Veritas Lecture  

Artificial intelligence is not just a tool. It is more like electricity, with the potential to power every tool in our daily lives. While much remains uncertain about its long-term impact on education, one thing is clear. AI is already reshaping how humans learn. Why spend years refining writing, reasoning, or creative skills if AI can perform these tasks faster and better? Why engage in the effortful processes that underpin deep and meaningful learning if those processes can be outsourced at a moment’s notice? Across domains, from science to the arts, we are entering a world of ‘AI-everything’, where AI can generate, predict, solve, and create at scale. This raises a fundamental question. What is the role of educators in an AI-saturated world? This lecture explores possible answers to this question, focusing on the tenuous space between efficient and effortful learning. Drawing on research from the science of learning and cognitive psychology, it examines how tools that promise to make thinking easier may paradoxically undermine the cognitive effort required for deep and meaningful learning. It argues that the future of education will not be determined by AI itself, but by the choices we make about when and how we use it. In an increasingly artificial world, authenticity matters. The future of education will depend on how we teach the next generation to think deeply, effortfully, and wisely, while remaining authentically connected to the humanity of others.

Event details:
Wednesday 23 September 2026, 5.30pm - 7.00pm
5:30pm - light refreshments
6pm - lecture and Q&A 

This is a hybrid event.
In person: ACU Canberra campus, Veritas Building, Building 301, Level 1, Room 20, 127 Phillip Avenue, Watson
Virtually: via MS Teams.

When you register, you will receive a registration confirmation. If you registered to attend virtually, the registration confirmation will contain the MS Teams link to join.

Dr Luke Rowe

Dr Luke Rowe is a Senior Lecturer and Researcher in the National School of Education at Australian Catholic University (St Patrick’s Campus, Melbourne), and a Research Affiliate of the Institute for Learning Sciences and Teacher Education and the Institute for Positive Psychology in Education. 
His research focuses on the science of learning, evidence-based teaching, artificial and human intelligence, and the credibility of educational research. He specialises in quantitative and mixed-methods approaches, including meta-analysis, psychometrics, and Bayesian modelling. 
Dr Rowe has published widely in leading education and psychology journals and is an investigator on multiple national and institutional research grants. His work aims to bridge the gap between research and practice by translating robust evidence into meaningful improvements in teaching and learning. 

For event related questions, please contact campus.deancanberra@acu.edu.au