From Correspondence to Zoom: A Historical Review of Distance Learning and Its Persistent Challenges

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Abstract

This research examines the historical evolution of distance learning in U.S. higher education, focusing on how correspondence education connects to today’s online learning. Grounded in critical historical and sociocultural theory, it draws on archival and primary sources, and the review identifies persistent themes across time: efforts to expand access, skepticism about instructional quality, and the role of policy in shaping equity. Thematic analysis reveals that many current challenges in digital education mirror those from the correspondence era. By “unforgetting” these histories, the study underscores how structural inequities are reproduced over time. It calls for historically informed, equity-centered policy and design, offering insight for researchers and institutions working toward more inclusive futures in distance education.

Authors

• Isabela Thebaldi, University of Florida

• Lindsay Byron, University of Florida