Introductory Disaster Training for Aspiring Teachers: A Pilot Study

Abstract

Schools may serve as shelters after a disaster in many countries, including Japan. However, teachers are unaware of the need to balance education and shelter management responsibilities under such circumstances. To promote teachers’ awareness of the post-disaster school situation, this study developed an introductory training for aspiring teachers and investigated its effectiveness. A total of 143 students aspiring to become teachers participated in this simulative training and answered pre- and post-intervention questionnaires. The participants’ vocabulary and word usage were also evaluated. The mean participant scores for the cognitive, affective, and psychomotor domains increased significantly after the training compared with the pre-training scores. The training was also associated with the aggregation of word usage, which may facilitate communication with representatives of multiple occupations. The findings indicate that a developed training may help aspiring teachers better understand their responsibilities after a disaster and prepare them for such situations.

1. Introduction

In several countries, including Japan, schools may be used as shelters during natural disasters [1,2]. Therefore, in disaster situations, teachers not only provide education but also manage shelters [3]. Teachers may carry the main responsibility for shelter operations because of disruptions in shelter management. For example, teachers may have to decide where the school residents should be evacuated.

After a disaster, teachers experience difficulties in caring for their students, as documented by a principal of a school at the time of a disaster [4]. However, the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology of Japan (MEXT) “cooperates in the management” of teachers’ roles. Teachers who have not experienced a disaster, such as the principal who created the above document, are aware of the instructions of the MEXT [5]. In addition, differences have been reported in the ways in which teachers and parents perceive disaster response [6]. To enable teachers to resume their teaching duties, cooperative measures should be taken by students, teachers, parents, and residents to establish an early warning system for the entire school [7].

Research has shown that only a few teachers have experienced disasters [7,8]. Preparatory behavior is related to the experience of disasters [9]; therefore, teachers may also encounter problems in managing a shelter. Furthermore, The Sendai Disaster Prevention Framework (2015–2030), established at the 3rd United Nations World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction, promotes efforts such as understanding disaster risks, disaster prevention education, evacuation drills, strengthening disaster preparedness for an effective response, and promoting reconstruction efforts [10].

Evacuation trainings are also being conducted at schools in other countries that have been exposed to natural disasters, such as earthquakes [11,12,13,14,15]. However, fewer teachers have been trained on disaster-related themes and topics [16,17]. Training on evacuation procedures is provided for children by teachers, but teachers are not trained to work with residents after disasters [18]. Teacher education regarding disaster preparedness should be emphasized [19]. In-service training, promotion of disaster awareness, and the use of interactive educational approaches have been highlighted as important aspects of teacher education [17,20].

Trying to balance teaching responsibilities and shelter management may cause teacher burnout [21]. Protecting the mental health of teachers is also an important way to protect their students. There is a strong need for aspiring teachers to learn what happens immediately after a disaster and to gain insight into teachers’ role under such circumstances. School safety-related subjects used to be compulsory only for physical education teachers and school health teachers. However, since 2019, they have become compulsory subjects for all teachers. The MEXT has strongly emphasized the need for these subjects [22]. However, training has only recently begun, and the educational content has not yet been decided. Nevertheless, students were highly interested in learning about disaster preparedness [23]. There is an urgent need to develop a teaching plan for students, particularly for students who are aspiring to become teachers. A beginner-level training plan is needed in order to promote teachers’ awareness regarding the post-disaster school situation. The current study aimed to develop a beginner-level training for students who are aspiring to become teachers and to clarify its short-term effects.

2. Materials and Methods

2.1. Study Design and Recruitment

The study included 143 students who provided informed consent to participate in the study. The design was longitudinal, including assessments before and after the training. The training plan for teacher development was implemented as part of a university program aimed at aspiring teachers. The recruited students were enrolled in university courses to become schoolteachers in Japan and were at least 21 years old. In Japan, depending on their field of expertise, students can become teachers even if they are not enrolled in a faculty of education. However, aspiring teachers must attend a practical training and complete the mandatory practice of teaching activities for 6 weeks.

Preparation education for disaster prevention is implemented as a part of the practical training to become a teacher. A record of students who agreed to the evaluation of the disaster preparation training was provided. All students who participated in the practical training took the course included in this study.

2.2. Overview of the Educational Programs and Training Goals

The training program was implemented in November 2019. The content was structured as a first study level training that aims to prepare teachers to manage a school as a shelter and to initiate conversations with neighboring residents about evacuation shelters after the occurrence of disasters. The program consisted of a case study, lectures, and student self-assessments.

The training goal was to make students understand the role of human and environmental safety and the health activities of schoolteachers in disaster situations and to comprehend the idea of minimizing educational delays while considering the functional balance between evacuation life and school education.

Students contemplated about the information that they needed to communicate with the residents in the event of a disaster and how to do it. The goal of the first study level was to learn about possible events at an evacuation center and to think about communicating with residents by recalling the situation at the school where they work after the disaster. The goal was the same as that of a previously conducted teacher training [8]. Moreover, the study aimed to stimulate learning in the cognitive, affective, and psychomotor domains on the basis of Bloom’s taxonomy [24]. The cognitive domain involves “understanding the problems that occur during an evacuation”. The affective domain entails “having an interest in responding to evacuees”. The psychomotor domain involves “the ability to respond to evacuees”. Five statements each were used to address the cognitive (C1–C5), affective (A1–A5), and psychomotor (P1–P5) domains. According to Bloom’s taxonomy, the cognitive domain is an area of knowledge and understanding. Words relevant for the cognitive domain are indicated as definitions, descriptions, or the use of words. The affective domain presents as autonomy, motivation, and commitment. The psychomotor domain expresses actions, information gathering, and reactions. In this study, we examined students’ directivity to the necessary abilities, because it is difficult to observe an actual behavior.

2.3. A simulated Situation

Students were asked to put together ideas to respond to a simulated situation. The simulated situation is described below:

I became a teacher at a junior high school in April. I live 10 min away by car. I was in the gym to lead the basketball club morning training from 7:00 a.m. At 6:45 a.m., I felt a violent shudder. The lights in the gymnasium went out, and I moved to the staff room. Three teachers in their 20s were at work. The principal had not come to work, yet. “The seismic intensity is seven; it will be a very serious issue”, said three people. I heard a loud voice, and approximately 10 people who I believed to be residents of the neighborhood were shouting, “Open the school gate”. Five or six basketball club students went to the school through the back gate and entered the staff room. How would you respond?

2.4. Evaluation of the Training Programs

Pre- and post-intervention assessments were performed on the students’ understanding of the problems faced during an evacuation (cognitive), interest in responding to evacuees (affective), and ability to respond to evacuees (psychomotor). Each domain had five sub-goals: C1 to C5, A1 to A5, and P1 to P5 for the cognitive, affective, and psychomotor domains, respectively. The results were recorded on a scale of one (not at all) to five (very applicable). Students who agreed to participate in the survey were asked to complete the assessment worksheets after completing the training. Figure 1 shows the flow of the study.

2.5. Statistical Analysis

The analysis compared the scores before and after training. Incomplete records were excluded from the analysis. The Wilcoxon signed-rank test was used for statistical analysis. The significance level was set at p < 0.05. From the students’ reports, the types of words used were assessed, and the number of issues related to the goal were counted. The number of words in each worksheet and their frequency of use were analyzed [25].

3. Results

3.1. Characteristics of the Study Participants

The participants included 82 male students and 61 female students. The majority of the students (75.5%) studied at the faculty of education. The students were affiliated with a number of different teaching subjects, including science, society, and the Japanese language (

Table 1. Demographic characteristics of the study participants.

Demographic Information	Item	Frequency	Percentage
Gender	Male	82	57.3
	Female	61	42.7
Affiliation	Faculty of education	108	75.5
	Faculty of letters	13	9.1
	Faculty of science	19	13.3
	Graduate school	3	2.1
Affiliation with a teaching subject	Japanese language	23	16.1
	Mathematics	16	11.2
	English	15	10.5
	Science	30	21.0
	Society	24	16.7
	Music	7	4.9
	Art	5	3.5
	Physical education	12	8.4
	Home economics	5	3.5
	Technology	6	4.2

).

3.2. Participants’ Experience with Disaster Situations

The vast majority of participants (98.6%) had not participated in another disaster training program. They had also not voluntarily participated in disaster prevention drills (78.3%) and had no experience as disaster volunteers (74.1%). Most students had not been affected by a natural disaster or been evacuated to a shelter (81.1%).

Approximately half (49.7%) of the participants had attended lectures on school safety and disaster prevention. The majority of the students (66.4%) did not know about the “school disaster prevention manual” (

Table 2. Participants’ experience with disaster situations.

Experience with Disaster	Yes	%	No	%
Have you ever participated in a disaster educational training other than this training?	2	1.4	141	98.6
Have you voluntarily participated in disaster prevention drills and disaster prevention accommodation drills?	31	21.7	112	78.3
Have you ever been a disaster volunteer?	37	25.9	106	74.1
Have you ever belonged to a circle of disaster volunteers?	5	3.5	138	96.5
Have you ever been hit by a natural disaster, such as an earthquake, or evacuated to a shelter?	27	18.9	116	81.1
Have you ever taken any lectures on school safety and disaster prevention?	71	49.7	72	50.3
	I didn’t know about the “school disaster prevention manual”	%	I’ve seen it	%	I’ve read it	%
Have you ever seen something similar to the school disaster prevention manual?	95	66.4	46	32.2	2	1.4

).

3.3. Attainment of Knowledge in the Cognitive, Affective, and Psychomotor Domains

Table 3. Level of knowledge attainment in the three domain goals before and after the class.

Learning Domain	Items	N	Before	After	Z	Significance
			Mean Rank	Mean Rank
Cognitive	C1. As a teacher, having a clear understanding of school health and safety actions that need to be taken following a disaster is important.	143	44.10	59.67	−9.051	p < 0.001
	C2. As a teacher, having a clear understanding of risk communication following a disaster is important.	143	30.50	53.38	−8.705	p < 0.001
	C3. Being able to concretely visualize the circumstances of a school acting as an evacuation center is important.	143	53.36	54.63	−7.503	p < 0.001
	C4. Being able to imagine specific problems that may occur when a school operates as an evacuation center is important.	143	37.27	52.68	−7.613	p < 0.001
	C5. To operate an evacuation center, being able to understand clearly how to work with residents is essential.	143	38.92	49.66	−3.69	p < 0.001
	Total level of attainment (maximum score: 25)	143	39.88	69.25	−9.352	p < 0.001
Affective	A1. As a teacher, being concerned with school health and safety issues following a disaster is important.	143	38.13	39.85	−5.004	p < 0.001
	A2. As a teacher, taking an initiative in risk communication following a disaster is important.	143	31.87	42.58	−5.029	p < 0.001
	A3. Thinking about the role of a teacher in an evacuation shelter is important.	143	56.00	60.62	−9.235	p < 0.001
	A4. As a teacher, having an interest in how to respond to evacuees is important.	143	37.97	45.68	−5.238	p < 0.001
	A5. Thinking of ways to work with residents during normal times is important.	143	36.46	56.76	−7.831	p < 0.001
	Total level of attainment (maximum score: 25)	143	38.81	67.77	−9.234	p < 0.001
Psychomotor	P1. As a teacher, the ability to think about school health and safety problems after a disaster is important.	143	50.83	59.96	−8.844	p < 0.001
	P2. As a teacher, the ability to think of how to use risk communication following a disaster is important.	143	50.00	54.24	−8.322	p < 0.001
	P3. The ability to think about ways to fulfill the role of a teacher at an evacuation center is necessary.	143	37.06	60.30	−8.663	p < 0.001
	P4. The ability to think concretely about the initial response when residents evacuate to a school is necessary.	143	46.33	58.64	−8.723	p < 0.001
	P5. The ability to think about specific ways to work with residents during normal times is necessary.	143	39.86	52.36	−7.481	p < 0.001
	Total level of attainment (maximum score: 25).	143	39.71	71.09	−9.615	p < 0.001

shows the Wilcoxon signed-rank test results for the training goals in the cognitive, affective, and psychomotor domains.

Cognitive domain-related items: The results of the post-intervention evaluation indicated an increase in trainees’ understanding of the problems that occur during an evacuation (cognitive domain) (average rank of 39.88 before the training vs. 69.25 after the training). There was also an increase in all cognitive scale items before and after the training. Overall, the findings demonstrated a significant difference between both overall measurements for the cognitive domain and all questions within the cognitive domain (p < 0.001; Figure 2).

Affective domain-related items: The trainees’ interest in responding to evacuees (affective domain) increased (average rank of 38.81 before the training vs. 67.77 after the training). There was also an increase in all items within the affective domain during the training. The observed difference between both measurements was significant for the affective domain as a whole and for all questions within the affective domain (p < 0.001; Figure 3).

Psychomotor domain-related items: There was an increase in the trainees’ ability to respond to evacuees after the training (average rank of 39.71 before the training vs. 71.09 after the training). Furthermore, there was an increase in the ranking of all items within the psychomotor domain during the training. The observed difference was significant for both measurements (p < 0.001; Figure 4).

Therefore, the training had a significant effect on aspiring teachers’ understanding of problems during an evacuation (cognitive domain), their interest in responding to evacuees (affective domain), and their ability to respond to evacuees (psychomotor domain).

3.4. Vocabulary and Number of Words

Students were instructed to list three roles for teachers in schools after a disaster. The pre-test assessment included 1244 words and 275 types of words. The post-test assessment included 1227 words and 170 types of words. Before the training, there was a large variability in the sentences created by individuals, and many types of words were used. The use of common words increased after the training. Furthermore, the use of the terms “number of shelters” and “local residents” increased after the training, and the words “operation” and “resumption” emerged.

Table 4. Words used at least 20 times to describe the three roles of a teacher in a school after a disaster.

Before the Training		After the Training
Words	Number of occurrences	Words	Number of occurrences
pupil	122	pupil	125
confirmation	89	confirmation	88
		shelter	88
		local residents	65
		ensuring safety	61
		safe	60
shelter	48	confirmation of life	50
safe	48
confirmation of life	43
school	41	management	42
		educate	40
juvenile	37
community	37	cooperation	33
refuge	32	refuge	32
cooperation	31	school	32
		cooperation	28
		resumption	26
		ensure	24
		correspondence	24
ensure	21	early	23
contact	21
ensuring safety	20

Note: Gray highlighting indicates a change in the order of the same word.

presents the list of words that were used at least 20 times.

Table 5. Words used at least 10 times to describe the three domains of responses to evacuees at the evacuation shelters after a disaster.

Before the Training		After the Training
Words	Number of occurrences	Words	Number of occurrences
		safety	52
		ensure	46
		refuge	43
privacy	34	privacy	30
refuge	26	shelter	26
		cooperation	26
consideration	24	confirmation	26
		ensuring safety	20
		education	20
correspondence	19
ensure	14	correspondence	15
health	14
safety	13	material	13
management	13
livelihood	13
equality	12	consideration	12
confirmation	12	information	12
		school	12
		hygiene	11
		early stage	11
		operation	11
hygiene	10
material	10
anxiety	10

Note: Gray highlighting indicates a change in the order of the same word.

presents the words that were used at least 10 times to describe the response to evacuees at the evacuation shelters.

Additionally, the participants were instructed to construct three bullet points to consider when responding to evacuees at the evacuation shelters. The pre-test included 796 words and 327 types of words. The post-test included 917 words and 263 types of words. Overall, the word types decreased, and the word count and sentences increased, thus indicating that the words were aggregated.

4. Discussion

Providing appropriate disaster preparedness training to teachers is crucial to ensure that they can balance their responsibilities during a disaster and to protect the mental health of both the teachers and students [24]. The significant role of disaster preparedness training in disaster management has been previously emphasized [19]. Moreover, clear communication and information are critical for preparing the population for possible disasters [26,27]. Risk communication interventions may improve the knowledge and behavior related to disasters [28]. By contrast, poor communication and lack of crisis awareness may lead to serious lapses in crisis communication and cause public distrust [29]. Teachers played an important role in managing school shelters while continuing their educational commitments. However, they were confused with regards to their obligations and their responsibilities after a disaster [4]. In particular, disaster awareness has been emphasized as an important aspect of teacher education [20,30,31]. An optimal disaster preparedness training as a measure that resolves the confusion of teachers has not been identified. Teachers are treated as supporters [32]. We developed a beginner-level training for aspiring teachers and validated its effectiveness in helping teachers balance their responsibilities after a disaster. Our study made clear that an introductory training program on disaster preparedness for students aspiring to become teachers was effective in improving knowledge in the cognitive, affective, and psychomotor domains and with changes in word use.

Many of the targeted students had not previously experienced a disaster, which is in agreement with a previous study demonstrating that 13.9% of a sample of American children aged 2–17 years have been exposed to a disaster [33]. Disaster experiences can improve disaster preparedness, particularly for those who perceive the severity of the hazard [34]. Additionally, disaster experiences can help people recognize the possible calamity resulting from a disaster and identify strategies to recover from it [35]. In the current study, an introductory training enhanced the disaster preparedness-related knowledge of aspiring teachers in the cognitive, affective, and psychomotor domains. The score change demonstrated that students understood what would happen after a disaster. In addition, they were interested not only in the children they were in charge of but also in the evacuees. They could confirm their ability to take concrete actions. The assessment items had been verified in a previous disaster training for teachers [8]. The changes in students’ self-assessments suggest high validity for this training. However, even though a strong effect may have been observed in our target students, the reliability should be verified using training results of students from other universities.

This investigation also observed changes in word usage during the course of the training. The number of words indicates one’s level of knowledge and recognition [25]. After training, the number of sentences increased, and perception changed. Prior to the training, various words were used to describe the teacher’s role; however, the words were aggregated after the training. In addition to confirming the children’s and students’ survival, the role of word usage was recognized. Aggregation of words is one of the approaches to prevent communication discrepancies and prevent a serious crisis with evacuees due to distrust. Clearer conversations with several occupations would be enabled by the usage of the same words. Clear conversations with other occupations have the potential to enable collaboration and reduce the burden on teachers [36]. The teachers’ role in light of the school’s situation after a disaster occurs was described by students. The goal of understanding what could happen in a school after a natural disaster was achieved. The number of descriptions of “responses to evacuees” increased after the training. However, it was lower than the number of explanations of the teachers’ role. After the training, there was no significant change in the words’ ranking. The question sentence about the responses at the shelter did not include the phrase “as a teacher”. It was suggested that the students did not consider teachers responsible for their activities at the evacuation center. Students can be very responsive to the phrase "as a teacher." The findings indicate that students who wished to become teachers were sensitive to their duties. Presumably, they did not have specific guidance with regards to their behavior as teachers at evacuation centers. Defining teachers’ roles specifically increases the likelihood that teachers will be able to respond appropriately. The beginner-level program allowed them to explain the role of teachers after a disaster. The program developed by our team is short. By focusing their attention on a training program even for a short time and clarifying their motivation [37], individuals can still gain numerous benefits [38,39]. Moreover, a short-term training can be incorporated within the duration of practical teachers’ training with minor impact on the training. The program developed in the current study will help students aspiring to become teachers take the next step to understanding the role of teachers in shelters.

The current study has several limitations. The participants were university students in Japan who were only aspiring to become teachers. Therefore, the learning effect may be high. The evaluation of the program employed in this study concerned the data available immediately after the program’s end; however, the learning effect should be verified after three months and 12 months and should be evaluated continuously. The participants should be followed-up after becoming teachers to determine the long-term effects of the program.

5. Conclusions

The current study provides insights into the effects of an introductory training that was conducted for approximately 90 min on students who wish to become teachers. The training enabled students to gain insights into what would happen after a disaster, including how residents would come to the school. Students were able to recognize teachers’ role and to confirm the required abilities. It was suggested that students were sensitive to the profession and clarifying the role of teachers in shelters could help teachers maintain mental health. The training duration was one Japanese university class. Completing this short workshop would also enable more advanced training. Thus, it is possible to actively incorporate the workshop into teacher education without affecting its duration.