{"id":411,"date":"2026-09-11T13:59:11","date_gmt":"2026-09-11T20:59:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/malat-webspace.royalroads.ca\/rru314\/?p=411"},"modified":"2026-09-11T17:06:18","modified_gmt":"2026-09-12T00:06:18","slug":"dr-philippa-hardman","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/malat-webspace.royalroads.ca\/rru314\/dr-philippa-hardman\/","title":{"rendered":"Dr Philippa Hardman"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

As AI transforms education, Hardman asks us to focus less on what technology can produce and more on how people learn.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Note: aNewSpring (n.d.). Dr. Philippa Hardman <\/em>[Photograph]. aNewSpring. https:\/\/www.anewspring.com\/resources\/ai-masterclass-on-demand<\/a>. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Dr. Philippa Hardman is a learning scientist, Cambridge-affiliated scholar, and researcher\/advisor on AI and instructional design.<\/strong> Over her 20-year career, she designed learning experiences using a community-first approach, including Oxford\u2019s first community MOOC, and led the design of Aula, an LMS alternative focused on engagement (Aula Education, 2021; Hardman, n.d.). Since 2022, she has worked independently, sharing her ideas through writing, courses, workshops, and talks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I first encountered Hardman in May 2026 while researching an assignment on my digital presence and growing use of generative AI. Her thinking on AI-generated feedback and communal learning has since become central to my draft thesis literature review. I am drawn to her pragmatic approach and her ability to translate timely research into actionable insights without dismissing or overpromising technology\u2019s potential.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Note:<\/em> Screenshot from Dr. Philippa Hardman Keynote Speech on AI and education at BI Norwegian Business School<\/em> , by BI Norwegian Business School, 2024, at 20:40. https:\/\/youtu.be\/26RHjb06xtc?si=6Qo78hdRei9Mkp69<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In her TEDx talk, Hardman explains that we know what effective teaching looks like, citing Bloom\u2019s research on personalised, active and problem-based learning (TEDx Talks, 2023). However, she pushes back against Bloom\u2019s view that 1:1 learning is always best, and takes a more social-constructivist approach by advocating for evidence- and context-driven design: sometimes individualized, sometimes communal, but always oriented around active problem-solving over passive recall (Hardman, 2024).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This becomes particularly relevant with generative AI. When introducing her DOMS\u2122 EDUCATE framework, Hardman argues that once AI can generate a final product, assessment must focus more on the reasoning and process students demonstrate while solving authentic, open-ended problems. AI being used as a tool to be critiqued (Hardman, 2023).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cThe biggest risk of AI in education is that it makes us much more efficient at ineffective practices.\u201d<\/p>\nSwartz, as cited by Hardman in TEDx Talks, 2023.<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Beyond her insights on student learning, Hardman also examines how AI can serve learning designers. She argues that ed tech has historically reinforced transmission-based models rather than active learning (TEDx Talks, 2023), and that AI’s most valuable use is not speeding up content production but helping designers analyze problems and strategize appropriate pedagogical solutions (Learning Designers Community, 2025).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What I find most compelling is how Hardman helps us decide where AI adds value, and where it doesn\u2019t, in both learning and learning design.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Resources<\/h2>\n\n\n\n