Couple of things first,
There are two levels of RC Fliers now more than ever: 1.) the original variety of guys who use Glow, Gas or high powered electric and belog to the AMA and most likely a club. 2.) the new variety of folks who buy a foam-electric plane and self teach in the neighborhood parks.

Now, both can co-exist, but you might need to decide which variety you are in before you move forward in the hobby. The first generally will dedicate more than the $300 to the sport, because even though that will get you a great combo from tower hobbies and get you into the air, most likely, if you put together that ARF and fire up the engine, you will probably just put it into the ground on first takeoff. Also, if you live in an urban environment, and you try to fire this engine up at your local park, you will probably have a few cops helping you collect your plane debris and promptly issue you a ticket. That is why the cost for this hobby is more than the combo, because if you want to learn to fly a glow sized plane, it makes most sense to join the AMA ($19 for the first 3 months as a trial, then $58 per year), and also join a local club (where the cost varies - check out the AMA website).

The great thing about the cllubs is that they generally have great dedicated training people who would be more than happy to show you the ropes on a buddy-box. This will teach you orientation (A huge thing when first starting) and eye-hand coordination. Expect to pay about $100-200 to be part of the AMA and a club.

With option 2.) you might find a good time to go out and fly the foamie, but in general, they are far less powerful than a glow trainer, and don't handle wind very well (maybe good between 0-5 mph depending on the plane). You can find eplanes that have more power, but then you are up against cost and the cost of carrying multiple battery packs to keep flying. And, unless you have multiple field chanrgers or channels ont he charger, then once your packs are dead, you will have to wait until the first pack that went onto the chager to be done to start flying again. With glow you refuel and go (also, flights generally last longer with glow too). Also, with plane 1., you may buy 1 transmitter at the beginning, and the field gear to go with the plane, and next time, you can just buy the plane and some servos, and maybe an engine for the next plane and you are now set, whereas with the foamie Tx/Rx, you wouldn't want to put that into a glow plane.

The cost of glow is a big consideration, and I do like flying both, but i like the ability to fly almost any day of the week without worrying too much about wind conditions with the glow planes.

Good luck with the descision, let us know what you choose,
Curtis