Kgethi Phakeng, PhD(Wits); Hon DSc (UBristol)

I’m proud to announce that this year, I’m launching the Make Education Fashionable Awards 2025, which come with R150,000 in prizes, to recognise graduates who are using their education to make an impact. Nominations are officially open and close on 10 November. Nominate yourself or someone you know deserves celebration. Click the link in bio for more info. At the end of the day, education remains the most reliable equaliser. Let’s keep proving that education is still the most fashionable thing there is❤️

@legalbae572 @teffo_ME My mom doesn’t even say daughter of so and so, she says “this is my fifth grandchild to get a university degree. All my grandchildren are graduates.” I always want to run away but we just laugh.

@FabAcademic @teffo_ME ‘This is my granddaughter, the lawyer, the one that drives, the daughter of’ 🤣🤣🤣…

Your mothers ke di shashalaza 😭 i was with this other Mama that I know, she told me her Makoti is giving birth next month and her last born son who is in university is doing well and passing his course and mkhwenyana got a promotion at work last year , in a short space of time I have already heard everything 😭

Session 6.11: The China Diaries: Lessons from Africa's AI Innovation Journey x.com/i/broadcasts/1…

@legalbae572 @teffo_ME Absolutely! My dad did it more than my mom and I used to oblige. Now I see my mom doing it with her grandchildren when we the parents are chilled and I just let her because I understand.

@FabAcademic @teffo_ME I used to reprimand my mum until a friend explained this. They are not even showing off, they are just proud of their kids’ accomplishments. Now I let her. I’ll even come as exhibit 🤣🤣🤣

@RammutlaVa86679 Don’t miss it

@FabAcademic Sounds very interesting

Today on the Sunday Sessions, Elihle (from Khayelitsha) and Karabo (from Lomanyaneng) return after taking their AI innovations to China. They’ll share what they experienced, the lessons they brought home, the partnerships they formed & what lies ahead for their ventures. 📅 Today, Sunday 19 July 2026 ⏰ 17:00–18:00 (SAST) 📺 FabAcademic Unfiltered on YouTube 👉🏾 @Fabacademic" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">youtube.com/@Fabacademic Come and hear what happens when local ideas meet global opportunity.

@Katshebotha I receive the blessing 🙏🏾🙌🏾

@FabAcademic God bless you ausi kgethi👊

What happens when AI innovations built in Khayelitsha & Lomanyaneng earn a ticket to China? Tomorrow, Elihle and Karabo return to the #SundaySessions to share: 🇨🇳 What they learnt 🤝 The partnerships they secured 🚀 What’s next for their startups 📅 Tomorrow, Sunday at 5PM SAST 📍FabAcademic Unfiltered 👉🏾 @Fabacademic" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">youtube.com/@Fabacademic #AI #AfricanInnovation #TechForGood

@Pelseruys @JonhernandezIA Absolutely.

@JonhernandezIA @FabAcademic - interesting - it speaks to what we briefly exchanged ideas on today.

“AI will force us to redesign school.” Demis Hassabis, CEO of Google DeepMind, says AI should teach knowledge while classrooms develop human skills. Education shifts from standardized instruction to personalized learning, creativity, judgment, and collaboration. AI does not replace school. It changes what school is for.

@mushure_mathias 🙏🏾

@FabAcademic The shoe , prof

This week I am elsewhere on the African continent working with universities on the future of teaching, research & academic publishing in the era of AI. Universities have spent decades asking students to remember information. Useless exercise! Now we have AI & it remembers almost everything. Now university academics can no longer ask: “What do students know?” They must ask: “What can students do with what they know that AI cannot?” That single question may reshape how we teach, assess, research & publish over the next decade. I’d be interested to hear how others think universities should respond.

@thegoochyy Kunjalo

@FabAcademic Yerrrrrrrrrrrrr!!!!!!!

@mzansi001 🙏🏾🫶🏽

@FabAcademic Unique style of clothing

@MolefiLebone Ewe

@FabAcademic Ya neh 👀😁

@mzansi001 Njani?

@FabAcademic Eish awulisabi irepho ne..uphathisa ama academics amakhanda

@calvin3000 We are on the same page 👌🏾

I agree that AI is transforming higher education and forcing universities to rethink assessment. But I don't think the foundational values of education should be left behind. Knowledge isn't just about recalling facts. It's about building the understanding, judgment, and context needed to evaluate information critically. AI can retrieve answers, but it can't replace a well-trained mind that knows when an answer is flawed, biased, or incomplete. Students still need to learn the fundamentals before they can use AI effectively. Otherwise, they risk becoming dependent on a tool they cannot properly question or verify. Perhaps the question isn't, "What can students do that AI cannot?" It's also, "How do we educate people who can use AI wisely, ethically, and critically?" AI should enhance education, not replace its foundations.

@Sizwe_66 On point! The difference now is that AI is forcing teachers to think carefully about what they teach and how they teach it! The challenge was not so sharp in the past.

@FabAcademic This kind of "teaching" (s. Pic) has been wrong long before AI. Pouring information like through a funnel into a student's brain furthers no knowledge let alone wisdom. Teachers must guide students how to learn, acquire knowledge and, most of all, understand what they're learning

In my opinion , AI does not reduce the value of knowledge it changes where the value lies. Universities should shift from rewarding memorisation to developing judgement, critical thinking, ethical reasoning, creativity, collaboration, and the ability to solve real-world problems. Students should learn not only how to use AI effectively, but also how to challenge it, verify its outputs, and know when not to trust it. The future graduate will not compete against AI, but will outperform those who cannot work with it.

@SMukwakungu Hi Sambil, you are very kind and generous. It’s a tough job being me, however, its the best way I can be - there is no other way.

@FabAcademic When I grow up, I wanna be like you

@Pelseruys I agree with you 100%. Employers also have to rethink who they hire and why.

@FabAcademic Thank you for the insights. If I may add: Universities teaching to the standardised test is the bottleneck. It has to be about capabilities going forward in my humble opinion.

@ForumSway 100%

@FabAcademic Did you go there with the correct documents?