Disaster Risk Reduction in School Curricula: Case Studies ... - Unicef

138
Section 10.
Case 17:
The Case Studies
Japan
Overview
Japan offers an example of DRR infusion
into formal school curricula through two
main avenues: existing school subjects
and ‘a period of integrated study’.
There are a number of boards of
education, schools, and individual
teachers who have taken advantage
of the latter avenue and have developed
teaching and learning support materials
and special programmes based on the
experiences of and lessons learnt from
recent natural disasters. The systematic
development and implementation of
DRR curricula in schools throughout
the country has yet to be realized.
Introduction
Japan is widely known as a proactive country when it comes
to dealing with natural hazards by advancing high technologies
and building infrastructures against earthquakes and tsunamis
as well as regularly conducting early warning and evacuation
drills at all levels of society, including schools, communities,
public and private organizations.
In Japan, school safety has been divided into three areas, i.e.,
general safety of students’ everyday lives (being safe from
various accidents and criminal activities), traffic safety, and
disaster risk reduction. To address the latter, disaster risk
reduction education is in place, together with disaster management
for school infrastructures, and school and community
support networks (Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports,
Science and Technology, MEXT, 2011a).
Curriculum Development/Integration
According to MEXT, DRR-related topics and themes appear
in a few subjects in both primary and secondary school
curricula. Examples at the primary level are: Social Studies
(locally specific disasters and accidents, grades 3-4; local
disaster response initiatives and mechanisms, grade 6);
Science (mechanisms of volcanic activities and earthquakes,
grade 6); Physical and Health Education (prevention of injuries
and first aid skills for minor injuries, grades 5-6). Examples
from the lower secondary level (with no specification of grade
level) include: Geography (geographic characteristics of the
country and natural disasters); Science (mechanisms of volcanic
activities and earthquakes; human and natural relationships
including natural disasters); Physical and Health Education
(causal effects of injuries; preventative behaviour and attitudes
towards injuries; first aid skills); Technologies and Home
Economics (safe and convenient home environments) 80 .
With regard to the ‘period of integrated study’ which was
established in the new curricula introduced in 2002 81 , each
school and teacher is encouraged to use this curriculum space
creatively by offering interdisciplinary and comprehensive
courses dealing with issues and topics which are the most
relevant to students in a particular locality. Popular topics
covered in this curriculum space include: international understanding
and environmental and welfare education, among
others. DRR topics are also addressed in some schools,
especially in those located in regions recently affected by
natural disasters or in high disaster risk areas. For example,
using 50 class periods per year during the period of integrated
study, one elementary school in Kochi prefecture addresses
DRR throughout the year using activities such as creating local
evacuation maps, organising puppet shows about on DRR for
younger children, conducting evacuation drills, and practicing
first aid skills 82 .
Pedagogy
The Cabinet Office supports the dissemination of good teaching
practices and useful tools for disaster risk reduction education
through a webpage devoted to this topic 83 . Good DRR lesson
examples can be found through this link. The teaching and
80
http://www.mext.go.jp/
81
At the primary level (grades from 3 to 6) 70 class periods are allocated per
year (45 minutes per class). At the secondary level, for grade 7, 50 classes,
for grade 8 and 9, 70 classes are allocated per year (50 minutes per class)
(http://www.mext.go.jp/).
82
This project was from 2003 to 2005. It is uncertain whether the school will
continue this project. http://www.bosai-study.net/houkoku/plan08/index.html
Disaster Risk Reduction in School Curricula: Case Studies from Thirty Countries