Learn how educators from across North America gathered in Savannah to explore practical solutions for meeting student needs, inclusive learning and skill validation.
With ‘Ignite the Joy of Learning’ as the conference’s theme, PebblePad felt right at home at this year’s D2L Fusion event in Georgia. After all, student success and the learning journey are at the heart of everything we do, and it was fulfilling to spend so much time among higher ed professionals dedicated to the same goal.
While attending the conference, PebblePad’s Gail Ring, John Sheringer and I shared the many innovative ways in which our community supports learners across the globe, scaffolding education with practical solutions and powerful yet simple tools. Best of all, we made connections with the many bright technologists, educators and leaders representing North American higher education institutions.
Supporting evolving needs
Whether at our booth or out and about mingling with attendees, our team shared how PebblePad’s flexible learning design and authentic assessment learning technologies are tailored to meet the evolving needs of today’s learners. Also, PebblePad’s unique story of helping to revolutionize general education at institutions including Ohio State University and Michigan Technological University resonated with many who we spoke to at the conference.
For instance, Meredith Brown, M.S., LPC, from Midlands Technical College, was so excited about what PebblePad could do that she suggested to attendees of her breakout session that it’s tools like PebblePad that could support the varying maturity levels of students enrolled in dual enrollment courses. Entitled ‘Teaching Dual Enrollment: Faculty’s Role in Engaging, Supporting, and Surviving the Chaos,’ Meredith shared how important it is for instructors to be agile when navigating teaching in a higher ed and/or high school environment, and she used PebblePad as an example for supporting this approach.
Validating competency mapping
Microcredentials and competency-based education were two other strong themes permeating throughout D2L Fusion sessions. Certifications and digital badges in particular are becoming crucial to helping learners highlight and validate their skills effectively.
Recognizing learner achievements by supporting personalized learning journeys with tools for tracking and showcasing competencies is one of PebblePad’s competency mapping strengths, so it was exciting to hear many others are focusing on the same issue. Our team was also happy to share with attendees that PebblePad’s features support the creation and management of microcredentials to help validate the employability skills for students.
Creating inclusive learning
A major theme that repeatedly came up in conversations was inclusive learning and accessibility, both of which play a vital role in creating equity in education. This is particularly pertinent as compliance deadlines are rapidly approaching with the US ADA Title II rolling out in April, 2026.
However, less than 2% of institutions currently meet Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 Level AA compliance standards. To help support institutions make the transition, D2L showcased evocative demos of its Accessibility+, a powerful audit and remediation solution. It uses AI to streamline compliance for D2L Brightspace customers to ensure course content housed in their LMS meets accessibility standards.
PebblePad’s own commitment to WCAG 2.2 Level AA compliance guides the design, development and enhancement of our own products to make them accessible for everyone. During D2L Fusion, we shared how our team makes meaningful progress through close collaboration with our users and accessibility experts to ensure PebblePad offers real-world usability for every customer – and their learners.
Sharing the journey
As the conference drew to a close, one thing became clear: the conversations at D2L Fusion 2025 reflected a shared commitment to improving the learner experience through thoughtful design, inclusive practices and meaningful credentialing. Whether through breakout sessions, product demos (or informal chats over a latte!), the event offered valuable insights into how institutions are adapting to meet the diverse needs of today’s students – as well as how they are addressing the educational challenges they and their cohorts face.
PebblePad is proud to be part of this evolving dialogue and remains committed to supporting educators and learners with learning technologies that promote equity, engagement and lifelong learning. Ultimately, the conference underlined why we remain so excited about continuing to collaborate with our community and partners to shape the future of education – one learner journey at a time.
