A Brief History of Online Colleges
One of the most remarkable advances in education has been the creation of online education, attracting thousands of new students to online programs, and delivering degrees to students who would not have earned them otherwise. Online colleges have emerged out of the woodwork basically, causing a stir in the education industry, offering a multitude of online courses through their many degree programs. Since the emergence of the internet a few decades ago, companies have been slowly developing ways to educate their employees on the intricacies of their business methods, a practice which slowly evolved to include pure college courses.
The implementation of online classes began through “e-learning” classes that were based on computer-based learning/training stations which tried to replicate teaching styles. Later e-learning classes were based on Computer Supported collaborative Learning which encouraged more of a community outlook of sharing knowledge. Early companies used online classes in the 1980s as a way to convey information to their employees through email and other early methods. These were the early days of the internet, and many companies used this form of email to just communicate with their coworkers and employees. Furthermore, online courses developed in the 1970s and 80s for the new Jersey Institute of Technology, the British Open University, and other similar schools introduced the world to online learning, essentially creating a forum for online discussion between students.
After this point, the 90s ushered in a new internet revolution, centering around the advances in technology which allowed companies the flexibility to sign up for internet usage. 1993 was when Graziadei, W.D. created an online computer-delivered lecture, tutorial, and assessment project using the technologies at the time. This allowed students and the instructors to create a “virtual classroom”, from which online colleges developed years later. Virtual classrooms have developed from this point and created a new realm of online education, with the incorporation of for-profit institutions like University of Phoenix and Kaplan University. After Congress affirmed a bill that allowed federal funding for online universities, the amount of accredited online colleges boomed and online education seems virtually unstoppable.
Online colleges have since evolved with the advances in technology and have demonstrated the easy accessibility for students with little computer training to earn degrees from the comfort of their own home. The increase in online degrees is a clear sign that the industry is on the rise and we will only see an augmentation of the amount of online colleges in the years to come.
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