The history of Distance Learning

The history of Distance Learning

My maths teacher at school knew all about distance learning – he was always asking me what planet I was on during his lessons. He must have taught me something though because some years later I got my Psychology degree, including a fair bit of statistical work, through home study with the Open University (OU) – more about that later.

But the history of distance learning goes back a lot further than the OU and over the centuries it’s opened doors for some very interesting and inspiring people.

Early distance learning by correspondence

Distance learning can be traced back as far as the first century when the Apostle Paul instructed the early Christian churches from afar, including a period when he was under house arrest in Rome.

For many centuries home learning courses were all correspondence courses - written lessons sent through the post to students. Pennsylvania State University was one of the first to deliver organised home study courses in 1886. A typical correspondence course, the university communicated with its students by US Mail – the most advanced form of communication available to it at that time.

Home study in the 1960’s

Probably the most influential period for the development of distance learning was in the 60’s when the Prime Minister at the time, Harold Wilson, approved the setting up of the ‘University of the Air’ which later became the Open University.

The new University was set up to allow people of all ages and abilities to study at home for degree level courses using TV and Radio broadcasts to deliver the teaching. As time went on these home study courses used more paper based teaching materials and today learning with the OU is much more computer/internet based.

One of the most famous of all students of distance learning in the 60s was Nelson Mandela. When imprisoned on Robben Island, Mandela took home study courses offered by the University of South Africa to help him deal with his incarceration.

A firm believer in the power of education to help people make changes in their lives, Mandela refers to Education as “the great engine of personal development” in his autobiography. (p.194 – Great Walk to Freedom)

Distance Learning courses today

With over 200,000 students taking distance learning courses with the OU at any one time, the success of this kind of study is clear. The main differences today are the huge range of home study courses available and the increasing numbers of people choosing to study through home learning.

College based courses continue to attract their fair share of students, but the flexibility offered by distance learning courses and the fact that they are often more affordable, means that this form of home study is likely to continue to develop further alongside the rapid developments taking place in technology.

IT Training courses through home study

Just as growth in the development of IT and telecommunications influences the expansion of distance learning, so the demand for IT training courses has increased.

Now many home learning colleges offer a huge range of IT courses and the numbers of students across the globe taking up opportunities for IT home study is testament to the success of distance learning today.

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Neil Johnson is author of this article on Distance learning courses. Find more information about IT home study here.

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