Then and Now: Lessons from History Concerning the Merits and Problems of Distance Education

A well-known saying suggests that “those who ignore the lessons of history are doomed to repeat them.” To understand those lessons, a content analysis was conducted concerning university extension and commercial correspondence courses in literature printed between 1898 and 1941. A total of 93 documents were collected from scholarly journals and popular publications listed in the JSTOR and The Reader's Guide to Periodic Literature. The analysis showed that many of the driving forces and problems that exist with distance education today also existed in the early years of correspondence programs offered by mail through university extension programs and for profit organizations. Thus, a major question is how to solve these problems and retain credible outreach education that can benefit both those who receive it and those who provide it.