Cana Fuest, PhD Candidate

  • The Slow Work of Learning

    I haven’t written much about my PhD journey. I have been in a PhD program for four years now (sometimes it feels like it will never end!) I am getting closer to the point where… Read more

  • Inside My AI Workflow

    I’ve been working with various AI tools for nearly two years now in an instructional design capacity. The early days of my “experiments” with AI were more like trial and error, and finding out what… Read more

  • Notes from an Instructional Designer on Teaching with AI

    As an instructional designer at a large university, I am hear many diverse perspectives related to AI in teaching and learning. Some faculty members are enthusiastic, frequent-users of the tech, and encourage their students to… Read more

  • Why AI can’t innovate: The human brain’s unique potential

    Artificial intelligence—whether we’re talking about AI assistants like ChatGPT or highly specialized learning algorithms—stands on an impressive foundation. But there’s a limit that AI will always have, rooted in the way it functions. AI is… Read more

  • Can AI reduce cognitive load and boost teaching effectiveness?

    In today’s teaching environment, where educators are expected to manage a wide range of tasks, AI is proving to be more than just a way to save time. It has the potential to significantly reduce… Read more

  • Crafting Better Learning Objectives with ChatGPT

    Another way that I have been using ChatGPT to assist with course design is in writing strong learning objectives. Although I have years of experience lesson planning, there’s always room for improvement, and ChatGPT has… Read more

  • My Teaching Assistant, ChatGPT

    This fall semester, I have become more intentional about using AI to enhance my teaching practice, and reduce the time I spend planning lessons. After teaching the same subject material for several years, I have… Read more

  • Navigating the AI landscape

    Since the start of this year, I have done a rather deep dive into the world of artificial intelligence. My PhD studies in educational technology have leant to my interest in this fast-changing and ever-growing… Read more

  • More AI Experiments: Ollama

    I recently downloaded Ollama on my Macbook Pro (my computer has a M3 chip and 8GB of memory). I’m very new to LLMs but determined to learn, so I have been experimenting with Llama3 to… Read more

  • A resource for teachers: The Merlot database

    My interest in pedagogical recommender systems led me to a website called merlot.org. The website description at the top reads, “The MERLOT system provides access to curated online learning and support materials and content creation… Read more

Welcome!

I’m an educator with ten years of experience at the secondary and post-secondary level, interested in teaching, learning, and technology.

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