applications incorporate voice recording and playback to allow learners to compare what they said with the model. Another application is the drill application which contains games that use the power of computers and competition for collaboration to motivate language learning. Writing applications involve programs that help learners in the pre-writing stage to create and outline their ideas.

Other writing applications are word processing, spell checkers, and dictionaries. Sokolik (2001) states that computers offer language learners six applications: drills, adaptive, testing, corpora and concordance, computer-mediated communication, and multimedia production.

Literature applications mean giving learners different literature from different disciplines (Beatty, 2003). According to Beatty (2003), literature has a high degree of fidelity, or authenticity, in that the learning materials are both extensive and taken from real-world source (p. 57). Collie and Slater (1987) look at the use of literature in language teaching as authentic material, language enrichment, and personal involvement. Literature applications offer learners exposure to different styles, genres, contexts, terms, vocabulary, and acronyms in different fields in the language they learn.

Another application of CALL is corpus linguistics which refers to the study of a body of texts (Beatty, 2003). It involves the examination of linguistic phenomena through large collections of machine-readable texts (Cheng et al., 2003, p. 174). The main goal of corpus linguistics is to figure out the models of authentic language use through actual usage analysis (Krieger, 2003).

Another application is computer-mediated communication (CMC). CMC is seen today as one of the computer applications that have the greatest impact on the field of language learning (Warschauer, 1996). Warschauer (2004) points out that extensive interaction is seen as a tool to help language learners enter new societies and communities and familiarize themselves with new discourses and genres. He believes that it is no longer sufficient for learners to communicate with others merely to practice what they learned in language classrooms. Peterson (1997) mentions that one of the main advantages of CMC is promoting autonomy in learning by providing an environment for learning that is less restrictive than the one in the conventional classroom. It enables language learners to communicate inexpensively with native speakers of the target language as well as with other language learners 24 hours a day and from different places like classrooms, home, or work (Warschauer, 1996). CMC also makes learners from different levels, backgrounds, types, and learning styles equal. Warschauer et al. (1996) state that CMC applications provide more equal participation to learners who are often discriminated against or excluded, including minorities, shy students, women, and learners with strange learning styles.

There are two kinds of CMC, Synchronous and Asynchronous; Synchronous CMC means that the interaction is taking place in real-time. An example of that is when learners sit in front of the computer, read, respond, and discuss topics with each other via a chat or messenger facility or Skype (Chapelle, 2003). This type of CMC could also take place over a mobile phone through text messaging, voice messaging, or both (Chapelle, 2003). Smith et al. (2003) mentioned that the internet is the representative of synchronous communication Internet Relay Chat (IRC) exemplifies synchronous communication (p. 705).

The second kind of CMC is Asynchronous communication which is the opposite of synchronous and means that interactions do not take place in real-time. Examples of Asynchronous communication are bulletin boards (Chapelle, 2003) and e-mail (Smith et al., 2003). Bulletin boards are where learners and teachers post and share their messages with others. The advantage of bulletin boards is that the messages can be viewed, shared, and commented on with different people around the world and not necessarily with other learners or teachers, which gives it an extra advantage over email (Beatty, 2003). Email is considered one of the most common activities that learners use on the int

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