Clarke Historical Museum
  • Home
    • Land Acknowledgement
    • Work at the Clarke!
    • About the Clarke >
      • Staff & Board
    • How to find us
  • Exhibits
    • Native Plant Garden
    • Main Hall >
      • Maritime History
      • Emmerson Room >
        • The Carolyn Burns Foundation
      • Clarke Bird Collection
      • Clarke Gem & Mineral Collection
    • Nealis Hall >
      • About Nealis Hall
      • History of Nealis Hall
      • Hover Collection
      • Ecological Management
      • Nellie McGraw
      • Becker Memorial Collection
      • Past Mini-Exhibits
    • Community Case
    • Opera Alley >
      • Past Opera Alley Exhibits
    • WWII Memorial Exhibit at the Humboldt County Airport
    • Virtual Tours
    • Online Exhibits >
      • Immigration, Expulsion, Homecoming
    • Exhibit Archive >
      • Notable Women of Humboldt County
      • Bigfoot Quilt Raffle
  • Events
  • Support
    • Admission
    • Membership
    • Volunteer
    • Donations & Fundraisers
    • Sponsorships
    • Internships
  • Blog
  • Education
    • Bookstore
    • TikTok Videos
    • Teacher Resources
    • Additional Resources
    • Research >
      • Humboldt History
      • Local History Links
  • NCMA
  • Tours
    • Chinatown Walking Tours
    • School Tours >
      • Donate & Schedule Your Tour
  • Non-clickable Page

New Exhibit: 1920s Distance Learning

10/6/2020

6 Comments

 
What's the first thing you think of when you hear "Distance Learning?" Zoom calls? That one time your kid was in class and another kid in another window ran unexpectedly pantsless through the video? By now, many students have been in virtual classes for a few months and the novelty of "pantsless Peter" has worn off. But, did you know that distance learning isn't a very new thing? Of course, it's internet iteration is relatively new, but distance learning as a concept dates to the earliest back to the 1700s, but came into vogue in the mid 1800s, around the same time that the postal service in the US was becoming modernized and when Humboldt County was being established.
1852 brought about the establishment of the Pitman Shorthand program that taught students via mail how to read and write shorthand (a way to quickly write in a code that could be retranslated into English for times when rapid transcription was needed). In 1890s, the Colliery School of Mines established a mine safety correspondence course in response to Pennsylvania's 1885 Mine Safety Act to ensure miners had the information needed to safely work in mines and reduce the chance of disaster or death. Over the course of a decade, this program, later known as ICS (International Correspondence School) had over 250,000 students from around the world participating in a variety of correspondence courses. This same company, now known and Penn Foster, began offering online courses in 2003 and continues to do so today.
Picture
An example of Pittman Shorthand
Picture
Thomas Foster,  who established the Colliery School of Mines Mine Safety Correspondence Course/International Correspondence School
Other iterations of distance learning included radio, in 1923 when 10% of operating radio stations were owned by educational institutions to educate students over the radio. With the widespread development and use of the television, institutions like the University of Wisconsin Madison pioneered televised instruction that was duplicated in other countries. In the 1980s, National Technological University used satellite television technology to broadcast live courses where students could ask questions on the air along with pre-recorded sessions. With the rise of the internet, the first all online accredited higher education institution began in 1993 with 5 bachelors programs and 24 masters programs.

The Display:

​Rural Humboldt County in the 1850s had no universities until Humboldt State Normal School was established in 1913, so  correspondence courses allowed local adults to educate themselves despite distance. Class materials were mailed to students, and they could practice and hone a number of skills from bookkeeping to workers safety.
Picture
​The materials on display, from 1928, were for a business course hosted by W.H. Goodwin. The ledgers, fake money, and invoices gave students a chance to work on their skills balancing books, keeping records, and doing transactions in the comfort of their own home. After completing the class, they would receive a certificate.
Picture
​Students received an envelope of materials including ledgers, receipts, stationary and more, along with bundles of envelopes containing a month’s worth of transactions for a fictional company. Following a pink sheet listing the businesses’ dealings over the month and reading included invoices and price lists, the student would process the transactions into provided record books and produce receipts to practice their bookkeeping and administrative skills. 
Picture
​Correspondence course materials courtesy of Joann Bauer, Humboldt County Historical Society. The materials are from her mother. Be sure to take a close look at the prices on the items!
Sources:
https://partners.pennfoster.edu/blog/2015/february/a-glimpse-into-the-past-penn-foster-celebrates-125-years-of-educating-the-non-traditional-learner
Distance Learning- From Correspondence Courses to Zoom
https://daily.jstor.org/three-centuries-of-distance-learning/


6 Comments
assignmentmasters link
9/25/2021 06:35:15 am

Clarke museum has a forum about distance learning. It is the old trend that making distance learning as a concept dates to the earliest, back to the 1700s. They were also offering online courses in 2003 and continues to do so today. Join it.

Reply
general rv extended warranty link
4/15/2022 02:29:11 am

Earlier this year we started offering history tours of the museum. They've been successful in increasing popularity & attendance! We now have a new tour that goes back further in time to the 1920. The 20 were a big decade for education & learning. It's an interesting era, one that you'll learn about on our new exhibit: 1920 Distance Learning.

Reply
Assignment Core link
10/26/2022 04:32:11 am

As you see intellectuals always tried to utilize present days technology as an efficient tool serving them. One, namely fascist regime, used it as a propaganda instrument, and it was quiet powerful, allowing to shape the views and attitudes of the masses; others, like Thomas Foster, by contrast, attempted to reform the education system, being among the first to create a distance learning practices. Today, online learning and tutoring is a normal thing, and many university and college students are taking it for granted, as if it existed forever. The one choosing programming as a course for study, is only to pay for coding assignment and boom, he becomes an expert and can become online coding experts themselves. However, I still strongly doubt that students representing different forms of education get the same amount of skills and experience.

Reply
Slope Unblocked link
11/23/2022 11:24:36 pm

A very excellent blog post.Thank you so much for such a well-written article.

Reply
briansclub link
11/27/2022 09:35:07 pm

In the 1920s, people of all ages used distance learning for education. It was not so much done at a distance as it was done in collaboration with people at the same location of work or residence. It was an exciting time to be living and learning because new technology such as films, radios and phonographs were being manufactured each day. Allowing people to learn these new pieces of technology was just another way that they were becoming more connected around the world.

Reply
learn more link
5/11/2023 07:33:40 am

It's interesting to learn about the history of distance learning and how it has evolved over time. It's amazing to think that even in the 1700s, people were using mail to receive educational materials and learn new skills. It's also fascinating to see how technology has played a role in the development of distance learning, from radio to television to the internet. Distance learning has opened up so many opportunities for people who may not have access to traditional educational institutions or who may need a more flexible learning environment. It will be exciting to see how distance learning continues to evolve in the future.

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    About

    Keep up with the Clarke through our Blog!
    Posts are sent out once a month with our monthly newsletter, but they post here throughout the month so check back each week for something new!

    ​Posts created by Katie Buesch, Interim Director-Curator unless otherwise noted.

      Subscribe to our newsletter!

    Subscribe to Newsletter

    RSS Feed

    Archives

    August 2022
    March 2022
    November 2021
    October 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018

Clarke Historical Museum
240 E Street
​Eureka, California 95501
admin@clarkemuseum.org
(707) 443-1947
Open Tuesday-Sunday
10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Closed Monday

​Open until 8:30 p.m. during Friday Night Markets
Open until 9 p.m. during Eureka Arts Alive
Copyright © 2018. All Rights Reserved.