LEARNING AT THE BACK DOOR: CHARLES A. WEDEMEYER AND THE EVOLUTION OF OPEN AND DISTANCE EDUCATION
Open Access
- Author:
- Diehl, William C
- Graduate Program:
- Adult Education
- Degree:
- Doctor of Philosophy
- Document Type:
- Dissertation
- Date of Defense:
- March 01, 2011
- Committee Members:
- Michael Grahame Moore, Dissertation Advisor/Co-Advisor
Michael Grahame Moore, Committee Chair/Co-Chair
Gary Kuhne, Committee Chair/Co-Chair
Melody M Thompson, Committee Member
Lawrence Christopher Ragan, Committee Member - Keywords:
- open education
open learning
distance education
distance learning
correspondence education
distance education history
independent learning
ODL - Abstract:
- Charles A. Wedemeyer (1911-1999) was one of the first to develop theory for, and to give direction to, the growing and newly professionalized field which has become known as open and distance education. Through his leadership at influential institutions such as The University of Wisconsin, The National University Extension Association, and the International Council for Open and Distance Education, he developed a global network of colleagues and collaborators. His views on open education, Independent Study and Independent Learning became renown worldwide. Wedemeyer put theory into practice through the creation of the ground-breaking experimental Articulated Instructional Media (AIM) program at the University of Wisconsin, and as the First Kellogg Fellow at Oxford University and consultant during the formative years at the Open University of the United Kingdom, he imparted the concepts of a revolutionary pedagogical approach based on system theory which combined various technologies and media in distance education. In the 1970s, these concepts were disseminated world-wide resulting in the establishment of scores of Open Universities which have provided opportunities for millions of students to garner an education. In his 1981 book Learning at the Back Door: Reflections on Non-Traditional Learning in the Lifespan, Charles A. Wedemeyer identified Open or Independent learning as "a single great new development in education" (p. 60) that would be a vehicle for a new era in higher education. During his career at the University of Wisconsin from the 1940s through the 1970s, Wedemeyer’s contributions to the foundations of distance education built upon the democratic education ideals of the Wisconsin Idea and led to today's international open education movement. While scholars have identified Wedemeyer as playing a significant role in the evolution of open and distance education, to date there has been minimal substantive support or analysis of Wedemeyer’s contributions. Through an examination of archival data at The University of Wisconsin, The University of South Africa, The U.S. Navy, and The Open University of the United Kingdom, this study provides a greater understanding of the evolution of open and distance education and how Wedemeyer’s contributions and innovative design of educational systems shaped the field.