On the other hand, Shen (2009) demonstrates that there is only slight evidence of student achievement gains resulting from the e-learning components. His analysis of student perceptions indicate that students are mostly satisfied with many of the elements of e-learning, and find it useful for their study, but there also are areas of technology that the students rate more poorly, suggesting that instructors and universities need to be careful in the features of the system they are using, in the quality of the materials they provide to students, in training provided to students, and in collaboration of instructors with support services such as libraries.Similar restrictions of the overall acceptance of blended-learning courses offered, have been revealed by Valentine (2002), who includes quality of instruction, hidden costs, misuse of technology and the attitudes of the instructors, students and administration, in the factors that may influence the overall quality of the program offered, hence affecting students' general satisfaction for the program.50 Surprisingly, the literature review also reveals a lack of studies concerning the acceptance of blended e-learning programs in conjunction with the improvement of ICT skills as well as the use of these skills in further occupational aspects, such as teaching assignments. Furthermore, it shows that the interest of most researchers focus on the relationship between tutor vs. learner(s) or learner vs. program, leaving behind the very reason for which each student got involved with distance learning programs in the first place, i.e. its usefulness in real life applications and further life-long education as well as expectations and anticipation of the students, which initially made them enroll DE. This paper focuses on these issues by setting up specific queries addressing issues of reasoning, time, place and ICT involved in blended DL courses offered by the Hellenic Open University.
PROBLEMIn order to look into the aforementioned lack of evidence, this paper and its underlying Case Study seeks to establish answers that pin-point some of the missing components mentioned. For this, the overall design of the study was set to research the following problems: To what degree and why is the further education offered by the blended learning program of the Hellenic Open University Post-Degree program for Teachers of German as a Foreign Language accepted and put to practical use by post degree students and holders of the respective MA Degree? In reference to the overall estimation of the post degree education in its blended form, to what extend is it satisfying for the end-users? Is the degree pursued in order to solely secure monetary benefits for the degreeholders? Does the MA Degree represent a meta-value of post-degree education offering a wide range of supplementary specialized knowledge in the field of pedagogy and didactics of German as a foreign language leading to practical implementation of ICT-knowledge in the classroom or to further specialization and academic p...
