Many schools sit in areas prone to earthquakes, floods or other hazards, and students and teachers often do not know what to do in an emergency. Educators want to know which ways of teaching disaster preparedness are in use, and which ones they could borrow.
The researchers reviewed 78 studies published between 2015 and 2023 that described how students in schools or universities were taught disaster risk reduction, meaning how to prevent, lessen and prepare for harm from disasters. The studies came from 21 countries, most of them from Indonesia (49), Japan (11) and Malaysia (5).
What the researchers found:
- Hands-on, experiential learning is the most common approach. In these lessons, students learn by doing, using their senses, emotions and actions as well as their thinking. Teachers also used problem-based learning, where students tackle real local problems. In one example, students used math to reason about volcanic eruptions and lava floods. Discovery learning, where students work out ideas for themselves, improved elementary school students' knowledge of disaster preparedness in one study of science lessons.
- Digital media is the most-used type of material. These include games, short videos and phone apps. Textbooks and learning modules come second. Some teachers used low-tech materials such as board games, flashcards and models.
- Schools run three kinds of programs. Some schools build disaster learning into the curriculum and school policy, for example through "safe school" programs covering safe buildings, school emergency plans and teaching. Others run simulations such as evacuation drills, followed by a review where students reflect and get feedback. A third approach is field trips to disaster museums or affected communities, or studying hazards around the school grounds. One example is a student earthquake safety club at secondary schools in Nepal.
- Local and traditional knowledge is rarely used. The review found only five examples. In one, a traditional song from Simeulue island in Indonesia, passed down since a tsunami in 1907, describes warning signs such as strong shaking and the sea suddenly drawing back. It was turned into a performance for high school students. Traditional children's games were adapted to teach elementary and middle school students about tsunamis and floods, including through a role-play drama. Traditional stilt houses in Lampung, Indonesia, which withstood an earthquake and tsunami, were used as a context for geography lessons.
- Disaster education focuses on a few hazards, subjects and grades. Most studies covered earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanoes and landslides, followed by floods, storms and drought. Disaster topics were most often taught in middle school science and in high school geography and physics, sometimes as a theme running across several subjects. Middle school had the most examples and university the fewest.
Most studies described approaches rather than measuring their results, and the review calls for more evaluation of what works.
What this means for your practice:
- Make it hands-on. Experiential, hands-on learning was the most common approach across the studies. Look for ways students can practice, build, simulate or explore rather than only listen.
- Debrief every drill. The review highlights the reflection stage after a simulation, when students talk through what they did and get feedback, as the point where the lessons sink in. Add a short debrief to drills you already run.
- Use games and digital tools, and low-tech ones too. Games, videos and apps were widely used, and board games and models also appeared. Low-tech options work well outdoors or where screens are not available.
- Draw on local memory. The five examples show that local songs, games and traditional buildings can carry safety messages. Ask whether your community has stories, songs or old practices tied to past floods, storms or fires that could become part of a lesson.
- Get outside the classroom. Field trips and surveys of the school grounds let students connect what they learn to real places. Even a short walk to spot hazards around your site follows this model.
- Give students a role. Student safety clubs were one school program the review found. The researchers also recommend student-led projects that involve parents and the wider community.
- Connect across subjects. Some schools taught disaster topics as a theme across subjects. The researchers recommend embedding them in science, geography and social studies, using examples of local hazards.
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The Bottom Line
The researchers reviewed 78 studies of disaster education in schools and universities, mostly from Indonesia, Japan and Malaysia. Disaster education is most often built into science and geography, mostly in middle school, and focuses on earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanoes and floods. Hands-on, experiential learning was the most common teaching approach, and digital games, videos and phone apps were the most common materials. Schools also used drills, field trips and student clubs. Local and traditional knowledge, such as songs and building styles passed down after past disasters, was rarely used, though a few examples show how it can work. For educators, the review offers a menu of approaches others have tried, and a reminder that practical experience and local stories can make disaster learning stick.