TRANSFORMING INTO A KNOWLEDGE-BASED SOCIETY: EXAMINING THE ROLES OF HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS

More than ever, the Nigerian construction industry requires construction professionals who are responsive to economic, technical, social and environmental change and can fit into the world of work. Apart from possessing the requisite non-academic skills, construction graduates need to be abreast with the dynamics of the construction industry to contribute meaningfully to its activities. Thus, the roles of Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) have become more critical in skill creation and impartation as students of today are to be adequately prepared to take up industry responsibilities in various roles. In building a knowledge-based society, the level of construction pedagogy in HEIs is key in the economic development of any nation. This paper identifies the various roles HEIs play in improving the level of construction pedagogy delivered to future construction professionals. An extant review of literatures was conducted from databases such as Springer, Scopus, ASC conference proceedings amongst others. Findings from this study revealed that that government alone cannot provide the resources needed to provide qualitative higher education, and advocates for other sources of dealing with these challenges. Hence, the findings of this paper provide a basis for HEIs in Nigeria to get involved in improved teaching, training and research as these actions are key in contributing to the success of the construction industry as well as transforming Nigeria into a knowledge-based society.