This paper presents a collection of experiences from the Canadian educational institutions that offer distance education. The first of four major sections defines the need for an alternative to traditional, classroom-based education, and describes the characteristics of distance education. The second section discusses the three institutions in Canada that are dedicated to providing distance education: Athabasca University in Alberta, the Open Learning Institute in British Columbia, and Tele-universite in Quebec. The third section focuses on the four provincial educational communications authorities in Canada and the educational programs they offer to their audiences: Radio Quebec, TVOntario, ACCESS Alberta (Alberta Educational Communications Corporation), and the Knowledge Network of the West. The fourth section looks at applications of various technologies in distance education: print, radio, audiocassettes, television, videotape, computers, videodisc, videotex/Telidon, teleconferencing, and satellites. A discussion of issues and problems that have arisen in connection with the application of information and communication technologies to distance education in Canada and a brief final statement on the current status of and opportunities offered by distance education conclude the report. (54 references) (DB)