D2L's Teach & Learn

What helps students feel like they belong and thrive in higher education? For the Season 5 premiere of Teach & Learn, Dr. Cristi Ford, Chief Learning Officer at D2L, is joined by Peter Felten, Executive Director of the Center for Engaged Learning at Elon University, for a conversation about one of the most overlooked drivers of student success: meaningful relationships. Drawing on years of research and interviews with hundreds of students, Peter explains why transformational learning expe...

In this episode of Teach & Learn, host Dr. Cristi Ford is joined by Dr. Phillip Dawson from Deakin University to explore a question many higher education educators are grappling with: how do we assess learning in an AI-shaped world? Rather than offering a quick fix, Dr. Dawson reframes AI and assessment as a “wicked problem”—one without a single solution, clear endpoint or shared definition. For faculty and academic leaders, that means moving beyond AI detection tools and “AI-proof” assig...

What helps students persist when learning gets hard? In this episode of Teach & Learn, Dr. Emma Zone is joined by Dr. Mitch Colver, Associate Provost for Engagement and Retention at the American Public University System, for a wide-ranging conversation about student success, faculty practice and AI in higher education. Together, they explore the idea of rigor and relief as a paired learning experience, why human connection remains the strongest driver of retention and how faculty feedba...

What happens when AI changes not just how we work, but how we create, learn and define human value? On this episode of Teach & Learn, Dr. Cristi Ford continues the conversation with Laura Zarrow, executive director of the Wharton Generative AI Lab at the University of Pennsylvania, to explore how generative AI is reshaping authorship, education and the future of work. Together, they discuss why discernment, creativity and collaboration may matter more than technical skills in an AI-driven...

What happens when AI ambition outpaces academic culture? In this special two-part episode of Teach & Learn, host Dr. Cristi Ford sits down with Laura Zarrow, executive director of the Wharton Generative AI Labs (GAIL) at the University of Pennsylvania, to explore the growing divide in higher education. Across campuses, leaders are setting bold AI-first visions. But inside classrooms, faculty are navigating something far more complex—a shift that challenges long-standing pedagogical practi...