One of my favorite units in university this semester has been the Management of Public Enterprises. I feel that the lecturer put a deliberate effort into designing the learning experience to match the timeliness and importance of the course. Last year, Kenyan youths (Gen Z) led nationwide protests that forced President Ruto to decline signing the Finance Bill 2024 into law, despite the legislature passing it.
Mbiyu, the lecturer, embedded relevant public commentaries on the various national budgetary processes into the course, enabling learners to not only gain knowledge on the management of public enterprises, but also practical and contemporary case examples. This approach ensures that learners relate and gain the necessary attitudes in the required fields of study.
The public commentaries from a wide variety of sources, including X (formerly Twitter) and YouTube, made learning more interactive and enjoyable. Journalists, expert interviews on major television shows, and video clips from the legislature proceedings added the necessary depth and context to the theoretical knowledge.
I particularly found the X-embedded resources quite insightful. For example, the commentaries by Julians Amboko, a journalist, critiquing the Finance Bill 2025, Supplementary Bill III, and Appropriation Bill 2025 were useful in putting into perspective the state of our nation in economic terms. They also helped open my eyes to the systemic and structural issues affecting Kenya, especially when coupled with the theoretical knowledge gained from the broader course.
For example, Parkinson’s Law (1955), which observes that bureaucracies naturally expand over time, regardless of actual workload or productivity, can easily be seen in President Ruto’s administration. The government departments have proliferated and spending has swollen – not to meet the genuine public demand, but because the internal system incentivizes expansion.
I enjoyed using Grok, X’s chatbot, to stimulate further interaction on these topics, particularly prompting it to elaborate, relate, and re-contextualize certain discussions. This reflects a broader pedagogical shift in how learners access and consume content. Gone (exaggeration!) are the days when static sources were the only ways for learners to interact with content.
The back-and-forths with chatbots enhance learning experiences, enabling learners to go deeper with their inquiries, in ways that suit them – whether contextualization into their very specific milieu, application of knowledge and skills across various disciplines, etc. Here, learners’ curiosity and creativity are what guide them to what depth or extent they are willing to go.
Additionally, deep learning can take place across a multitude of platforms, including on social media.
In this scenario, lecturers and core textbooks are a means to the destination, not an end in themselves. The world needs more teachers like Mbiyu, who are conscious in designing learning experiences that take into consideration contemporary technologies and issues affecting learning and society at large.
