Correspondence Schools: Pioneers of Distance Education

H. DePalma
Fordham University

Origins of distance education
Distance education is not an invention of the 20th century. Despite the apparent recent popularity, the foundations for distance education can be traced back to the late 1800s when improvements in the postal service established a viable means for distribution of materials for correspondence courses (Clardy, 2009). What factors influenced the development of these early programs and what commonalities are there to those that exist today? The first major organization in America to use instruction by mail was the Chautauqua Literary and Scientific Circle (CLSC). Initiated in 1878, the organization to provided an opportunity to acquire skills and knowledge for those who could not afford the time or money to attend college. Designed as a four-year correspondence course, it was one of the first attempts at distance learning. Kett (1994) described a shift away from the cultural focus of CLSC to a vocational focus. An early example was the Home Correspondence School (HSC) of Springfield, Massachusetts, which provided learners with the opportunity to study a variety of vocations in the comfort of their own homes. Advertisements from the early 1900s for the school promoted the fact that they realized fully that “their students are serious people struggling for self-improvement”. HSC boasted over 100 course offerings, including bookkeeping, public speaking and embalming.
Proprietary correspondence schools flourished between 1890 and 1930. These programs were the forerunner to today's distance-learning institutions. The rise in popularity of correspondence schools, over 200 in existence by 1910, coincided with licensing requirement imposed by states for many occupations (Kett, 1994). Among those who benefited most from the correspondence programs were individuals with a limited amount of formal education who sought job advancement and those living in remote rural areas. Students at the time did not need academic degrees, but rather they needed a body of information in order to pass a licensing exam. The correspondence schools were able to offer this type of instruction effectively. The most famous correspondence school, International Correspondence Schools of Scranton, Pennsylvania (ICS), was founded by Thomas Foster, an editor of a mining journal who was interested in improving safety in the coal mines. Initially, students were area coal miners seeking to pass state exams as inspectors or foremen, and by 1893 had grown to 3000 students.

Success of the early programs
Due to the concurrent expansion of the postal service, ICS was able to ship its materials almost anywhere in the country from very early in its existence. Instruction by mail allowed for a small number of instructors who possessed a specialized skill set, fewer than those required for traditional classroom instruction. Characterized by a strong marketing plan, the programs included provision of an installment plan. These installment plans to pay for tuition made the courses affordable. Often, the proprietary correspondence schools had ties to industry and were able to offer discounts or payment of tuition fees through payroll deductions. Employers could utilize enrollment in correspondence courses as a basis for promotion, in the hope for potential for reduction in turnover rate. Correspondence students viewed the programs as a job improvement opportunity, opening the way for promotion to positions of greater responsibility. Rather than comprehensive education, programs sought to enhance job-specific skills to advance students to a promotion. Correspondence programs overcame the geographical limitations of traditional classroom programs, providing the ability to attend part-time and from the convenience of home. For young families unable to afford to stop working to attend a full time program, this was a tremendous advantage. Kett (1994) described a high rate of students enrolled from small to mid-sized communities. He postulated that these moderate-size communities had local occupations which presented job advancement opportunities with minimal availability of classroom instruction for specialized trades.
The schools, however, did have a reputation for aggressive advertising, with an aim to convince prospective students that any occupation could be learned by mail. The companies employed sales staff, known as field agents. These individuals would canvas (and re-canvass) a geographic area for new students. Some programs were prone to fraud. The companies were renowned for massive advertising campaigns, and employed inspirational advertising, promoting a desire for self-improvement rather than simple course availability (Kett, 1994).

Linking the past with the present
Commonalities certainly exist between the driving factors between the development of the pioneer distance education programs and those we know today. Distance learning students, regardless of the era, enjoy the flexibility to take courses on a part-time basis and to work at their own pace. Both past and current programs took full advantage of the new delivery methods available at the time; the expanded postal service of the late 19th century and internet today.
Other challenges exist that span both timeframes, such as securing consistent student enrollment to maintain financial viability. There is an on-going struggle to attract new students to programs and improve retention rates. For ICS, a high attrition rate was addressed by the employment of field agents to recruit and re-recruit new/previous students. With an estimated completion time for courses ranging from 3-13 years for completion, approximately 85% of students enrolled did not complete the course in which they had enrolled (Kett, 1994). Many students would discontinue courses upon successful completion of a licensing exam.
The original correspondence programs had wide geographic distribution due to improvements in postal delivery, but this did not ensure equitable access to them. Although ICS offered programs geared toward women, such as the Woman's Institute of Domestic Arts and Sciences, Kett (1994) reported a review of an ICS graduate list from1905 that appeared to be approximately 95% male, reflective of the attraction the program had for young males seeking career advancement. Language skills of immigrant populations often limited the ability to succeed in a correspondence course. Accessibility issues for distance education persist today, with concerns of the digital divide.
An advantage today’s distance learners have is the means to evaluate quality of programs more easily. Availability of information via the internet allows learners to “comparison shop” to make more educated decisions when evaluating programs. At the time of the original correspondence programs, there was little standardization and some had shady reputations and were prone to fraud. In current times, standards were developed for electronically-delivered programs in an effort monitor quality and provide a measure of protection for potential, including a set of best practices guidelines introduced in 1995 by WCET (Western Cooperative for Educational Telecommunication, an educational compact of 15 western states. (Howell & Baker, 2006).
I was intrigued to see that ICS still exists, albeit under a different name. The program changed to EducationDirect, and is currently known as Penn Foster Career School, described in their website (http://www.pennfoster.edu/index.html) as an independent school, offering courses in on-line or print format. Prospective students can start immediately, without waiting for a new semester to begin. Promotional materials encourage career training for job advancement to get ahead and “take the next step toward a brighter tomorrow”. A little inspirational advertising remains from the ICS origins!

References
Clardy A., (June, 2009) Distant, On-line Education: Effects, Principles and Practices; On-line submission, ERIC Document # ED506182.
Howell, S.L., Baker, K. (2006). Good (Best) Practices for Electronically Offered Degree and Certificate Programs: A 10-Year Retrospect. Distance Learning, 3(1), 41-48.
International Correspondence Schools of Scranton, Pennsylvania History: 1891 to the Present (2006). Retrieved April 24, 2010, from http://www.academic.scranton.edu/department/wml/icsfinding.htm
Kett, J. (1994). The pursuit of knowledge under difficulties: From self-improvement to adult education in America. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press.
Penn Foster Career School Website (n.d.). Retrieved April 24, 2010 from http://www.pennfoster.edu/index.html