Assessment of Industry 5.0 Contents in Construction Curriculum of Higher Education Institutions(HEIs) in South Africa

Daramola Thompson Olapade, Rudzani Glen Muthelo and Justus Ngala Agumba

DOI:

Keywords: Construction 5.0, Digitalisation, Higher Education Institutions (HEIs), Curriculum Assessment, Sustainability

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ABSTRACT

PURPOSE

Incorporating Industry 5.0 contents into the construction curriculum of Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) will increase the preparedness of future graduates for Industrial 5.0 and provide graduates that are fit for the industry. It is however unclear the level of contents of industry 5.0 in the construction curriculums of HIEs in South Africa and those approved by their regulatory body. It is in this regard that the paper examines the level of Industry 5.0 contents in the construction curriculum of HEIs in South Africa and those recommended by their regulatory body.

DESIGN / METHODOLOGY / APPROACH

Using a qualitative approach, this paper examines the curricula of 8 programmes offered by the 4 HEIs accredited by the South African Council for Project and Construction Management (SACPCM) and the SACPCM core knowledge requirements for educational programmes. Content analysis was used to analyse the data.

FINDINGS

The results of the content analysis of the institutions curricula showed that there was no explicit mention of specific Industry 5.0 technologies and concepts in the curriculum documents from tmost of the selected HEIs in South Africa. However, curriculum documents from the HEIs in South Africa show some elements related to sustainability, particularly in the context of sustainable rural development, housing, and urbanization.

PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS

The low level of Industry 5.0 contents in the construction curricula of HEIs in South Africa might affect student industry readiness.

WHAT IS THE ORIGINAL / VALUE

The paper is the first to examine the level of Industry 5.0 contents in the construction curriculum of HEIs in an South Africa context.