Historical Review of Distance and Online Education from 1700s to 2021 in the United States
tance education , universal access , and inclusion to effective learning .
Research Question 1 asked , “ How has distance education evolved from the 1700s to 2021 in the United States ?” Distance education in the United States began with correspondence education in 1728 . The evolution of distance education in the 19 th and 20 th centuries expanded through radio , television , telephone , and computer assisted instruction . In the latter part of the 20 th century , satellite television , personal computers , and the advent of the Internet further enhanced distance education . In the 21 st century , the increased use of the Internet for online and blended learning further contributed to today ’ s advanced , cloud-based online learning modalities .
Rapid advancements in learning technologies , coupled with the public ’ s demand for just-in-time learning , has catalyzed an entire e-learning economy . The e-learning market was projected to exceed $ 300 billion by 2025 ( Sanyal , 2019 ), prior to the pandemic . These pre-pandemic projections corresponded with increasing enrollments in exclusively online courses ( Seaman et al ., 2018 ). Approximately 35 % of all U . S . college students in Fall 2018 enrolled in some distance education courses ( U . S . Department of Education , 2019 ), marking 16 consecutive years of increased online enrollment . Jaschik and Lederman ( 2019 ) found that 46 % of faculty taught an online course for credit , “ up from 39 % in 2016 and 30 % in 2013 ” ( p . 6 ).
Research Question 2 asked , “ How has instructional design and pedagogy evolved in distance education ?” The Internet era transformed distance education in the 1990s , introducing digital methods of two-way communication . The reliability , efficiency , power , and reach of such technologies improved rapidly during the ensuing three decades , offering institutions of higher education tools like synchronous video conferencing , cloud-based storage , and advanced multimedia presentation software . These tools eased the facilitation of online learning , but also introduced new complications to the teaching and learning processes . Englund and colleagues ( 2017 ) wrote about the disconnect between the aspirational rhetoric of education technologies versus their actual mixed performance in relation to higher education learning outcomes . Research consistently indicates that with education technologies , pedagogical and content knowledge must unite with technological knowledge to optimize learning potential ( Mishra & Koehler , 2007 ). This remains true as innovative immersive technologies ( e . g ., augmented reality , virtual reality , and 360 video ) emerge as educational tools across learning modalities .
Augmented Reality ( AR ) technology as an educational application continues to attract increased interest from higher education . AR overlays virtual objects in the real world and may be applied to all senses , not just sight ( Akçayir & Akçayir , 2017 ; Garzón & Acevedo , 2019 ). A meta-analysis of 64 studies found that augmented reality had a medium effect on student learning gains ( Garzón & Acevedo , 2019 ). While immersive technologies are often asso-
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