Introduction

 

100-Plus Years of Distance Learning

1892: The first university-level correspondence study is introduced at the University of Chicago.

1910s–1920s: New continuing education and distance learning associations and institutions form as correspondence courses grow in popularity. Schools begin delivering courses over radio.

1940s–1950s: After World War II, many students enroll in mail-based correspondence courses.

1960s: The baby boom influences states to expand and create regional colleges and universities, making higher education possible for millions of students. One-way TV courses emerge.

1980s: The number of community colleges expands. Programs that offer 2-year associate degrees in technical areas grow particularly rapidly. Many other community college students seek to complete their first 2 years toward a 4-year bachelor's degree from another institution as "2+2" agreements expand. The first online undergraduate courses are offered in 1984; the first online degree programs are offered in 1989.

1990s (early): The laying of cable and T1 lines across the U.S. makes possible 2-way television use. Videoconferencing improves thanks to advances in data compression technology. Students and faculty enjoy the 2-way communication opportunities and learn to deal with videoconferencing's "2 second delay."

1990s (late): Course platforms like WebCT and CourseInfo's BlackBoard help educators package a college or training course on to the Internet. Prior to this period, many experimenting and savvy instructors had built their own educational websites, but these websites rarely included functions such as chat areas, discussion boards, and white boards.

The Future of Distance Learning

As the 21st century progresses we should expect current media to become easier to manage and integrate. For instance, Tegrity and other companies have begun combining live video—once only available with videoconferencing—with BlackBoard-type online learning platforms. While some predict that face-to-face education will vanish, it might be instructive to remember that the theater didn't disappear with the introduction of radio; radio didn't disappear with motion pictures; movies didn't disappear with the introduction of television, and so on. Historically the introduction of a new medium just means more media choices. This is what will likely happen with distance education and education in general. We will likely see all of the previous approaches continue even as new approaches develop