This study provides an extensive review of the literature on distance education and of representative distance education projects and institutions in the United States and abroad, emphasizing those using telecommunications technologies. The introductory section includes a sketch of the information age and its implications for adult education and outlines the scope of the paper. The second section explains the current boom in new delivery systems, defines distance education and the distance learner, and describes how new technologies are changing the shape of correspondence study. The next section recounts the history of educational broadcasting and of public television and radio in the United States. Then, the emergence of productive collaboration between public broadcasters and educational agencies is discussed, as well as the instructional design process for telecourses, multimedia instruction, and telecommunications consortia. In the next section, distance education is characterized as an international movement, with special attention to the development and influence of the British Open University. Also discussed are methods for maintaining quality in distance education. Another section reviews research on distance learning systems and instructional effectiveness of nonprint media. Concluding sections of the monograph provide a look at the future, a glossary of terms on telecommunications technologies, a list of references, and a selected bibliography. (SK)