PROMOTING ICT AND DIGITAL EDUCATION IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS IN LAGOS, NIGERIA USING AFFORDABLE CLEAN ENERGY SOLUTIONS

Goal 4 of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) aims to ensure inclusive and quality education for all including the promotion of lifelong learning. Hence the goal seeks to promote development of the human person through education. This development is best driven by technology through the application of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) to digital education. The challenges posed by COVID-19 have further made virtual education which is dependent on the acquisition of ICT and digital skills very imperative. Incidentally, technology based education is dependent on the availability of energy which cannot be guaranteed in a developing country context such as Nigeria. Hence, this study is aimed at examining the energy supply situation in selected public secondary schools in Lagos, Nigeria and their coping strategies for ICT and digital education. The study adopted the qualitative approach with data obtained from observation and interviews. The study found that the schools relied mostly on conventional electricity supply from the national grid which was generally epileptic and unreliable. The schools had standby electricity generators to support mains supply and this is a major source of pollution and carbon emissions. The study thus recommended the use of renewable clean energy systems such as solar electricity through photovoltaic cells to power the equipment used for ICT and digital education

INVESTIGATING THE EXTENT OF USE OF BUILDING INFORMATION MODELLING (BIM) IN DEPARTMENT OF ARCHITECTURE, COVENANT UNIVERSITY OTA, NIGERIA

Building Information Modeling (BIM) is gradually gaining wider acceptance in the Nigerian Architecture, Engineering and Construction (AEC) industry and the education industry should match that level of acceptance by training future professionals in the Nigerian AEC industry on the concept and its practice. BIM describes the process of designing a building collaboratively using one coherent system of computer models, rather than as separate sets of drawings. This allows for proper and effective management of information which in turn creates smarter and more informed professionals in a construction industry that loses billions per year, due to ineffective communication. This research aimed at examining the extent of use of BIM in Covenant University‘s department of architecture focused on three major variables; awareness, effective use and application of the subject matter outside the classroom. The result of this research however suggests that the more advanced facets of BIM are used at marginally low levels, compared to the rather basic facets such as 2D and 3D BIM. Nonetheless, this research did not give room for fallacy of generalization as extensive means of cross analysis were used to properly examine awareness, use and application of BIM outside the classroom‘ (amongst other variables) across the several levels of study. Hence, allowing for more detailed and precise finding

Public School Buildings in Lagos, Nigeria: Renovations, Renewable Energy Retrofits and Implications for Technology- based Education

Renovation of existing building stock across several building types has continued to generate interest in built environment research. It is a way of restoring aging building stock to good condition thereby reducing the need for new buildings and ultimately contributing to sustainability through resource efficiency. Residential and non-residential buildings have been found to be high energy consumers and by implication, carbon emitters. School buildings which form part of the non-residential building stock account for a significant share of energy consumption and carbon emissions of the building sector. As a result of the relatively large stock of buildings erected prior to the enactment of energy efficiency regulations in many jurisdictions, renovation is often seen as an opportunity to improve the energy performance and efficiency of old buildings. Given the conditions of public secondary school buildings in Lagos State, Nigeria and bearing in mind the poor access to energy prevalent in the study area, this paper examines ongoing school buildings renovation programmes with a view to ascertaining the extent to which the renovation efforts contribute to sustainability practices especially through the promotion of renewable energy retrofits. The study employed qualitative research methods to identify school buildings renovated between 2010 and 2020 within the six education zones of the study area. Archival studies, interviews and observation methods provided the data for the study. Content analysis was deployed in the analysis of data collected. The result of the study showed that huge opportunities for the installation of renewable photovoltaic retrofits abound in the buildings studied as exemplified in the huge roof footprints and relative heights of the buildings. The study also found that emphasis was more on making the school buildings durable, functional and secure. Even though opportunities for renewable energy retrofits exist in the renovated buildings, very few school buildings considered had such installations. Hence, most school buildings still relied on the national grid for electricity supply. Given the epileptic supply from the grid, most of the schools resorted to fossil fuel fired generators for electricity supply with dire implications for sustainability. The findings point to the need to make school building renovations more holistic by incorporating the energy efficiency component of building renovation. Keywords: energy retrofits, Lagos, renewable energy, renovation, school buildings DOI: 10.7176/JEP/13-17-05 Publication date:June 30th 202