Browsing by Author "Marques, Ana Catarina"
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- Seismic risk perception in primary school education: a case studyPublication . Marques, Ana Catarina; Almeida, AntónioIn certain regions of the planet seismicity obeys the following pattern: medium to high seismic risk associated to major earthquakes with a long period of low seismicity. This is the case of Lisbon region where the last major earthquake was precisely the historic earthquake of Lisbon in 1755. Since these extreme episodes have a pattern of periodicity of more than 200 years, seismic prevention is often ignored in Portuguese schools, in detriment of other more frequent risks, such as fires, floods or landslides. Thus, a case study was developed in a Lisbon primary school with 25 pupils, aged between 7 and 9 years, attending the 3rd year of schooling. The aims were: i) to identify pupils' knowledge about seismic risk; ii) to check how children assess the degree of seismic risk in the Lisbon region; (iii) to develop a safety culture through the approach of prevention measures and ways of acting in event of earthquake. A questionnaire was administered with several questions about the seismic phenomenon, the degree of seismic risk in the Lisbon area and also about what to do before, during and after an earthquake. The questionnaire was scored as a test and administered in three stages: first an intervention plan with a set of sessions extended during one month related to the seismic phenomenon and including what to do in event of earthquake at school or at home (pre-test); after these sessions, at two different times: a week after the last session (post-test1); three months after this second administration (posttest2) to check learning persistence. The tests results were compared using the Wilcoxon (Z) test, between pre-test and post-test1 and pre-test and post-test2. The results showed a statistically significant improvement in pupils' knowledge of seismic phenomena, which persisted over time. Even so, the fact that in Lisbon several areas are more dangerous than others regarding seismic risk was not fully understood by the pupils, even after analysis of the geological map of the region. However, this may be related to the complexity of this approach, which may have led to several misunderstandings. It is considered that this educational experience may highlight the need for inclusion of seismic risk in schools, especially in areas where the seismic pattern is as the one that was characterized above.