1.1 Introduction
Digital technologies have been used in architectural schools to challenge the modernizing view of architectural practice (Andia, 2002; Schenk, 2005). The current concept of architectural design education in most schools of architecture in Nigeria is a blend between manual pen drafting and digital approaches. However, the disconnection between these two methods has resulted in the students’ failure to transfer skills learnt through traditional methods to the digital method of CAD.
The advance of the information computer technology revolution with the accompanied digital technologies has changed the traditional context of architecture as a profession and in education (Breen, 2004). ICTs have been used in the profession over the past three decades to enhance existing practices by facilitating the production of vast quantities of drawings with high accuracy and over less time.
As a prelude to other parts of this study, this chapter will discuss the background upon which this study was initiated, the statement of problems that led to this study, the Aim and Objectives of the study. Others are Significance of the study, Scope of work, Research questions, Limitation of the study and Definition of technical terms.
1.2 Background of Study
In the last few decades, revolutionary developments in the field of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) have significantly impacted everyday life. The internet, advanced illustration tools and Computer Aided Design (CAD) software are obvious examples of this digital revolution that has affected the very process of teaching architectural design and, in fact, has even transformed the architectural profession itself. Thus, the development of such digital tools over a relatively short time and their continuous advancement and refinement had, and continues to have, an inevitable major impact on many key pedagogical aspects of architectural education and curricula design.
A fundamental pillar of the contemporary theory of architectural design education is the approach of combining the traditional method of drafting with a drawing board and T-square with the new method of using digital tools in the design process. Most architectural schools developed and introduced computational courses into their curricula, which resulted in a dramatic shift in their educational context, i.e., from traditional methods to computational new methods, and other various shifts in architectural design media, design thinking and design theory. Although digital media has become an essential part of the design studio culture, this transition has not been clearly addressed because schools of architecture have had difficulty in appreciating the dramatic impact of this new technology on their existing and long-established educational infrastructure.
The framework focuses on four major aspects of the architectural design process, namely, the generation of design solutions, communication, the evaluation of design solutions and decision-making. This assessment may reveal certain indicators that can help educators and practitioners to understand the impact of this rapid and radical transition on the architectural design process and thus help to redirect the future of architectural education into a more adaptive and qualitative system.
According to Guney (2015), the disadvantage of using CAAD tools is to make the students addicted and design their projects without creativity. Salman et al. anticipated that the use of CAAD tools by students came as early as the conceptual stage in the investigation of specific formal themes (Achten, 2003). However, many educators and practitioners have called for a combination of both physical and digital design methods rather than the use of either method separately.
Therefore, in Nigeria where the research was carried out, the activities that was conducted is to assess the Role of CAD Programs for Architecture.
1.3 Statement of Problems
Investigation revealed that the current concept of architectural design education is a blend of the traditional method of drafting on paper and the modern method of using CAD in the design process. This paper argues that the transition to the new digital media has been vague and largely ill-defined, which causes several serious pedagogical problems. The introduction of these new tools into design teaching has been combined with a dysfunctional relationship between the tools and the intended end tasks.
Consequently, this dysfunction has resulted in a separation between architectural design and the context of the project, specifically its sense of scale and proportion, and has led to a marked decline in the spatial quality experience and a disproportionate dependence on illustrative techniques.
The inappropriate use of the digital tools and the heavy reliance on them, the lack of integration among different digital tools and, more importantly, the absence of effective coordination between theoretical courses and design projects has resulted in a relatively poorer overall design quality.
1.4 Aim and Objectives of Study
The aim of the study is to assess the impact of CAD on the architectural design process and the quality of its product. In achieving this aim, the following specific objectives were laid out as follows:
- To examine the impacts do CAD tools have on the overall quality of architectural design in all of its stages;
- To compare the students’ preferences and attitudes toward the use of CAD tools and traditional methods;
- To examine the student to use CAD software in the architectural design process;
- To evaluate the importance of the role of CAD in an architectural curriculum; and
- To assess the potential impact of these digital tools on the quality and creativity of architectural design.
1.5 Research Questions
The study came up with research questions so as to be able to ascertain the above stated objectives. The specific research questions for the study are stated below as follows:
- Does a student find CAD software useful in the architectural design process?
- What are the impacts do CAD tools have on the overall quality of architectural design in all of its stages?
- What are the students’ preferences and attitudes toward the use of CAD tools and traditional methods?
- What is the importance of the role of CAD in an architectural curriculum?
- What is the potential impact of these digital tools on the quality and creativity of architectural design?
1.6 Research Hypothesis
In order to pursue the objective of this study, the following generalized statements have been designed to guide and aids in obtaining the result for the experiment to be conducted. For this work, the null hypothesis will be represented with H0 while the alternative hypothesis will be represented with hypothesis H1.
Hypothesis One
- H0: Students does not find Computer Aided Design (CAD) software useful in the architectural design process
- H1: Students find Computer Aided Design (CAD) software useful in the architectural design process
1.7 Significance of Study
This study help the student involved in this work to fully understand how CAD software enables engineers and architects to design, inspect and manage engineering projects within an integrated graphical user interface (GUI) on a personal computer system.
This study will be of immense benefit to other researchers who intend to know more on this study and can also be used by non-researchers to build more on their research work. This study contributes to knowledge and could serve as a guide for other study.
1.8 Scope of Study
The scope of the research is focused on the Assessment of the Role of CAD Programs for Architecture.
1.9 Limitations of the Study
During the course of this study, many things militated against its completion, some of which are:
- Time Constraint: The time frame given to accomplish this project was very short due to school academic calendar and it was carried out under pressure which made the researcher not to implement some necessary features.
- Research material: availability of research material is a major setback to the scope of the study.
- Frequent power failure: This made the researcher append more money on fuel to ensure sustainable power.
- Financial Constraint: Insufficient fund tends to impede the efficiency of the researcher in sourcing for the relevant materials, literature or information and in the process of data collection (internet, questionnaire and interview).
1.10 Definition of Terms
AUTOCAD: This is software crated for civil engineering design and documentations {Design of structures}.
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