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‘Chasing zebras and catching futures’
30 July 2025 | Story Myolisi Gophe. Photo Je’nine May. Read time 7 min.
In a characteristically witty, warm and thought-provoking lecture, Professor Dick Ng’ambi invited his audience to imagine a future of education not bound by tradition but liberated through innovation – one podcast, one indigenous game, one digital footprint at a time.
Titled “Technology changes what matters – what matters changes technology”, the lecture, which was delivered to a packed auditorium at the University of Cape Town’s (UCT) Neville Alexander Building on lower campus and streamed online, was anything but conventional. It began with an African proverb: “Not everyone who chased the zebra caught it, but he who caught it chased it.” And with that, Professor Ng’ambi set the tone: education, like zebra hunting, is not a passive activity.
“If you don’t chase it, you’re out of the game,” he said. “There’s no hope of catching it.” And in his case, the chase began decades ago in his native Zambia, where he took it upon himself to teach the nation about passwords, the internet and computer crime – before most people knew they needed to care.
“We have more degrees, more skills, but the problems persist. We must move from just talking to taking action.”
Long before “tech for good” became a global trend, Ng’ambi, a professor in the School of Education at UCT, was already doing it. At a time when power cuts plagued Zambia and answers were in short supply, he developed the country’s first-ever software tool to help engineers track and solve maintenance issues. It wasn’t commissioned work: it was a response to a problem.
That, he said, is what universities should be doing: solving real-world problems in real time. “We have more degrees, more skills, but the problems persist. We must move from just talking to taking action.”
Technology changes what matters (and vice versa)
In a dizzyingly brilliant philosophical loop, Ng’ambi unpacked a central idea: technology changes what matters for you. But what matters to me changes the technology that changes what matters for you.
If you missed it the first time, don’t worry – he repeated it (with flair), noting that if we don’t pay attention, what once mattered to us may vanish in the noise of other people’s priorities. It’s why, he argued, education must be contextual, inclusive, and above all, responsive.
Ng’ambi is a leading scholar in educational technology and digital pedagogy, specialising in mobile learning, gamification, and the integration of indigenous knowledge systems into education. He is the founder and project director of the Educational Technology Inquiry Lab (ETILAB), and leads innovative initiatives, including digital sandpits aimed at the professional development of teachers and teacher training.
Ng’ambi was among the first at UCT to experiment with podcasting lectures, long before it became standard practice. His goal? To make marginalised voices in the classroom more audible and lasting. For over five years, every class, every lecture, every student conversation became a digital archive of knowledge. His pioneering work in podcasting set the foundation for UCT’s lecture recording infrastructure, a feature that’s now standard across our campus.
But he didn’t stop there. He developed the Dynamic Frequently Asked Questions (DFAQ) tool, enabling students, especially the quiet ones, to contribute anonymously to academic discussions. In one memorable instance, a shy student anonymously explained a complex concept better than the lecturer.
“That’s the power of listening,” Ng’ambi said. “Learning begins when your schema is updated by someone else’s voice.”
“Don’t wait to be invited to educate. If you see a problem, chase it.”
DFAQ was ultimately integrated into the Sakai Learning Management System as a question-and-answer tool adopted globally.
He also built a space for play and innovation: the Digital Sandpit, a learning lab where educators created digital artifacts as part of their professional development. Over 2 000 artifacts later, it’s now considered a continental model for how teachers can use technology to transform classrooms.
It’s no surprise then that when the pandemic hit, graduates of Ng’ambi’s programmes were already fluent in online teaching – a quiet but profound triumph of foresight.
Ng’ambi has published datasets to the UCT Open Data Repository, also known as Zivahub. These datasets have been viewed 8 746 times and downloaded 4 712 times. These numbers speak to the global relevance and reach of his research.
Indigenous knowledge goes digital
One of Ng’ambi’s most passionate current projects is the digitisation of indigenous African games. From morabaraba in South Africa to lesser-known gems across East and West Africa, the games are being collected, studied and converted into a mobile app that teachers as part of the Open Educational Resource of Indigenous Games (OERiGA) project, particularly Generation Z or Gen Z (individuals born between 1997 and 2012, known for being digital natives and having a strong awareness of social issues) educators, can use.
But this is more than nostalgia. The research is mapping the capabilities required to play these games – like problem-solving, strategic thinking, creativity, teamwork and collaboration (21st-century skills) – against the competencies acquired from playing them like survival, solidarity, compassion, respect and digital (ubuntu).
One insight stood out: while African games foster creativity and resilience, teamwork and solidarity appeared surprisingly low. It’s a finding Ng’ambi hopes will spark deeper conversations about social cohesion and educational design.
Closing the lecture, Ng’ambi turned his attention to Generation Z – the so-called digital natives. His current book, Teaching Futures – Why Generation Z is Choosing the Classroom Job, explores why graduates with degrees in fields like finance or science are turning to teaching. In his chase for answers, his book brings together the voices of over 500 Generation Z pre-service teachers from South Africa, each sharing their personal “why” for stepping into the classroom.
With humour, humility and sharp insight, Ng’ambi reminded his audience that relevance is the only true currency in education. And relevance, he argued, is not inherited. It’s earned – by responding to the world as it is and shaping it into what it could be.
“Don’t wait to be invited to educate,” he said. “If you see a problem, chase it.”
In his welcome address, UCT Vice-Chancellor Professor Mosa Moshabela noted that Ng’ambi’s topic reminds us that education and technology are in constant dialogue. As technology reshapes learning and work, our values and choices also shape how technology is developed and used, he said.
“In this age of artificial intelligence and digital tools, we are reminded that innovation must be values-driven. Progress is not about adopting every new trend – it’s about asking the right questions and finding solutions that are relevant to our African context. As we are serious about preparing students for the real world, we must engage critically with the technologies that shape access, learning, and identity.”
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