Distance education, distance learning, dlearning, or D-Learning is a mode of delivering education and instruction, often on an individual basis, to students who are not physically present in a traditional setting such as a classroom. Distance learning provides "access to learning when the source of information and the learners are separated by time and distance, or both." Distance education courses that require a physical on-site presence for any reason (including taking examinations) have been referred to as hybrid or blended courses of study. Massive open online courses (MOOCs), aimed at large-scale interactive participation and open access via the web or other network technologies, are a recent development in distance education Internet The widespread use of computers and the internet have made distance learning easier and faster, and today virtual schools and virtual universities deliver full curricula online.[31] In 1996 Jones International University was launched by Glenn Jones, CEO and Bernard Luskin, Chancellor as the first fully online university accredited by a regional accrediting association in the US.[32] Between 2000 and 2008, undergraduate enrollment in at least some distance programs became more and more common. The share of students "in at least one distance education class expanded from 8 percent to 20 percent, and the percentage enrolled in a distance education degree program increased from 2 percent to 4 percent."[33] Many private, public, non-profit and for-profit institutions worldwide now offer distance education courses from the most basic instruction through the highest levels of degree and doctoral programs. Levels of accreditation vary: Widely respected universities such as Stanford University and Harvard now deliver online courses—but other online schools receive little outside oversight, and some are actually fraudulent, i.e., diploma mills. In the US, the Distance Education and Training Council (DETC) specializes in the accreditation of distance education institutions.[34] In the United States in 2011, it was found that a third of all the students enrolled in postsecondary education had taken an accredited online course in a postsecondary institution.[35] Even though growth rates are slow, enrollment for online courses has been seen to increase with the advance in technology. The majority of public and private collegTransfer Moneyes now offer full academic programs online.[35] These include, but are not limited to, training programs in the mental health,[36] occupational therapy,[37][38] family therapy,[39] art therapy,[40] physical therapy,[38] and rehabilitation counseling[41] fields. Distance education has a long history, but its popularity and use has grown exponentially as more advanced technology has become available. By 2008, online learning programs were available in the United States in 44 states at the K-12 level.[42] SazmandAsfaranjan, Y., Shirzad, F., Baradari, F., Salimi, M., & Salehi, M. in a 2013 research paper argued that implementation of internet forum, online discussion group and online learning community contribute to an efficacious distance education. Researchers showed that socialization plays the most vital role in effective distance education.[43]Technologies Although the expansion of the Internet blurs the boundaries, distance education technologies are divided into two modes of delivery: synchronous learning and asynchronous learning. In synchronous learning, all participants are "present" at the same time. In this regard, it resembles traditional classroom teaching methods despite the participants being located remotely. It requires a timetable to be organized. Web conferencing, videoconferencing, educational television, instructional television are examples of synchronous technology, as are direct-broadcast satellite (DBS), internet radio, live streaming, telephone, and web-based VoIP.[44] Online meeting software such as Adobe Connect has helped to facilitate meetings in distance learning courses. In asynchronous learning, participants access course materials flexibly on their own schedules. Students are not required to be together at the same time. Mail correspondence, which is the oldest form of distance education, is an asynchronous delivery technology, as are message board forums, e-mail, video and audio recordings, print materials, voicemail, and fax.[44] The two methods can be combined. Many courses offered by The Open University use periodic sessions of residential or day teaching to supplement the remote teaching.[45] The Open University uses a blend of technologies and a blend of learning modalities (face-to-face, distance, and hybrid) all under the rubric of "distance learning." Distance learning can also use interactive radio instruction (IRI), interactive audio instruction (IAI), online virtual worlds, digital games, webinars, and webcasts, all of
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