IntroductionDistance education refers to technology-based instruction in which students are in a location physically separated from their instructor during the entire course of study (Lei et Gupta). Distance education began in Europe with correspondence schools (Hull, 2009). The main purpose of these correspondence schools was to teach shorthand (Hull, 2009). The United States adopted the idea around 1980, and it was primarily used to expand mining job training and state college agricultural extension programs (Hull, 2009). In 1926, the Distance Education and Training Council (DETC) was established and was responsible for the education of many well-known people. These included Walter Chrysler, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Nelson Mandela (Hull, 2009). In the early stages of today's distance education, communication about class work was transmitted in the form of video, audio or CD-ROM recording (Hull, 2009). The Internet has expanded the development and use of distance education (Hull, 2009). Online discussions have become an important aspect of online education (Meyer, 2010). Online discussions, blogs, and bulletin boards make it easier for teachers and students to share and debate topics and critique other students' posts (Meyer, 2010). Discussion posts allow teachers and other students to analyze other students' writing and their personal and professional lives based on what they post online (Meyer, 2010). Online communication allows students to post as often as they wish (Meyer, 2010). Blog communications are increasingly used (Meyer, 2010). In May 2007, there were 83.1 million blogs and by January 2009, the number of blogs had increased to 133 million (Meyer, 2010).Quality of Lear...... middle of paper ..... .ve data along the ten-year period in which a new technological advance would have been made to assess whether there was a correlation between a given technological advance and enrollment in distance education courses at that time. A correlational design will be used as a correlation will be established between online education and institutional growth at both Missouri Western State University and Northwest Missouri State University. Although this study is correlational, it is not causal. As in many other studies, the third variable problem and the directionality problem could pose problems. Simply put, there could be another variable other than technological advancements that is leading to increased enrollment in distance learning courses. It is also possible that an increase in enrollment influences technological advances rather than the other way around..