The philosophical system of open and distant learning: Is technology the custodian of distant learning or educational philosophy

The aim of this study was to assess the philosophical principles of open and distant learning. Thisdescriptive study was done by assessing digital and library resources on the principles of distantlearning. In order to understand the philosophical and educational principles of open and distantlearning and to determine the epistemological, ontological, and axiological functions of its fourmain elements (distant learner, distant educational organization, distant educational content, anddistant educational inviron ment), collected data were analyzed using analytical andinterpretational methods. The results showed that pragmatism and constructivism have specificfunctions in the four mentioned elements of distant learning with respect to epistemological,ontological, and axiological aspects.