The second symposium met to continue the process of building the network of scholars and the climate of cooperation and communication necessary for the further development of distance education that was begun with the first symposium, which was held in 1988. The program consisted of prepared papers and informal small-group discussions of four basic topics: learning and characteristics of learners; course design and communication; instruction and learner support; and theory, policy, and management. The first of five parts of this report presents introductory materials, including background information and summaries of the purpose, procedures, and outcomes of the meeting. The second part summarizes discussions of how research could be implemented on one question from each of the four basic topics: (1) What is the role of learner conation (striving) in distance education? (2) What are the roles and functions of learning designers in helping faculty move from traditional implementations of course design to more innovative implementations? (3) How can we classify and understand the extent and nature of interaction (student/student; student/faculty; etc.); student perceptions of interaction; interaction in teaching; and the skills required of the facilitator of interaction? and (4) What do distance education leaders do and how does institutional context influence leadership development? One participant (Peter Dirr) synthesizes the research questions generated in the final session of the symposium in the third part. In the fourth part, Melody M. Thompson presents abstracts of 34 papers prepared for the symposium, and appended materials make up the fifth part. These include a list of the participants, the program, a report on the plenary session, and the results of a poll of the 42 participants on their ranking of important research topics. (ALF)