Students
Online college is a direct descendent of 19th century correspondence courses. Once mail service was reliably established in the US, a student could read the assigned books, complete the assignments and send them to the instructor. This was how students who were unable to get to college campuses obtained college educations – well into the 1950s. They worked alone, and the term independent study was not an empty phrase.
Broadview University (formerly Utah Career College) follows in this tradition, awarding college degrees to students who choose to attend school without going to class. Read on to learn how distance learning has changed and improved.
Distance education before the Internet
A number of technologies were tried to make distance learning more accessible and user-friendly. Slides and movies, introduced before the 1920s, were at first thought to be a breakthrough, but they did not catch on as vehicles for distance education. Instructional radio was tried in the 1930s but, like slides and films did not represent a major change in correspondence courses.
Television and online learning
Once access to television was common, some students were able to enhance their distance learning experiences by watching and listening to instructors via television. In fact, today’s public television networks are rooted in instructional TV efforts that began in the late 1950s.
Conference calls and online learning
Conference telephone calls in the 1960s made it possible for students to interact with the teacher and with other students. Advancements in the 1970s and 1980s included the use of video to record lectures that were sent to students for later viewing on a VCR.
Online learning via the Internet
The advent of the Internet in the 1990s opened the door to big changes in distance education. It became relatively inexpensive to deliver sophisticated course content via the Internet. E-mail and chat allowed easy communication among students and between students and the instructor. Web cameras provided the opportunity to enhance content with live or recorded images.
The Internet also made the mechanics of online learning much easier to implement. Students were able to see their grades instantly. Instructors were able to make global changes to lectures and reading lists as needed. Students could take tests and quizzes online, and in some cases, receive grades right away.
Online learning at Broadview today
Students at Broadview University enjoy a level of access to their instructors, their classmates and the content of their courses that was impossible to anticipate even 25 years ago. Online and in-class programs are now virtually identical. The material covered, the assignments and the requirements for success are the same wherever a student takes a class.
Contact us for more information about distance education
To learn more about online education, contact Broadview University. Call 877-609-8889 to find out how today’s version of distance learning works. It may be the opportunity you’ve been seeking.