What natural disasters frequently occur in our region? Inquiry-based disaster education using Geospatial Web Services

Abstract

Integrating Geospatial Web Services (GWS) into disaster education enhances students’ ability to analyze spatial data, fostering a deeper understanding of disaster risks within their local contexts. This study first identifies core design principles for GWS-based inquiry and develops a five-phase Structured GWS-based inquiry model. Based on this model, a lesson plan for natural disaster education is designed, incorporating real-time geospatial data to support inquiry-based learning. The lesson plan follows five steps: (1) defining the inquiry, (2) identifying and evaluating GWS, (3) analyzing spatial patterns, (4) drawing conclusions from data-based evidence, and (5) applying findings to real-world disaster management. A small-scale teacher workshop was conducted to examine the model’s feasibility. Teachers reported that the integration of GWS supported student engagement and disaster-related analysis, while also noting challenges such as data complexity, digital accessibility, and the need for structured scaffolding. This study contributes to disaster education by presenting a structured instructional model that integrates geospatial technologies with inquiry-based learning, and demonstrates how it can be applied in real classroom settings.