Critically Examining Distance Education Practice

Abstract

his document reviews the history of distance education (DE) in the United States beginning with the early years of correspondence study, radio, and television. It chronicles the rise of DE universities internationally, the impact of the Internet and Web-based education, and the emergence of virtual universities. The paper discusses the emergence of DE theory in the last 30 years and provides a history of its scholarship, including tools such as publications, conferences, professional development, and professional associations. The concluding chapter addresses the question of whether and how DE has changed over the last century, examining the issue in terms of technology, pedagogy, organization, policy, and scholarship. The monograph ends with three reaction papers in which invited scholars provide additional perspectives on the history of distance education: "The Best Place to Start: Moore and 'From Chautauqua to the Virtual University'" (Von Pittman); "Critically Examining Distance Education Practice" (Terry Anderson); and "Redesigning Distance Education to Deal with Equity Problems" (Cheris Kramarae). Contains 103 references. (SK)