Our recent Executive Forum in the Philippines provided the opportunity for an intimate fireside chat between Dr. Cristi Ford, Chief Learning Officer at D2L and Christian Pantel, Chief Product Officer at D2LDuring the session our two speakers explored the future of learning and artificial intelligence (AI) in higher education.
Considering Ethics, Assessments and Cultural Literacy
Dr. Ford shared findings from Online Learning Consortium research, revealing students’ ethical dilemmas in AI usage. “We understand the ethical considerations of AI. One student said, ‘AI can be used as a knife. It can either be used to cook a meal or it can be used to harm,’” described Dr. Ford. The research also showed that students are looking for more faculty engagement with these discussions.
Mr. Pantel emphasized the importance of balancing innovation with ethical considerations. The speakers advocated for co-creating policies and assessments with students to promote equity, belonging, and intellectual curiosity.
“Is curiosity a birthright? Do we all have the same opportunity to be curious?” asked Dr. Ford. “If you say yes, I’m thinking about a student who is taking care of elderly parents, who is also taking care of children, who is also working two jobs. How much time do they have to be curious?”
She emphasized the wicked problems framework, referring to layered issues that don’t have one clear solution, with people often seeing them in different ways, to address AI assessment challenges, advocating for iterative and context-sensitive solutions. “There is no silver bullet around AI assessment,” said Dr. Ford. “Institutions need to provide permission to compromise and diverge, letting solutions vary by discipline or context, and permission to iterate.”
Bloom’s Taxonomy was reimagined, with AI enabling students to create before understanding, flipping traditional pedagogical models. UNESCO’s research on AI literacy dimensions was also highlighted, underscoring the importance of cultural and critical literacy. “When I hear people say AI literacy, this is not a binary component. You’re not literate or illiterate. It is about the ways in which this work in this field is evolving,” said Dr. Ford.
Supporting Personalized Learning
The session addressed pressing challenges in Philippine higher education, including learning loss and disparities between public and private institutions, aligning with CHED mandates. “Having a more personalized learning experience can be helpful when you have students at different places in their background with different kinds of learning loss,” said Mr. Pantel.
The speakers stressed the role of AI in democratizing learning, enabling personalized experiences for diverse learners, including neurodiverse and non-traditional students.
“A student takes a quiz, and the AI figures out where the student missed some questions and refers them back into the learning materials that I, as an educator, have created for them to brush up on their studies,” said Mr. Pantel. “Educators will continue to play a very important role in the partnership with students on their learning journey. What we’re looking to do with AI is to amplify that relationship, not diminish it or replace it.”
Key Takeaways Regarding AI in Higher Education
Several actionable insights were realized through the discussion between Dr. Ford and Mr. Pantel:
- Intellectual curiosity and creativity are not equally accessible. Educators must intentionally design experiences that create space for curiosity among students juggling multiple responsibilities and economic pressures.
- Educational AI requires intentional friction points. Learners need to pause and reflect rather than blindly accept AI outputs, maintaining the educational value of struggle and critical thinking.
- AI transparency is non-negotiable in educational design. This transparency builds trust and enables informed decision-making about AI interactions in learning environments.
- Students are creating before understanding in the AI era. Students can now create sophisticated outputs before fully understanding underlying concepts, requiring fundamental shifts in how educators design learning experiences.
- AI should amplify, not replace, educator-student relationships. The most effective educational AI implementations focus on enhancing the human connection, embedding AI assistance directly into existing workflows where people already work.
- Cultural bias in AI systems creates real educational harm. AI systems trained on biased data can perpetuate cultural and racial stereotypes, requiring educators to understand these limitations and implement safeguards.
- Students want faculty presence, not perfection in AI conversations. Research reveals that students aren’t expecting educators to be AI experts, but they want faculty to engage in AI discussions rather than avoiding the topic entirely.
- AI should handle mundane tasks to enable creative teaching. The most valuable AI applications in education focus on automating repetitive, administrative tasks, freeing educators to focus on the creative, interpersonal aspects of teaching they find fulfilling.
- Institutional AI policies need permission to iterate and diverge. Successful AI implementation requires institutional frameworks that explicitly grant permission to compromise, diverge and iterate as the technology evolves.
- AI literacy requires multidimensional fluency, not binary skills. This nuanced approach enables more sophisticated and contextual AI integration in education.
Embracing Responsible AI Usage
The session concluded with a call for inclusive, purpose-driven strategies to bridge educational gaps, foster creativity, and ignite joy in learning.
By leveraging AI responsibly and collaboratively, educators and institutions can transform challenges into opportunities, shaping a future of learning that is equitable, engaging and impactful for all.
Ready to See AI’s Impact on Your Learning Platform?
If you’re ready to explore how to put these principles of responsible AI into practice and drive both efficiency and student success, join us for our upcoming webinar:
Efficiency Meets Impact: The Power of AI in Your Learning Platform
October 15, 2025
2:00 PM PHT
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