- Communication guru Kennedy Buhere argues that Artificial Intelligence should enhance learning rather than redefine the purpose of education.
- He maintains that knowledge, judgment and moral values remain the foundation of meaningful learning.
- The article challenges the view that AI can replace the teacher or diminish the importance of a rigorous curriculum.
“The human dilemma is as it has always been, and it is a delusion to believe that the technological changes of our era have rendered irrelevant the wisdom of the ages and the sages.” — Neil Postman
The Chief Executive Officer of the Commission for University Education (CUE), Dr Mike Kuria, recently argued that universities will be required to redefine the substance of education in light of the emergence and adoption of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in learning.
“For decades, universities have primarily existed to transmit knowledge and prepare students for employment. In the era of AI, this model is no longer sufficient. Machines can now access, process and generate information faster than humans. Education must therefore shift from knowledge acquisition to developing uniquely human capabilities such as critical thinking, creativity, ethical reasoning, emotional intelligence and the ability to ask the right questions,” the Daily Nation of April 30, 2026 quoted Kuria as saying in an article titled Rethinking University Education in the Age of AI.
The assumption that AI should force us to rethink how we teach and learn is not new. Previous generations have embraced new technologies in education. However, none fundamentally altered the substance of education. Their primary role was to improve the delivery of education rather than redefine its purpose.
Film, radio, television and computers were all introduced with promises of transforming education.
While each improved access to information and enriched teaching methods, none displaced the teacher or changed the core purpose of education.
To this day, the teacher remains central to formal education at the primary, secondary and university levels, regardless of technological advancement.
The suggestion that AI should redefine education is therefore fundamentally mistaken.
The enduring purpose of education
Throughout history, education has served as a means of transmitting the cultural and intellectual heritage of society from one generation to another.
This heritage encompasses knowledge, skills, sound judgment and moral virtues developed over generations to preserve and enhance human well-being.
Knowledge, skills, judgment and moral values remain the substance of education.
No technology can replace them.
To believe otherwise is to misunderstand the very purpose of education.
Why knowledge matters
American psychologist and education scholar Daniel Willingham argues that background knowledge is essential for learning.
He further observes that learners who know more are able to learn more effectively.
“Thinking occurs when you combine information (from the environment and long-term memory) in new ways,” Willingham writes in Why Don’t Students Like School?
The internet has placed unprecedented amounts of information within easy reach.
However, to use, manipulate and apply that information effectively, learners must first possess a substantial store of knowledge.
Prior knowledge enables individuals to understand problems before attempting to solve them.
Problem identification comes first
Without understanding a problem, it is impossible to solve it.
Problem identification depends largely on knowledge rather than simply on critical thinking or problem-solving skills.
American educator Oliver DeMille captures this idea well:
“It doesn’t take great genius to solve problems once they are clearly and accurately defined.”
Problem identification always precedes problem solving.
Without relevant background knowledge, neither humans nor Artificial Intelligence can effectively define or solve complex problems.
The importance of schema
Human beings process information through mental frameworks known as schemas.
A schema is a stored pattern of knowledge that enables people to organize, interpret and make sense of new experiences.
Without these mental structures, new information remains difficult to understand.
Artificial Intelligence cannot replace this cognitive foundation.
Instead, learners require strong background knowledge to evaluate, question and apply the information AI provides.
Lessons from history
When books became widely available, some argued that memorizing knowledge would become unnecessary because information could always be retrieved from libraries.
Educational historian Arthur E. Bestor strongly rejected this view.
In Educational Wastelands: The Retreat from Learning in Our Public Schools, he argued:
“Effective thinking depends upon a store of reliable information, which the mind can draw upon… A man must bring to any reference book a fund of ready knowledge sufficient to make it intelligible.”
The same reasoning applies today.
The existence of the internet or Artificial Intelligence does not eliminate the need for knowledge.
Without prior understanding, learners cannot meaningfully question, evaluate or apply the information generated by AI.
AI is an enabler, not a replacement
Educational institutions traditionally organize knowledge into three broad domains:
- Natural sciences
- Social sciences
- Humanities
A truly educated individual should acquire knowledge across one or more of these fields.
Artificial Intelligence can undoubtedly support teaching, research and learning.
It can organize information, summarize content and improve access to educational resources.
However, it cannot replace the intellectual furniture of the mind.
The famous Yale Report of 1828 distinguished between the discipline and the furniture of the mind.
Knowledge provides the intellectual furniture.
Rigorous study develops the discipline of thinking.
One cannot exist meaningfully without the other.
Artificial Intelligence should therefore be viewed as an educational enabler rather than a replacement for education itself.
Learners—whether in primary school, secondary school or university—must continue acquiring knowledge, developing skills and strengthening judgment before they can effectively use AI.
Knowledge remains the birthright of every learner.
It is the rigour, depth and structure of the curriculum that stretch the intellectual capacity of students.
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Students cannot be denied access to humanity’s cultural and intellectual heritage on the assumption that AI can simply process information for them.
Without sufficient background knowledge, learners cannot even instruct Artificial Intelligence effectively.
Technology can enhance education.
It cannot replace its substance.
By Kennedy Buhere
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