Learner control in distance education

In this contribution we discuss whether or not learner control may be considered as key-component in the development of distance education. We argue that different factors -for example: new technologies, the increased importance of some competencies, and `weisure'- may lead to the assumption that learner control is a prevalent condition to make distance education more effective. Moreover, there is the assumption that learner control will lead to more highly motivated students and will lead to more cognitive adaptation.