RIYADH -- Distance learning could eventually be a strategic choice for Saudi Arabia and not just an alternative following the coronavirus crisis period, according to the Kingdom’s Minister of Education Dr. Hamad Bin Mohammed Al Al-Sheikh. The minister’s remarks came following a virtual meeting he held with the board of directors of Saudi Arabia’s National Center for E-Learning on Sunday in which members reviewed the efforts to enable distance learning during the coronavirus crisis. “Electronic learning after the coronavirus crisis will not be the same as it was before especially with the accelerated global trend toward e-learning and its technologies as a future option, and not just an alternative during exceptional circumstances,” Al Al-Sheikh was quoted as saying by the Saudi Press Agency. Saudi Arabia suspended all schools, universities and educational institutions in the Kingdom since March 9 as part of efforts to contain the spread of the coronavirus outbreak and instituted distance learning via online tools as an alternative. Last week, the Kingdom’s Ministry of Education announced it was advancing all students to the next grade and duplicating each student’s first semester’s results for the current semester.