From knowledge to durable skills: rethinking higher education
From Education Futures by Svenia Busson & Laurent Jolie
April 2, 2026 · 49 min · Season 1 · Episode 32
About this episode
This episode discusses the evolution of higher education in the age of AI with insights from Art Markman.
What should universities teach in the age of AI? In this episode of Education Futures , Svenia Busson speaks with Art Markman , Chief Academic Officer at Minerva University and a leading expert in cognitive science, decision-making, and learning. With a career spanning academia, research, and applied learning design, Art brings a powerful perspective on how education must evolve — not just to keep up with AI, but to remain relevant in a rapidly changing world. In this episode, we explore: • Why education should focus on “far transfer” — the ability to apply knowledge across contexts • The shift from teaching content → developing durable skills (reasoning, communication, empathy, systems thinking) • Why most universities are still structured like they were centuries ago • How Minerva Project is redesigning higher education from first principles • Why grades and transcripts fail to capture real learning • How AI is reshaping the role of assignments, assessment, and feedback • Why trying to ban AI in universities is the wrong approach • How AI can be used as a tutor, feedback engine, and learning accelerator To go further: Minerva University: https://www.minerva.edu/ UT Austin’s…
People in this episode
Host: Svenia Busson
Guest: Art Markman
Topics covered
- higher education
- artificial intelligence
- durable skills
- cognitive science
- learning design
- educational reform
Keywords
- higher education
- AI
- durable skills
- learning
- cognitive science
- educational reform
- Minerva University
- assessment
- feedback
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Minerva University, UT Austin, Minerva Project
Products: AI Tutor Platform
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