Enhancing role of elementary school in developing sustainable disaster preparedness: A review with some examples from disaster-prone areas of Merapi

Abstract

Emergencies of natural disasters often occur suddenly. In an effort to reduce disaster risk, good preparedness is needed, especially in the locations that become the center of activities, one of which is elementary school. The school is responsible for ensuring the safety of its citizens in disaster emergencies, especially elementary schools whose students are included in the vulnerable age group. On the other hand, schools as educational institutions should also be able to play a role in increasing students' knowledge and skills concerning disasters. Students are the fastest agents of knowledge transfer from school to their families and communities. Therefore, early child empowerment to understand disaster risk reduction is very important and useful. In disaster-prone areas of Merapi eruption, there are many elementary schools. With the potential for eruption hazards in the future, it is necessary to increase the role of elementary schools in building preparedness in facing disasters. The purpose of this paper is to identify how to improve the role of elementary schools in building disaster preparedness. Through a systematic literature review of 25 journals and books in range year 2006 to 2018, both in English and Indonesian added by a variety of data. This paper tries to present the existing role of primary schools and what efforts are made in enhancing the role. The review highlights some points to enhance the role of elementary school, namely: (1) school plays a very important role in providing understanding to children. (2) Disaster Risk Management Education and disaster preparedness in schools are very important aspects as part of the daily life of the school community. (3) Schools where most of their citizens are children are often seen as vulnerable people while they can actually play a role in disaster risk reduction. (4) Many elementary schools in the disaster-prone areas of Merapi have developed disaster preparedness schools. (5) The role of primary schools can be further enhanced by increasing the role of principals and teachers, implementing disaster education, empowering the role of schools in critical situations, mapping and determining the location of renewed evacuations.