Sustainable Development – Learning Log: Natural Disasters
“A disaster is a sudden, calamitous event that seriously disrupts the functioning of a community or society and causes human, material, and economic or environmental losses that exceed the community’s or society’s ability to cope using its own resources.”
There are many types of natural disaster, some being; earthquakes, floods, volcanic eruptions and hurricanes. There are also composite hazards, for example an earthquake that in turn cause a tsunami or floods that cause public hygiene problems and leads to an epidemic of disease. These composite hazards seem to more likely to happen and can be very dangerous. “As the odds of any one event go up, the odds of two happening at the same time are more likely. We’ll see many more examples of cascading crises, where one event triggers another event, which triggers another event.” (Glasser, 2016) The result of two disasters happening back to back can be devastating and life threatening therefore risk assessment, preparation and response from local service, communities and the government are vital when a disaster strikes (Sustainable Development, 2018)
Before starting this theme, I always thought the subject of natural disasters were extremely interesting and was something that we were taught a lot about throughout school. However, during the micro-teaching task, as each group did a different natural disaster, we were given a better, in depth explanation of each disaster and their formations, impacts and case studies. In my opinion, case studies are the best way of relating a disaster to real life. For example, we looked at the Haiti Earthquake in 2010 and the Japan Earthquake in 2011. Both case studies included the cause, the impact and the response. This was very insightful and interesting to read as the facts in relation to fatalities, casualties and people who were missing. These provide extra information which could be a great resource for upper school children to give them a better insight into the disaster. Both the lecture and the micro-teaching task were very insightful and educational for the learning and teaching of this topic which will be helpful when teaching these sorts of subjects to classes in the future.
Throughout this topic, both generic skills and skills relating to primary teaching according the General Teaching Council Scotland (GTCS). For generic skills relating to this topic, being inquiring, research-minded and influential are important qualities to have developed. Being inquiring means finding out a lot more information about the subject which increases knowledge level of current events and it also shows an interest in learning new things which is always important. Being research-minded is another important skill to have. It allows you to find relevant information and understand the importance of research. Research is important when it comes to serious themes such as natural disasters. Furthermore, being influential when teaching a class is the best thing you can be. By teaching pupils in your class about topics such as natural disasters and showing the children the help that is needed after some disasters, you can influence to make their own change and help by doing charity work around the school, which will have stemmed from the research carried out in class and the children themselves being inquiring. These skills can be developed in any area of learning. Being inquiring in the subjects of science, art and physical education means the pupils is always interested in learning new skills and qualities which will aid them throughout their time in education. There will always be connections with other areas of the curriculum and these generic skills are they are fundamental to be a successful individual throughout their time in school. Regarding skills relating to primary teaching, the element of the standards says, “Communicate effectively, using a variety of media, to stimulate pupils and achieve the objectives of lessons.” (GTCS, 2006) This means that while teaching pupils about natural disasters, it is important to show videos of actual events, to make sure they know that these disasters happen and are not too far away from our own homes. Also, communication is key, however communication is fundamental in any area of learning. Through recent placement serial days, there has been good practise for communication with pupils and other member of staff which is always very important, and it is a key skill to have as a future teacher.
For resources for teaching, there are many that extremely useful. Firstly, case studies are very helpful in giving pupils ground information about actual events and supplies lots of interesting facts about the cause, impacts and response.
Above are the two case studies we worked on in class and would be a good starting point for teaching upper school classes. Secondly, my group’s disaster for the micro-teaching task was hurricanes and we found good, child-friendly videos that explains the formation of a hurricane for children. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J2__Bk4dVS0) Lastly, there are easy experiments to do with pupils to help show them the formation of hurricanes with water. This one involves two water bottles, some water and cello tape. This experiment is quick, easy and fun to do and show children. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bMoiPb3FtJs)
From an autobiographical perspective, this theme has always been an interesting one for me. From primary school age, I have always wanted to know how these disasters impact the earth and the people involved. Therefore, teaching this to children is exciting for me, as I know how much I enjoyed learning about this topic so would hopefully pass my enthusiasm onto the pupils I am teaching.
From a pupil’s perspective, the children may find looking at other parts of the world interesting, if they have never had the chance to see this side of the world. Seeing children being affected y these disasters may shock them, and it might seem unbelievable, it is important they are aware of this going on all over the world. This might encourage pupils to do their own bit for certain charities that help with the response to these events, for example, The Shoe Box Appeal does great work for children in deprived areas, especially those affected by serious disasters. (http://internationalaidtrust.org.uk/get-involved/shoebox-appeal/)
References
General Teaching Council Scotland (2006) Standard for Initial Teacher Education Accessed: 3rd November 2018 http://www.gtcs.org.uk/web/FILES/the-standards/the-standard-for-initial-teacher-education.pdf
Glasser, R (2016) World heading for catastrophe over natural disasters, The Guardian Accessed: 3rd November 2018 Available: https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2016/apr/24/world-heading-for-catastrophe-over-natural-disasters-risk-expert-warns
Shoe Box Appeal – International Aid Trust, Accessed: 3rd November 2018 Available: http://internationalaidtrust.org.uk/get-involved/shoebox-appeal/
Sustainable Development (2018) Natural Disasters [Module Resource] Accessed: 2nd November 2018
