ABSTRACT
Distance education institutions were very much shaped by approaches that attempted to maximize the independence of learners through the assimilation of information organized and packaged industrially by large institutions. It emerges to meet larger socio-economic constraints that restricted individuals from attending a campus-based institution. The shifting focus of higher education on to inquiry and engagement is attempting to address passive approaches such as large lectures. The development of ubiquitous communication technologies and the Internet proved to be the catalyst for rethinking campus-based approaches largely represented by the lecture. A new era of education is being shaped by a rethinking of the traditional passive and independent approaches to learning. The need for more engaged approaches is being recognized and addressed as everyone continue to evolve as a connected, knowledge society. Online and blended learning designs provide more engaged inquiry strategies reflected by a fusion of reflection and discourse.
