Speculative design is being promoted as a critical approach to design. Speculative design does not attempt to predict the future. Instead, it attempts to create debate and discussion about preferable futures (Dunne & Raby 2013). Design educators and practitioners from the Global South have become increasingly critical of speculative design practices (Martins 2014). This paper provides an account of a speculative design project set for final-year students pursuing a degree in Digital Media Design at the University of Johannesburg, South Africa. The paper describes the project brief, the purpose of the assignment and the intended outcomes. Three student designs are presented and explored using a textual analysis methodology. The paper then draws on Anticipatory Systems Theory to unpack how Speculative Design education and practice can be augmented with alternative approaches the way Futures are used.