The global upheaval caused by the COVID-19 pandemic necessitated a rapid transition to online education, profoundly impacting students worldwide. This study focuses on a crucial aspect of this shift—the experiences of Arabic speakers engaging in distance education, an uncharted territory for many. Utilizing Twitter as a primary data source, we conducted manual content and sentiment analysis on 1183 tweets to gain nuanced insights into how Arabic users perceive and navigate this educational transformation. Our research delves into the unique challenges faced by Arabic speakers who are navigating distance education for the first time. By employing manual content analysis, we identified key themes, including health and safety concerns, academic obstacles, and psychological impacts. User roles were discerned through Twitter bios, revealing perspectives from parents, students, teachers, and others. The findings indicate a marked preference for distance education, with overwhelmingly positive sentiments dominating the discourse on Twitter. Key findings encompass diverse themes, including the prioritization of health and safety in the online learning environment, the identification of obstacles hindering academic achievement, and a nuanced exploration of the psychological impacts of distance education. The overwhelmingly positive sentiments expressed on Twitter underscore a prevalent acceptance and preference for online learning within the studied demographic. This marked preference reflects not only the adaptability of Arabic speakers to the new educational landscape but also signals a potential paradigm shift in their attitudes toward distance education. This research significantly contributes to the ongoing discourse on online learning technologies by offering valuable insights into the preferences and sentiments of Arabic speakers. As educational landscapes continue to evolve in response to the pandemic, our findings provide a foundation for further discussions on refining and enhancing online learning methodologies to align with the needs and preferences of Arabic-speaking students.