Will Generative AI Enhance or Stunt College Learning?
Show notes
AI is transforming college classrooms, but is it helping students learn or doing the thinking for them? Critics warn that AI can enable cheating, weaken critical thinking, and encourage students to outsource their intellectual work. Others argue it offers personalized tutoring, improves learning and study habits, and prepares students for an AI-driven workforce. As universities grapple with the technology’s growing presence, we debate: Will Generative AI Enhance or Stunt College Learning?
Arguing "Enhance":
Ravi Pendse, Vice President for Information Technology and Chief Information Officer at the University of Michigan
Edward Maloney, Professor of the Practice and Executive Director of the Center for New Designs in Learning and Scholarship at Georgetown University *
Arguing "Stunt":
Cathy O'Neil, Mathematician and Data Scientist
Gary Marcus, Leading Voice on AI and Professor Emeritus at NYU; Author of "Marcus on AI" Substack
Emmy award-winning journalist John Donvan moderates
Presented as part of The Hopkins Forum series, this debate was produced in partnership with the SNF Agora Institute at Johns Hopkins University and recorded live in Baltimore on October 27, 2026.
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