[M-ZZ45] Geoparks and Sustainability

[MZZ45-P11] Estimating the effect of geopark learning by questionnaire survey

*Yu Horiuchi¹ (1.Oita Himeshima Geopark Promotion Office)

Keywords:Oita Himeshima Geopark, Education of earth science, Science education, Regional learning

Elementary and junior high school students in Oita Himeshima Geopark have been learning about the regional geological heritages since 2012, the year before the area was certified as a member of Japanese Geoparks Network. Learning about the regional geological heritage helps students to be familiar with the earth, to have an interest in process of the earth, and to understand natural disasters. It is also expected to have an effect on cultivating people who will inherit the regional landscape and culture. In order to verify the effectiveness of the current educational activities, a questionnaire survey on the geology and topography of Himeshima was conducted among local junior high school students.
The survey was conducted with similar questions to compare with the results of a survey conducted among Himeshima Junior High School students in the 1980s (Nishimura, 1986). Comparing the results of the questionnaire survey with those from the 1980s (Nishimura, 1986), it can be seen that students now have a lot of knowledge about geology and topography, confirming that regional learning has a certain effect. It was found that while the students had a good understanding of volcanoes, they had little knowledge about faults and fossils, which may be a reflection of the lack of geosites with faults and fossils in the region. In the future, it is necessary to devise the content of educational activities so that students can learn a wide range of geological phenomena.