THE COMPARATIVE ORIGINS OF OPEN UNIVERSITIES IN CANADA AND THE UNITED STATES

Abstract

This historical comparative study analyzes the political, social, and economic origins of eight open online non-profit English-speaking universities established during the 1970s and 1990s in Canada and the United States. This research project also identifies and compares their institutional antecedents, purposes of learning, and educational characteristics. Canada and the United States are widely recognized in the 21st century for higher education excellence. Their experiences with open online non-profit universities are part of that story. However, American institutions are not often referenced in the literature about open universities. Whereas the two nations share similar historical developments in higher education and distance education specifically, the origins of their open universities have yet to be compared. This study adds a missing piece to the history of distance education while simultaneously contributing to UNESCO’s 2030 Sustainable Development Goals by identifying the converging and diverging contextual factors that influenced the origins of these open universities. Open universities are viable and attractive models within the higher education landscape in the context of the 21st-century knowledge society and the economic constraints dominated by neoliberal policies. This research will help higher education policymakers consider establishing, transforming, or expanding their open universities, perhaps even more pressing, given the current need to retool workforce segments due to the economic pressures of a knowledge society and the advent of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Documenting and analyzing the institutional origins gives the higher education community more knowledge about these open online non-profit higher education options.