Implementation and Assessment of a Blended Learning Environment in Postgraduate Education

Abstract

The article is devoted to the description of information technology (IT) tools in teaching foreign languages to PhD students in a digital environment. The authors describe the methodological basis for designing an assessment system that is relevant to the specific character of digital education, clarify the main functions of new assessment tools and determine the peculiarities of this activity in connection with information technology. The article deals with explaining the use of IT tools with an emphasis on the study of the educational content of the student and the development of personal soft skills. The results include monitoring the performance achieved in the learning process, authors’ observations and research based on post graduates’ outcomes and aimed at monitoring the development of their own perspective. The findings were confirmed by prognostic simulation and experimental learning. According to the authors, the use of information technology tools, as well as technology-based assessment, is based on principles which tend to challenge traditional learning and teaching practices and, thus, affect education policies and systems. On the other hand, piloting this technology has outlined a promising range of problems that need to be addressed in further research related to higher education.