An Evaluation of Traditional Methods of Teaching Architecture Students Building Structures in Nigerian Universities

In this data article, a thorough dataset on patterns of electricity use in Nigerian public universities was presented. Three relatively old public universities with staff and students’ halls of residences were purposively selected. The selected universities were Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife (OAU), Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA), and University of Ibadan (UI). Data were obtained through the administration of a structured questionnaire on electricity end users in the universities sampled. For the data collection, the electricity end users in public universities were stratified into users in university staff offices, staff residences, student residences, and commercial units. Electricity users were selected using systematic random sampling and accidental sampling techniques. In OAU, FUTA and UI, 217, 137 and 164 students, respectively were sampled; 30, 3, and 61 households in OAU, FUTA, and UI, respectively were sampled while 28, 6, and 18 commercial units in OAU, FUTA and UI, respectively were also sampled. The sample size determined for staff in OAU, FUTA and UI were 139, 81 and 182, respectively. The data obtained were analyzed using radar charts. The information provided in this data article will encourage investigation into electricity management strategies, critical success factors for electricity management, planning, and policy formulation towards the realization of sustainable campuses.

The paper assesses gender disparities in Urban and Regional Planning (URP) education in Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (LAUTECH) and Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA). Simple random sampling method was employed to administer 225 questionnaires in both institutions. Secondary data on student’s enrolment between 2003 and 2013 was obtained from the departments of Urban and Regional Planning of both institutions. ‘Factors of Gender Disparity Index’ (FGDI) was developed to measure factors responsible for gender disparities in planning education in the two institutions. Findings revealed that the ratio of male to female in all the academic sessions investigated varies in the selected institutions. In FUTA it was observed that the highest ratio of male: female is 4:1 while the lowest ratio is 5:2. However, in LAUTECH, the highest ‘gender disparity range’ is 7: 4 while the lowest is 3:2. The factor with the highest FGDI in LAUTECH is ‘course is preferably taken by male’ (3.19) while in FUTA, ‘male can handle pressure situations better than female’ (3.1). Other factors of significant FGDI are: ‘very low interest in the course on the part of female students’, and ‘the stress undergone during the process of the course’. The study recommends increasing awareness on the prospects and professional benefits of Urban and Regional Planning (TOPREC) education through the Town Planners’ Registration Council. Policies on tertiary education programme should deal with gender-stereotyped and bias courses. Keywords: gender, disparity, URP, DOI : 10.7176/DCS/9-9-04 Publication date :September 30 th 2019

Students’ performance in Building structures courses have been observed to be generally low with their corresponding inadequate application of Structures knowledge in Architectural designs. There are many factors that may be responsible for this in which the curriculum used to teach the students is inclusive. This issue has not been adequately investigated. This study therefore analysed the effects of curriculum on the performance of Architecture students in Building structures in Southwestern Nigerian public Universities, with a view to improving on the performance of the students. The study employed descriptive survey. Five public universities approved by the National Universities Commission and Architects Registration Council of Nigeria namely: FUTA, LAUTECH, OAU, UNILAG and OOU were purposively sampled. The curricula of these selected universities were collected and reviewed with past examination questions and results on Building structures courses. The study revealed that curricula of all selected schools were in line with NUC and ARCON standards. The questions given to students’ during examinations were also standards and in line with the contents in the curricula in all selected universities. The study also revealed that the performance of the students in the courses was generally low across the selected universities. The study concluded that the curricula of schools selected are standard and good to train the students but should be re- evaluated to provide better alliance with the studio works (Architectural designs). The study recommended that topics not vital or relevant for students’ development in the contents should be removed to reduce overloading of works on students. There is need to reduce calculations or reduce calculations given to students’ during examinations to improve the performance of the students. Finally, periodical review and updating of curriculum are recommended to broaden the students’ knowledge in order to train high quality, talented students in Architecture and to meet the present and future trend development globally.

This research was conducted to make empirical findings on the persistence of Examination Malpractices (EMs) among students of higher institutions in Nigeria using the Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA) as a point of reference. A total of 466 participants responded to the online structured questionnaire disseminated through the social media platforms of WhatsApp and the Telegram over a period of three months (June- August, 2025). The data were analysed using SPSS package involving the use of chi-square for categorical data. Findings revealed that cheating in examination remains persistence because of systemic abnormalities which include some parents and staff who aid and abet cheating in examination as well as a lack of adequate facilities and unconducive environments for examinations The study recommends among other things that all stakeholders should be held accountable in issues of examination misconduct and adequate punishment measure be meted out to all perpetrators. It also recommends that the governments at all levels should prioritize improvements in the learning environment as well as ensuring the availability of appropriate facilities.

A notable gap in the statistical training at the tertiary level in Nigeria is the absolute lack of exposure to first-hand statistical practice and/or acquisition of statistical consulting skills by the students. At the University of Ibadan (UI), undergraduate students in statistics are required to undertake work experience for 3 months in industry or a government agency as part of the requirements for the awarded degree. Unfortunately, this requirement is not integrated into the curriculum of all statistics-degree-granting institutions in Nigeria. Even where the requirement exists, the challenge usually faced by the students is how to find suitable placements in a statistics-practice environment where practical statistical skills needed to become effective professional statisticians can be easily acquired. The creation of the UI Laboratory for Interdisciplinary Statistical Analysis [UI-LISA] in 2015 provided the needed environment for acquiring practical training in statistics. The objective of this chapter is to share how UI-LISA is serving as an industrial training (IT) resource base for statistics students seeking a place for their internship, not only from UI but also from neighbouring polytechnics and universities. From 2015 till date, UI-LISA has admitted and trained students under the IT platform created for them to acquire requisite experience for a period ranging from 3 to 6 months. These students have come from other institutions such as The Polytechnic Ibadan; Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA); Federal School of Statistics (FSS), Ajibode, Ibadan; Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta (FUNAAB) and Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU). The chapter describes the various activities undertaken at UI-LISA to complement statistical training at different levels of statistics education in Nigeria (such as National Diploma, Higher National Diploma, Bachelor’s degree and Postgraduate). The main activities include: specialised hands-on training in statistical tools and software such as R; statistical consulting practices and training with clients; statistical collaboration skills; statistical communication; and a walk-in statistical clinic where statistical advice is provided to members of the university community. In sum, UI-LISA is positioned towards building statistical capacity and providing practical skills beyond the formal training provided by the institutions.

Examination scheduling in academic institutions represents a complex optimization problem that requires efficient allocation of time slots and venues while minimizing conflicts. This study presents an automated examination scheduling system utilizing graph colouring algorithms to address scheduling challenges in Nigerian universities. A case study of 300-level students in the Cybersecurity and Information Technology departments at the Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA) was conducted. The research employed the DSATUR (Degree of Saturation) algorithm to model courses as vertices and student overlaps as edges in an undirected conflict graph. The system was implemented using Python programming language with NetworkX and Matplotlib libraries for graph manipulation and visualization. Results demonstrated successful conflict-free scheduling with optimal time slot allocation, reducing examination periods while satisfying both hard and soft constraints. The automated system generated efficient timetables in approximately 0.67 seconds, eliminating manual scheduling errors and significantly reducing administrative workload. This contribution offers Nigerian educational institutions a scalable and user-friendly solution for examination timetabling, adaptable to varying institutional requirements. Keywords: Examination Scheduling, Graph Colouring, DSATUR Algorithm, Conflict Resolution, Python, Automated Timetabling, FUTA

There are several teaching styles in the literature that have been traditionally used in the teaching of Building structures to students of Architecture. Nevertheless, they have all been streamlined into two styles: didactic and interactive styles of teaching and upon these that the assessment of this study was based. This study assessed styles of teaching Building structure courses to Architecture students in Southwestern Nigerian public Universities, with a view to improving the performance of the students in these courses. Quantitative research approach was adopted and employed descriptive survey. The principal survey techniques used was questionnaire. Five public universities approved by the National Universities Commission and Architects Registration Council of Nigeria were purposively sampled. A total of 702 questionnaires were administered to all the pre-final and final year students in the Department of Architecture of the sampled universities, while only 541 questionnaires were adequately completed and considered fit for analysis. Cross tabulation with chi-square was used to summarize the data. The study revealed that the teachers were using both didactic and interactive teaching styles. The conclusion here was that the teachers were not using interactive teaching styles fully in teaching the courses to students which led to poor performance of students in the courses. Therefore, the study recommended that strong priority should be given to the quality of teaching by using interactive teaching style only in the teaching of Building structures.

The study assessed the Southwestern Nigerian undergraduates’ acceptance of YouTube as a web-based instructional tool using Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) Model. It determined the level of awareness of YouTube as a web-based instructional tool by the undergraduates. It measured the undergraduates’ effort and performance expectancy of YouTube and the conditions that facilitate its acceptance at the universities. The study employed the descriptive survey research design. The population consisted all registered undergraduates in Southwestern Nigeria. 800 students were selected from Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, Osun State, Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (LAUTECH), Oyo State and Covenant University, Ota, Ogun State using disproportionate stratified sampling. The three universities were purposively selected based on their webometric ranking in terms of ICT usage. Findings from the study indicated that 57.80% of the undergraduates are moderately aware of YouTube as an instructional tool. The effort expectancy (×̅=3.00, sd=0.60) as well as the performance expectancy (×̅=3.00, sd=0.62) show that the undergraduates accept YouTube. The conditions identified by the undergraduates that can militate the acceptance of YouTube in the region included low bandwidth (79.70%), low hard disk space (65.60%), epileptic electricity supply (68.60%) and high cost of required devices (68.40%). The study therefore concluded that Southwestern Nigerian undergraduates are prone to accepting YouTube as a web-based instructional tool. 
 The study assessed the Southwestern Nigerian undergraduates’ acceptance of YouTube as a web-based instructional tool using Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) Model. It determined the level of awareness of YouTube as a web-based instructional tool by the undergraduates. It measured the undergraduates’ effort and performance expectancy of YouTube and the conditions that facilitate its acceptance at the universities. The study employed the descriptive survey research design. The population consisted all registered undergraduates in Southwestern Nigeria. 800 students were selected from Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, Osun State, Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (LAUTECH), Oyo State and Covenant University, Ota, Ogun State using disproportionate stratified sampling. The three universities were purposively selected based on their webometric ranking in terms of ICT usage. Findings from the study indicated that 57.80% of the undergraduates are moderately aware of YouTube as an instructional tool. The effort expectancy (×̅=3.00, sd=0.60) as well as the performance expectancy (×̅=3.00, sd=0.62) show that the undergraduates accept YouTube. The conditions identified by the undergraduates that can militate the acceptance of YouTube in the region included low bandwidth (79.70%), low hard disk space (65.60%), epileptic electricity supply (68.60%) and high cost of required devices (68.40%). The study therefore concluded that Southwestern Nigerian undergraduates are prone to accepting YouTube as a web-based instructional tool.

This study examined Emotional Intelligence, Locus of control and Conflict Handling Skills as Predictors of non-violent behaviours among University Students in South-Western Nigeria. The population was all the Nigerian University Students in the South-Western Nigerian out of which a sample of 1,000 participants were selected using the simple random sampling technique. Three research questions were raised. The instruments used to collect data were: (i) Emotional and social competency inventory by Goleman D. (2007); (ii) The internal control index by Duttweilar, P.C (1984); (iii) Conflict Handling Behaviour Rating scale by Hameed A. (2002). The instruments were administered at the four Universities used for the study while Multiple Regression Analysis and Pearson Product Moment Correlation were used to analyse the data at 0.05 level of significance. The findings revealed that there was a significant relationship between each of the independent valuables. There was a joint effect of the independent variables on non-violent behaviour of the students. Also, there was a contribution of each of the independent variables to the prediction of non-violent behaviour among the students. Deaths and injuries from students' crisis or violent behaviour constitute a major public health problem in many institutions and parts of the world. Significant variation in the magnitude of this problem exists within and between countries and regions of the world. Over the years, a lot of measures, preventions and strategies have been learnt and put in place to identify the causes of students' crises in Nigerian universities. Scientific evidences on the pattern and causes of the crisis both qualitative and quantitative is on the increase yearly. For instance, 20-40 victims of students crisis receives treatment from various hospitals yearly in Israel, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Norway, Jamaica, Johannesburg, South Africa, Kenya, Brazil, Chile, Columbia, Mozambique and Nigeria (WHO, 2010). Similarly, studies conducted by World Health Organization, WHO (2009) in Jamaica, Kenya and Mozambique show a high rate of violent behaviour in universities where students used fire arms, knives, clubs, stones, firsts and feet to attack security agents, colleaques and university authorities. In a study conducted by WHO, 2009 in Orebro, Sweden using 1,000 young males who displayed violent behaviour up to age 26 years had already scored highly for aggressiveness at the ages of 10 and 13 years. In a study in Columbia, United States in 2010 by WHO, it was found that 59% of the university students' arrested for violent offences between age 18 years were reported as adults and 42% of these were charge for serious crimes. In Nigeria, students' revolutionary behaviour has been a great concern, not only to university administrators but to parents, guardians and those concerned with the students' welfare. The Nigerian universities and other higher institutions of learning can hardly accomplish their missions as repositories of knowledge if they are constantly thrown into students' crisis. Some of the universities that witnessed students violent behaviours include: University of Ibadan, 1978, Ahmadu Bello University, 1981, University of Ife now Obafemi Awolowo University, Helfe, 1991, 2005, Bayero University Kano, 1981, University of Lagos, 1997, Lagos State University, 1998, Olabisi Onabanjo University, 2005 and host of others. Similarly, Taiwo (2004); Reza, Krug and Mercy (2001), Uduigwoman (2003), Nwosu and Odeyemi (1998) as well as Amakiri (1997) have in a related studies established that age, religion, sex as well as self efficacy and social competence constitute very important factors to be considered to prevent crisis in Nigeria tertiary institutions. This study therefore having consider the great effect of violent behaviour on the Nigerian universities, the university community, students and parents, examines the use of Emotional Intelligence, Locus of Control and Conflict Handling Skills as Predictors of non-violent behaviour among university students in South western Nigeria. …

This paper examined inhibiting factors to academic success among first year students in Nigerian public universities. The study was guided by two research questions and two hypotheses, it used an ex post facto design with a survey approach. The population for the study involved all the first-year students in four universities in Delta and Edo states, Nigeria. A simple random sampling technique was used to select 50 students from the faculty of Education in each university. A convenient sample size of 200 respondents was used. The data collected was through a questionnaire titled “Exploring inhibiting Factors to Academic Success among First Year Students’ in Nigerian Universities” (EIFASAFS), data obtained was analyzed with the use of descriptive and inferential statistics. The questionnaire was made up of two sections, A and B, were used to elicit responses from students. They yielded a reliability coefficient of .80, .76, .78 and .73 for sections A, B, C, and D respectively, which was considered adequate. The mean, and standard deviation were used to answer the research questions while the hypotheses were tested with t-test and Analysis of variance (ANOVA) statistics at 0.50 level of significance. The findings revealed that inadequate finance, institutional and student factors were inhibiting factors to academic success among first year students in public universities in Nigeria, the main coping interventions adopted include; religion and prayer (3.24), choosing roommates wisely (3.17) and prompt and regular attendance at lectures. A significant difference was found between age and gender on coping strategies adopted by students. Based on the findings, it was recommended that the university management should provide loan schemes, adequate orientation programmes, among others.

This study is an online survey on the presence of Nigerian universities on social media platforms. The purpose of the paper was to examine the level of presence of Nigerian universities on five social media platforms which include: Face book, Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn and Google+. Three research questions were generated and one null hypothesis was formulated for this study. In the methodology, the internet served as the primary source of data, while Nigerian universities’ websites were used as secondary sources. All 129 accredited Nigerian Universities by the National Universities Commission were sampled for this study. Descriptive statistics (Percentage, Mean Rating and Standard Deviation) were used to answer research questions 1 and 2 while inferential statistics (Chi-Square) was used to test and analyse the null hypothesis. Report of Micaiah (2014) on Social Media Awareness in Nigeria Education which states that Nigerian universities’ presence on social media is minimal, was used as a guide; its methodology and data were also adapted for this study. The result showed that Nigerian Universities’ presence on social media platforms was 19% which is below par, compared to the unprecedented social media user base among Nigerian university students. In the analysis of the hypothesis, it was revealed that university ownership does not significantly determine the presence of Nigerian universities on social media platforms. It thus recommends that universities in Nigeria should as a matter of urgency, create a central unit of social media services to manage all necessary social media activities of their institutions, and to heighten Nigerian Universities’ presence on social media platforms which would create a mindset on educational goals and attainment among academics and students in Nigeria. Keywords: Nigerian University, Higher Education, Students, Social Media, Internet

Building structures and Architecture designs are major and compulsory courses in the study of Architecture. The knowledge obtained in Building structures is applied in Architectural designs. However, students’ performances in Building structures courses have been observed to be generally low and what is not known is if there is low performance in Architectural designs also. This study therefore carried out a comparative analysis of academic performance of Architecture students in Building structures and Architectural designs courses in Southwestern Nigerian public Universities in order to improve on students’ performances on these courses. The study was a descriptive survey that involved questionnaire, five public universities approved by the National Universities Commission and Architects Registration Council of Nigeria namely: FUTA, LAUTECH, OAU, UNILAG and OOU were purposively sampled. A total of 702 questionnaires were administered to all the pre-final and final year students in the Department of Architecture of the sampled universities, while only 541 questionnaires were adequately completed and considered fit for analysis. Cross tabulation with chi-square was used to summarize the data. Pearson Product Moment Correlation was employed to show the relationship between Building structure knowledge and Architectural designs performance, while Regression analysis was used to assess the effect of the two courses on students’ performances. The study revealed that there was a significant relationship between the knowledge of Building structure and students’ performance in Architectural designs as the students progressed in their studies (r=0.641; p=0.046). The study concluded that the depth of knowledge in Building Structures is a function of good performance in Architectural designs, when all other factors leading to good Architectural Designs expertise are kept in place.

This study is aimed at assessing current and future potable water demand and supply at the Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA), Nigeria. The only source of water to the University community is ground water extracted through boreholes constructed at different locations in the University. Eighteen (18) storage and distribution reservoirs were assessed to assess their capacity to adequately supply water for the present and future population of students and staff within the institution. FUTA had a population of 28,419 in 2019, the staff made up 9.16% of the total population while the students constituted the remaining 90.84%. A 30-year population projection was made for both staff and students using the geometric increase method of population forecasting. The study revealed that the population of FUTA will grow to 62,280 persons in 2049 from 28,419 in 2019 assuming a constant growth rate of 2.65% while the current average daily water demand of the University community is 1,475.83 m3/day. The current yield of water from the boreholes in FUTA is 1,198.07 m3/day which is not sufficient to meet the daily water demands of the University community. The maximum possible yield from the boreholes is 2,443.68 m3/day under normal conditions involving stable power supply and adequate personnel. Furthermore, it is projected that by the year 2049, the average daily water demand of the University community would be 2,995.74 m3/day. The outcome of this study revealed that there is water shortage in FUTA and the situation would worsen as the years go by if adequate measures are not put in place. The construction of a dam and water treatment plant is recommended to meet the increasing water demands occasioned by increase in population .Keywords – Potable, water, demand, supply, boreholes

This study investigated the factors affecting performance of Business Management students in Nigerian Universities. The main objective is to examine the impact of the factors on the performance of Business Management students. Survey research design was used in this study to gather the necessary data; the data were collected from primary and secondary sources. A sample of 200 students drawn from the 300 population was used in the study which was analyzed using descriptive statistics and t-test statistics. The results showed that the performance of business management students in Nigerian universities is influenced by several factors ranging from business course curriculum to the role of the department and the level of support services facilities, as well as adopted teaching methodology and quantitative courses taught in business management. The role of the department was found to exhibits the most significant impact, while support services facilities exhibits the least impact. The study however, recommended the provision of adequate learning facilities such as lecture classes/ theatres, hostel accommodation, functional computers and medical services to make the environment conducive for teaching and learning.

Students learn in many ways and use many styles since learning is cognitive of a learner. In a similar way, in the learning of Building structures in Architecture, there are many styles used by the students knowingly and unknowingly because majority of them did not know the style use to read the courses. This affects better understanding and the performance of students greatly because their performance in the courses is low and this is worrisome. Literature acknowledged the use Kolb learning style in the study of Architecture and Engineering. The study therefore carried out effects of learning style using Kolb learning style on the performance of Architecture students in Building structures in South Western public universities in Nigeria in order to improve on the performance of students and to have better understanding in the courses. The study was a descriptive survey with multi – stage sampling procedures that involved the use of questionnaire. It focused on data obtained from Architecture students of five selected public universities in South Western Nigeria where Architecture was offered. The universities were purposively selected and sampled. The research approach adopted for was quantitative. The population for the study was seven hundred and two (702) students. This study utilized the total population since it was not too large and was more representative than a sample. The data was analysed using descriptive statics such as frequency counts, percentages, Likert scaling, and Chi-square while regression analysis was used to assess the effects of Kolb learning style using on students’ performance in Building structures. The study revealed that the students were not using Kolb learning style fully in the learning of Building structures and the performance of the students in the courses was very low. It also revealed that there was a significant relationship between Kolb learning style and students’ performance in Building structures. The study concluded that the improvement in performance of students in the courses rest on the use of Kolb learning style fully therefore, the need for the students to use the style fully in order to improve on the performance and have better understanding in Building structures.