According to Dirr, establishing standard policies is an issue that is still very much in the evolution stage, although much has been accomplished in this respect.

In this regard, Dirr notes that the Council of Regional Accreditation has developed new guidelines for distance education. These are by no means either established or fully accepted into the policies of all tertiary institutions. Indeed, they are still very much in the research stage. Furthermore, far from stabilizing the issue, Cook anticipates a new pedagogy as a result of the nature of distance education. Such a paradigm would entail a pedagogy that "shifts toward the learner and away from the teacher." Such a shift would also hold important implications for the future of research into the issue.

While clear policies are not currently in place, it therefore appears that both researchers and tertiary institutions themselves are aware of the importance of distance and...
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