This paper examined professors' conceptions of effective teaching in the context of a course they were teaching in active learning classrooms and how the conceptions related to the perceived role and use of computers in their teaching. We interviewed 13 professors who were teaching in active learning classrooms in winter 2011 in a large research university in Canada. The interviews captured what professors consider effective teaching, expected learning outcomes for students, instructional strategies and the role participants saw for computers in their teaching. Analysis of interview transcripts using a holistic inductive and constant comparison approach resulted in three conceptions of effective teaching: transmitting knowledge, engaging students, and developing learning independence. Professors' perception about the role and use of computers was found to be in line with their conceptions of effective teaching. Professors whose conception of effective teaching focused on developing learning independence used computers as tools for students' learning; those with a transmitting knowledge conception considered computers as a means of accessing or presenting information. Data collected from students about their use and their professors' use of computers in the course supports this conclusion. Results have implications for design of active learning environments and faculty development initiatives.