RELEVANCE OF MANUAL DRAFTING IN DESIGN STUDIO EDUCATION IN NIGERIA: COVENANT UNIVERSITY ARCHITECTURE STUDENTS PERSPECTIVE

In the midst of a globalized world characterized by deployment of information computer technology (ICT) in all spheres of learning and practice, architectural students very often find themselves at the centre of two opposing forces existing as a result of past or present contrasting cultures and architectures, along with their attendant values and methods of expression. One of such is the insistent by some schools of architecture in Nigeria that undergraduate student's design studio courses must be done through manual drafting. However, it is observed that students have strongly resisted this policy. Thus, this paper evaluated the relevance of manual drafting in the training of architecture students in design studio education. Covenant University, Ota, Nigeria was purposively selected for this study. Data was collected by means of structured questionnaires administered to students from the second year to the sixth in the 2013/2014 academic session. Data obtained was analysed using descriptive statistics. Results showed that there is almost an equal spilt of students who are of the view that manual drafting is no longer relevant as well as those who think it is still relevant. Most of the students prefer to use both manual drafting and CAD. The possible reasons for this were adduced. The paper suggested that the use of manual drafting should not be completely discarded in the training of undergraduate architecture students, but juxtaposed with digital drafting.