Trends in Postsecondary Education - Distance Education: Get A Degree From The Comfort Of Home

One-third of higher education institutions offered distance education courses in 1994; in 1997 it was 44%. As shown on the graphic, there were an estimated 753,640 students enrolled in distance education in 1995; by 1997, the number had grown to 1.3 million, an increase in just two years of 81%. According to Market Data Retrieval (MDR), in 2002, 84% of colleges surveyed offered distance learning programs, up from 70% a year earlier. Public institutions are more likely to offer these courses, and public four-year institutions are the most likely to offer degrees that can be earned entirely from a distance.

Distance education is nothing new — St. Paul gave lessons by way of epistles (letters). Distance learning took off in the 19th century with the development of the postal service. The 1914 Cooperative Agricultural Extension Act gave a boost to college education by correspondence. The intent was to diffuse "useful and practical information on subjects relating to agriculture, home economics, and rural energy." Correspondence courses opened college doors for many who would not otherwise have been able to attend, especially country dwellers. In modern times, Ben and Jerry learned how to make ice cream through a Penn State correspondence course.

California defines modern distance education as "the non-traditional form of education in which the teacher and student are not located in the same physical space and each is expected to interact through the assistance of technology." The student might be in a dorm room or studio on campus or somewhere on the other side of the world. The technology has evolved from print to include television (telecourses), interactive video and prere-corded video, computers ("e-learning") and beyond (digital services from cable, satellite and wireless companies, interactive TV services, HDTV).

Recent widespread access to modern technology led to an explosion of interest in online college courses followed by an explosion of online diploma mills and other scams.⁸ In 1999 the Chronicle of Higher Education declared: "For an industry that barely existed three years ago, the level of activity is dizzying."⁹ Online, you can learn how to become a psychic, a doctor of vibrational medicine, or a United Nations peacekeeper. Even as you read this, it may become possible to earn a Harvard degree entirely from a distance. But preliminary studies do not show any tuition savings for distance learners. Darn.

Will e-learning be "the next big thing," fulfilling prophecies that it will grow 80% between 2002 and 2007, or will it join the ranks of the dot.coms? There are signs that colleges may be getting ahead of themselves in their rush to offer distance learning. MDR reports some spectacular failures, like that of the State University of New York at Buffalo's School of Management. Its online MBA program was forced to close its doors when only 35 students enrolled; 1,000 students were expected. Little is known about the quality of the online education experience, but the dropout rate may be as high as 50%.

The U.S. Army is so confident that online learning programs will help them recruit and retain soldiers, it has invested $550 million over six years to develop Army University Access On-Line. Distance education also shows promise in helping professionals keep up-to-date on developments in their fields. But the most promising application of this on-demand education may be the same as it ever was: Making it easy for more students to take courses, including those who live far from campuses, the physically handicapped, the homebound, and working students.

Critics of distance education argue that online learning could lead to a system in which rich students earn prestigious degrees on campus while the less fortunate get online degrees — a twist on the digital divide we encountered in an earlier panel. Even as they're pressured to modernize, teachers (and students too) express nostalgia for the old-fashioned and arguably more educational give and take of the traditional classroom.

Source: Chart: NCES, Distance Education at Postsecondary Education Institutions, December 1999, NCES 2000-013; NCES, Post-secondary Education Quick Information System, Distance Education in Higher Education Institutions, 1997. "MDR: Brick and Mortar Campuses Embracing Distance Learning," Educational Marketer, March 18, 2002, v33 i9. California State-Sacramento Distance and Distributed Education FAQ Web Site, http://www.csus.edu/distance/faq.htm, retrieved April 9, 2002. Richard T. Cooper, "Soldier by Day, Online Student by Night," Los Angeles Times, July 10, 2000, p. A1+. Eyal Press and Jennifer Washburn, "Digital Diplomas," Mother Jones, January/February 2001, retrieved April 9, 2002, http://www.motherjones.com.