This article summarizes the exploration of the blending learning environments from metaphorical and generational perspectives. The references “knowledge is power” are evolving to more reflected in the asynchronous learning environment. The new generational learners are fundamental differences in how they approach knowledge acquisition and problem-solving as they move into college.

Enrollment in online courses within higher education institutions is growing at an exponential rate. The annual growth rate between fall 2002 and fall 2011 was 17.3%. Since 2011, online enrollment has steadily increased while traditional learning environments have decreased. These Millennials are entering colleges after high school, living on campus, and attending full-time. However, these full-time students are enrolling in at least one or maybe two online courses. Even though distance learning provides a critical resource for instruction delivery, online coursework requires diverse students’ proficiency.

While in school, these Millennials have taken class notes on a personal digital assistant, obtaining their information from blogs and wikis and being told by professors to turn off their cell phones in their face-to-face courses. These students have access to a wealth of worldwide events that are unprecedented in history. Also, these students can visit places around the world without leaving their classrooms. 

Today’s students are more increasingly diverse than ever. New incoming students are more technologically proficient than the faculty, with 80% reporting that they had a computer by the time they reach college. In contrast, the previous generation did not receive emails until the late 1990s. These students have already “surfed” the Internet for homework purposes (78%),and two-thirds using email. The new undergraduates appear to be more “non-traditional” than years past, with 43% being 24 and older.

However, the blended modality modifies the commonly held metaphor for education: “knowledge is power.” In past years, the university was the epicenter of knowledge and its libraries, laboratories, professor’s notes, face-to-face correspondence, and communication with colleagues across universities. However, Millennial’ diminished satisfaction with blended learning that reflects their willingness to cooperate to solve problems. Thus producing a new metaphor, “knowledge is teamwork.” Moreover, now the university has to adopt a new way to develop teaching and learning strategies for blended learning environments.