1:45 PM - 3:15 PM
[O08-P22] Questionnaire results about earthquakes in our junior and senior high school for the purpose of disaster prevention
Keywords:Questionaire investigation for the earthquake, The question asking knowledge about tsunami, Daily preparation
We conducted a questionnaire to realize the current understanding of earthquakes and to consider the ideal physical and mental preparation and action in case of an earthquake. This questionnaire was created by 1st and 2nd year high school students as one part of the Active Learning Course, “Learn and Familiarize Earthquakes and Volcanoes”, in “Period for Inquiry-Based Cross-Disciplinary Study”. The questionnaire was sent to all of the students, teachers, and faculty in Sakae-Higashi Junior and Senior High Schools. It consisted of 15 questions asking about earthquakes and disaster prevention and past experiences of earthquakes like the 2011 off the Pacific coast of Tohoku Earthquake. It was conducted between December 21, 2021 and February 10, 2022. Finally, we got 1,023 answers.
We prepared the question “How high does a tsunami have to be to make standing difficult?” to ask about tsunami knowledge. When a tsunami with a height of 20 cm or more is expected, the Japan Meteorological Agency issues a tsunami advisory. Only 16% of the survey respondents answered values from 15 cm to 30 cm. On the other hand, 62% answered over 30 cm. Those who answered over 100 cm accounted for 8%. They may not start evacuation even if a tsunami advisory is issued with the information text “expected tsunami height is 1 m”.
When asked if they prepared more than just emergency food and, if so, what would do, 41% of the respondents answered they would take protective actions such as hiding under a desk first. We thought they were affected by evacuation drills at school and the teacher's instructions when an earthquake occurred.
When asked if they discussed what to do if an earthquake occurs at home with the people they live with and 42% of the respondents answered they did. When asked if they discussed their behavior on their way to or from school, the percentage of those who answered that they did dropped to 30%. It seems this is because the occurrence of earthquakes is becoming more commonplace and there are many opportunities to talk about it. It is difficult to think about the paralysis of public transportation on their way to or from school.
We thought of two attitudes toward earthquakes. First, we need to be able to act even when we are alone when an earthquake occurs. To do so, you should start with knowing where family emergency supplies are and how to use them. Also, you need to decide specifically with your family how to act if an earthquake occurs while you are on your way to or from school and the public transportation stops. That is because this is the most confusing situation since there is often no one to turn to at this time, and the locations vary. You should always decide where to meet and what to have.
Second, we thought it was ideal to connect our daily lives to disaster preparedness and to be unconsciously ready for disaster. Nowadays, few are surprised when we have earthquakes because they are used to them. So, if an earthquake is so big that public transportation and the water supply stop, they will panic. It has already been 11 years since the 2011 off the Pacific coast of Tohoku Earthquake. Many of those who are now elementary, junior high, and senior high school students don't remember or have not experienced a big earthquake. More and more people will be like that in the future. Therefore, even if they know there may be Tokyo inland earthquake or earthquakes which will stop public transportation or the water supply in the future, it is likely they can't imagine it. So, we thought it would be more effective if we could not only explain the dangers posed by earthquakes but also unconsciously incorporate disaster prevention measures into our daily lives. So we should actively buy food with a long shelf life, like half a year, one year, or three years, and eat it as daily food. There is such an opportunity during the disaster prevention period, but we should do it not only them but also in our daily lives.
We prepared the question “How high does a tsunami have to be to make standing difficult?” to ask about tsunami knowledge. When a tsunami with a height of 20 cm or more is expected, the Japan Meteorological Agency issues a tsunami advisory. Only 16% of the survey respondents answered values from 15 cm to 30 cm. On the other hand, 62% answered over 30 cm. Those who answered over 100 cm accounted for 8%. They may not start evacuation even if a tsunami advisory is issued with the information text “expected tsunami height is 1 m”.
When asked if they prepared more than just emergency food and, if so, what would do, 41% of the respondents answered they would take protective actions such as hiding under a desk first. We thought they were affected by evacuation drills at school and the teacher's instructions when an earthquake occurred.
When asked if they discussed what to do if an earthquake occurs at home with the people they live with and 42% of the respondents answered they did. When asked if they discussed their behavior on their way to or from school, the percentage of those who answered that they did dropped to 30%. It seems this is because the occurrence of earthquakes is becoming more commonplace and there are many opportunities to talk about it. It is difficult to think about the paralysis of public transportation on their way to or from school.
We thought of two attitudes toward earthquakes. First, we need to be able to act even when we are alone when an earthquake occurs. To do so, you should start with knowing where family emergency supplies are and how to use them. Also, you need to decide specifically with your family how to act if an earthquake occurs while you are on your way to or from school and the public transportation stops. That is because this is the most confusing situation since there is often no one to turn to at this time, and the locations vary. You should always decide where to meet and what to have.
Second, we thought it was ideal to connect our daily lives to disaster preparedness and to be unconsciously ready for disaster. Nowadays, few are surprised when we have earthquakes because they are used to them. So, if an earthquake is so big that public transportation and the water supply stop, they will panic. It has already been 11 years since the 2011 off the Pacific coast of Tohoku Earthquake. Many of those who are now elementary, junior high, and senior high school students don't remember or have not experienced a big earthquake. More and more people will be like that in the future. Therefore, even if they know there may be Tokyo inland earthquake or earthquakes which will stop public transportation or the water supply in the future, it is likely they can't imagine it. So, we thought it would be more effective if we could not only explain the dangers posed by earthquakes but also unconsciously incorporate disaster prevention measures into our daily lives. So we should actively buy food with a long shelf life, like half a year, one year, or three years, and eat it as daily food. There is such an opportunity during the disaster prevention period, but we should do it not only them but also in our daily lives.