Seasoned teachers are sometimes reluctant to introduce new technology into their classroom. They usually see this as just a gadget or fad that does not necessarily enhance teaching and even sometimes disrupts the classroom. Technology that does not work is the worst foe of the foreign language teacher, even in ter- tiary education.While the radio-cassette/compact disc player has finally made its way into the classroom, computer technology is still at bay, for various reasons. While most teachers are able to make personal use of the computer to improve their teaching aids (fonts, pictures, access to authentic documents, etc.), very few have enough confidence to conduct a class in a computer labora- tory. Therefore, in a region where information technology is catching up fast, can the Caribbean foreign language teacher ig- nore the possibilities offered by computer-assisted foreign lan- guage learning? In the case of the French Section in the Department of Modern Languages and Literatures, University of the West Indies, Mona, the lecturers were very eager to explore and experiment with the possibilities offered by the new tech- nologies. This article looks more closely at the use of CALL in a particular situation (an intensive beginners’ course) where we were asked to reduce contact hours while maintaining standards. It assesses the benefits and difficulties with a view to extending the experience to other courses.