The rhetoric of distance learning

Online distance learning has become a popular means of getting an education, be it high school diploma or graduate degree, without having to go to school or campus. This paper discusses the rhetoric of distance learning from the perspectives of both students and teachers. For students, the appeal and value of learning at a distance are its convenience and the opportunities that it provides. For teachers, the appeal and value of learning at a distance are the students it reaches, the information and education that it makes available to so many. These are not mutually exclusive but mutually beneficial views, and the emphasis, finally, is not on the distance but on the learning