Educating for Agency: African Philosophies of Personhood and the Ethics of Artificial Intelligence in Education
Abstract
The global diffusion of artificial intelligence (AI) in education presents a profound anthropological and ethical challenge: how to preserve human agency and moral responsibility within increasingly automated learning systems. In African educational contexts, this challenge intersects with long-standing debates about personhood, community, and the moral purpose of education. This paper argues that African philosophies of personhood—especially the communitarian ethic of Ubuntu—offer vital resources for reimagining education in the AI era. Drawing on African philosophical anthropology, Christian theological reflections on the imago Dei, and contemporary educational ethics, the study develops a conceptual framework for “educating for agency.” This framework emphasizes the formative, relational, and moral dimensions of learning that cannot be replicated by algorithmic systems. Through a critical dialogue between technology and tradition, the paper demonstrates that AI must serve, not substitute, the humanizing goals of education. By integrating African wisdom traditions and ethical reasoning, it concludes that preserving human agency in AI-driven education is not merely a technological adjustment but a moral and cultural imperative for the future of learning in Africa.
Keywords: Artificial intelligence, African philosophy, personhood, Ubuntu, human agency, education ethics, imago Dei
References
References
Arendt, H. (1958). The human condition. University of Chicago Press.
Brynjolfsson, E., & McAfee, A. (2017). Machine, platform, crowd: Harnessing our digital future. W. W. Norton.
Coeckelbergh, M. (2020). AI ethics. MIT Press.
Freire, P. (1970). Pedagogy of the oppressed. Continuum.
Gyekye, K. (1997). Tradition and modernity: Philosophical reflections on the African experience. Oxford University Press.
John Paul II. (1979). Redemptor hominis. Vatican Press.
John Paul II. (1990). Ex corde ecclesiae. Vatican Press.
John Paul II. (1993). Veritatis splendor. Vatican Press.
Mawere, M. (2016). African philosophy and thought systems: A search for a culture and philosophy of belonging. Langaa RPCIG.
Mbiti, J. S. (1969). African religions and philosophy. Heinemann.
Menkiti, I. A. (1984). Person and community in African traditional thought. In R. A. Wright (Ed.), African philosophy: An introduction (pp. 171–181). University Press of America.
Mutekwe, E. (2018). Towards an African philosophy of education for technological and scientific advancement. Educational Philosophy and Theory, 50(2), 122–133.
Noble, S. U. (2018). Algorithms of oppression: How search engines reinforce racism. NYU Press.
Pope Francis. (2015). Laudato si’. Vatican Press.
Pope Francis. (2020). Fratelli tutti. Vatican Press.
Ramose, M. B. (1999). African philosophy through Ubuntu. Mond Books.
Selwyn, N. (2019). Should robots replace teachers? AI and the future of education. Polity Press.
Sifuna, D. N., & Sawamura, N. (2010). Challenges of quality education in sub-Saharan Africa: Some key issues. Nova Science Publishers.
Waghid, Y. (2014). African philosophy of education reconsidered: On being human. Routledge.
Williamson, B., & Hogan, A. (2020). Commercialisation and privatisation in public education: The role of AI. Learning, Media and Technology, 45(1), 64–76.
Wiredu, K. (1996). Cultural universals and particulars: An African perspective. Indiana University Press.
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
Copyright (c) 2025 Patrick Mwania
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
This open-access article is distributed under a Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY-NC-SA) license.
You are free to: Share — copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format. Adapt — remix, transform, and build upon the material for any purpose, even commercially. The licensor cannot revoke these freedoms as long as you follow the license terms.
Under the following terms: Attribution — You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use.
No additional restrictions You may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits.
