The field of distance learning has changed dramatically over the years. Thanks to advances in communications technology, distance learning courses can now include extensive amount of audio visual interfacing and face to face sessions with teachers.
Many courses nowadays have live learning systems with audio visual components, which help simulate the feeling of being face to face with the teacher and other students in the class. This can make distance learning much more interactive than before. It can also help make learning more flexible.
When I took a distance learning degree, I could attend the virtual classroom not just from the comfort of my home, but also while I was not at home! My mobile phone was on one of those SIM Only contracts, and thanks to amazing video quality and great data speeds, I could attend classes from my phone!
Audio visual technology is integral to distance learning. It's used not just in live tutorials and teaching sessions, but also in pre recorded teaching material. Teachers can record lectures and include visual aids etc. This material can then be accessed by the student and referred to at will.
Audio visual technology has made distance learning vastly more interactive and perhaps much more effective than before. Most leading universities offer distance learning courses in a variety of fields.