Distance Learning Issues in Higher Education
José Gerardo Martínez Martínez
University of Puerto Rico at Bayamón

 

Distance education (DE) is nearly 150 years old and has been identified with distance learners and textual, mail correspondence in nineteenth century Europe (England, Germany, Sweden, France) and the United States (New York, Pennsylvania, Illinois). These early, print-based, correspondence delivery methods evolved into today's multi-presentational models through technological advances in modes of communication. Within the last 30 years, explosive advances in communication technology have forced a reconfiguration of DE thought and perspective (Simonson, Schlosser, & Anderson, 1998). Technological advances that affect instructional delivery methods impact DE. Radio communications (1920s), experimental television (1930s), television courses (1950s), satellite technology (1970s-80s), and, most recently, computer technology are benchmarks in technological communications.

Viability of Distance Higher Education by Age Grouping

Distance learning (DL) was a popular and practical choice for many students and institutions long before the emergence of the Internet, but the popularity of the World Wide Web at nearly all levels of society and education has accelerated interest in DL to an unprecedented degree. Evidence is accumulating that DL is becoming a mainstream instructional delivery system for post-secondary courses and degree programs (Blumenstyk, 2003; Selingo, 2003). Student recruitment (age range from teenagers to older adults) often depends on the availability of DL options (Belcher, 2001; Martin, 2001), and many post-secondary institutions fear extinction if they do

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