This transition is attributable to several issues including the changing student population, re newed interest in outcomes, and renewed interest in delivery mechanisms. First, the student body is changing, both at the undergraduate and graduate level. Between 1970 and 1995 enrollment increased from 8 million to 14 million students, largely in the adult enrollee classification. Graduate students, in some cases, now are taking twice as long to complete course w ork for their graduate degrees.
Fewer students can afford to enroll full time for their academic studies.
Nearly half need to work to pay for their education. Work schedules limited choices in class scheduling by reducing the number of classes in which students could enroll. Second, there is a renewed interest in educational outcomes. Over the past two decades, there has been a growing interest in and concern for assessing students' learning. In recent years, this movement has focused upon competency based assessment, that is assessing students' mastery of knowledge and skills.