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Learning Curve — Technology
Learning Curve

What does it mean to teach and learn in the age of generative AI? Join host Jeff Young as he talks with educators, tech leaders and students, aiming to cut through the hype and inform a conversation about how education can adapt to AI — and about what kinds of learning need protecting amid the AI gold rush.

Latest Episodes:

What If a College Helped a Whole City Adopt AI? Jun 23, 2026

Show notes

A series of town halls aimed to explore how AI could be adopted across Baltimore in positive ways. Led by an unusual center at the University of Baltimore, the forum brought together city officials, local business leaders, folks from community organizations, professors, and just curious people in the community. Is it a model for educators bring AI literacy to a broader community?

AI Personas Briefing Report, Center for AI Learning and Community-Engaged Innovation, University of Baltimore.

Thanks to this week’s sponsors, Studiosity and Social Research: An International Quarterly.

EPISODE CREDITS:

Reported and produced by Jeff Young

Music by Komiku

©Copyright 2026 Learning Curve Productions LLC

How Is AI Changing College Admissions? Jun 09, 2026

Show notes

On this episode, Jeff talks to a veteran college enrollment official who is leading an AI experiment at his university, and an admissions consultant who has changed her mind about what she advises applicants about using AI.

Related links:

“Should AI score admissions essays?” by Jeff Young in The Chronicle of Higher Education

“I’m a college admissions counselor. I’ve changed my mind about students using ChatGPT,” by Sophie Sajnani in The San Francisco Examiner.

“What will be scarce?” by Alex Imas on his Ghosts of Electricity Substack.

Thanks to this week’s sponsor, Studiosity.

EPISODE CREDITS:

Reported and produced by Jeff Young

Music by Komiku

©Copyright 2026 Learning Curve Productions LLC

Tough Lessons College ‘AI Czars’ Have Learned May 26, 2026

Show notes

This episode dives into the experiences of Chief AI officers at universities, including some misadventures and lessons learned.

“I’m an ‘AI Czar.’ This is the Role,” by Jeffrey Bardzell.

"AI-Enhanced Pedagogies: Rethinking Learning, Curriculum, and Human Potential in the Age of Intelligent Machines,” by Alexander (Sasha) Sidorkin.

"The Rise — and Fall? — of the AI Czar," in The Chronicle of Higher Education.

Jeff's new Jagged Intelligence newsletter about AI on campuses.

Thanks to this episode's sponsor, Studiosity.

EPISODE CREDITS:

Reported and produced by Jeff Young

Music by Komiku

©Copyright 2026 Learning Curve Productions LLC

The AI Optimist Researching ‘Cognitive Surrender’ May 12, 2026

Show notes

A new paper warns of the dangers of people blindly adopting AI results in what researchers call "cognitive surrender." The lead author believes that with careful adoption, AI can improve education and boost learning. But he says the stakes are high for getting AI right in teaching.

"Thinking—Fast, Slow, and Artificial: How AI is Reshaping Human Reasoning and the Rise of Cognitive Surrender," by Steven D. Shaw and Gideon Nave.

"Thinking, Fast and Slow," by Daniel Kahneman.

Steven Shaw's webiste.

Episode sponsor: Studiosity

EPISODE CREDITS:

Reported and produced by Jeff Young

Music by Komiku

©Copyright 2026 Learning Curve Productions LLC

Are Liberal Arts Colleges Winning in the AI Era? Apr 29, 2026

Show notes

For this episode we're focusing on how liberal arts colleges are adapting to AI. On a recent day at Carleton College, two very different lunch conversations among faculty reveal the variety of views on whether and how to use AI in teaching.

Thanks to our sponsor, Studiosity

“The Hottest College Majors in the AI Age Just Might Be in the Liberal Arts,” in Inc.

Carleton College LTC Targeted Audience Lunch - “What Students Think about AI and Learning.”

"You Can Do Anything: The Surprising Power of a ‘Useless’ Liberal Arts Education," by George Anders.

"The Evidence Liberal Arts Needs" by Richard Detweiler.

EPISODE CREDITS:

Reported and produced by Jeff Young

Music by Komiku

©Copyright 2026 Learning Curve Productions LLC

How Colleges Can Safeguard Democracy in an AI Era Apr 14, 2026

Show notes

For this episode Jeff headed to Washington, DC to sit down with Mark Fisher, the director of a new center at Georgetown University exploring the intersection of AI and democratic citizenship. Fisher points out that democracy has changed before as new tech tools emerged. And he says scholars from many disciplines will need to team up to meet the challenges of this moment.

“Guarding Democracy in the Age of AI: When Everyone Has to Do Their Part,” Harvard University Safra Center for Ethics.

Artificial Intelligence and Democratic Citizenship initiative at Georgetown University.

"Lessons From Minneapolis About AI and Misinformation,” a previous episode of Learning Curve.

EPISODE CREDITS:

Reported and produced by Jeff Young

Music by Komiku

©Copyright 2026 Learning Curve Productions LLC

A Tale of Two AI Design Projects Mar 31, 2026

Show notes

What does it mean to teach art and design when free AI tools can generate sophisticated images in just a few seconds?

For this episode we’re diving into that big question. And to do that we’ll hear two stories where students used AI for design – one that led to celebration, and another that sparked controversy.

And we’ll hear from a leader at one of the nation’s leading art and design colleges who is wrestling with how to integrate AI into the curriculum there.

"From Text Prompt to Furniture: The Story Behind Babson’s AI Dam Chair," in Babson University's Thought & Action. (With pictures of the chair.)

"After AI Allegations, Class of 2026 Picks a New Jacket," in the Princeton Alumni Weekly.

"Demand for Integrity for Class of 2026 Jacket," a petition on Change.org.

EPISODE CREDITS:

Reported and produced by Jeff Young

Music by Komiku

©Copyright 2026 Learning Curve Productions LLC

How to Prepare Students For a World of AI Co-Workers Mar 17, 2026

Show notes

For this episode Jeff connected with Evan Ratliff, who created what he calls “the world’s first AI-led startup” to see what happens when AI agents run a company.

Shell Game podcast, by Evan Ratliff.

"Silicon Valley’s New Obsession: Watching Bots Do Their Grunt Work," in The Wall Street Journal.

EPISODE CREDITS:

Reported and produced by Jeff Young

Music by Komiku

©Copyright 2026 Learning Curve Productions LLC

The Case for Memorization in the AI Era Mar 03, 2026

Show notes

A growing number of experts are making the case for requiring students from middle school to college to do more rote memorization — of poems, dates, capitals, and more — to respond to rise of generative AI.

"2024 USA Memory Championship (LIVE STREAM)," on YouTube.

"Everyday Genius," by Nelson Dellis.

"The Memory Paradox: Why Our Brains Need Knowledge in an Age of AI," on ArXiv.

EPISODE CREDITS:

Reported and produced by Jeff Young

Music by Komiku

©Copyright 2026 Learning Curve Productions LLC

What Do Self-Driving Cars Teach Us About AI in Education? Feb 17, 2026

Show notes

Can thinking the public narrative around robot cars help educators think about the fast-rising trend of generative AI? For this episode, Jeff talked with two experts with books on how to think about teaching and AI — and put them in debate about key differences in their approaches.

Books, articles and podcasts mentioned:

“Teaching with AI: A Practical Guide to a New Era of Human Learning,” by José Antonio Bowen and C. Edward Watson.

“More Than Words: How to Think About Writing in the Age of AI,” by John Warner.

“What Is Culture in the Age of A.I.?” by Joshua Rothman in The New Yorker.

My interview with writer John McPhee from 2018 on the EdSurge Podcast.

“Chemistry Nobel goes to developers of AlphaFold AI that predicts protein structures,” in Nature.

EPISODE CREDITS:

Reported and produced by Jeff Young

Music by Komiku

©Copyright 2026 Learning Curve Productions LLC

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