An overview of the appropriateness of tertiary built environment education in South Africa

Construction is a complex process which requires the co-ordination of and co-operation of the skills and services of various built environment disciplines. The effective integration of these skills determines the success of the project. However, built environment students continue to receive discipline-based education. Furthermore, an outdated tertiary built environment education system is challenged by academics, built environment practitioners and the public in the form of media reports. A homogenous, internationally acceptable tertiary built environment education program, directed at commonality, consistency, coordination, cooperation and standardization using cost effective high-technology methods of delivery to enhance the interest, retention, empowerment and control of large groups is the overall aim of the study. A questionnaire developed from literature related to the diverse content, interconnectedness, cohesion, appropriateness, empowering effect, delivery methods and quality assurance of built environment education was used to obtain data from a sample of nine stakeholder groups within the built environment arena. An analysis of the data indicates that there is a perceived need for both universities and universities of technology programs; built environment tertiary education is relatively diverse in terms of content; there is a perceived need for a common first year and common subjects at other levels, and there is a trend towards perpetuation of traditional technologies, practices and systems within built environment education. The culmination of the study is the development of a template which comprises five components directed towards the advancement of tertiary built environment education. The template takes cognizance of the hypotheses, the findings and comments and is validated by a group selected in their capacity as subject specialists or representatives of primary built environment stakeholders.