The Central Board of Secondary Education’s (CBSE’s) Disaster Management course aims to educate students about the concept of disasters, their causes, mitigation measures and awareness towards reducing the occurrence of disasters. Though Disaster Management has been a part of the CBSE curriculum since many years, according to CBSE, the need of the hour is to integrate the latest concept of Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) with different subjects in the curriculum.
DRR has gained prominence globally, and integrating it into the school curriculum will foster a greater understanding of the environment, risks involved with disasters, and the need for preparedness and resilience among students and teachers. The DRR course will focus on equipping students with the skills to develop emergency response plans, put together emergency supply kits, and conduct drills and simulations. As disasters have a strong impact on an individual’s emotions, the course will emphasize coping mechanisms and approaches to face adversities.
Another objective of this course is to encourage a sense of civic responsibility and inspire students to contribute to their communities’ disaster preparedness and response efforts. The course also aims to prepare young students to face life’s risks by training them to use their critical thinking and decision-making skills to avert disasters and understand the consequences of their actions. Additionally, the course is designed to ensure students are aware of environment-friendly measures that reduce vulnerability to hazards. An effective DRR is more about reducing the risk of a disaster than just about managing a disaster.
The purpose of integrating DRR with subjects in the school curriculum is to foster an inclusive approach. Here, the students will apply their understanding of the content and knowledge of the subject to help them develop necessary skills to manage disasters in their community. The activities integrated with the subjects will provide an opportunity for the students to think critically, work collaboratively and hone their communication skills. The DRR course aims to empower students with the knowledge, skills and attitudes essential for reducing the risks posed by disasters and contributing to building safer and more resilient communities.
CBSE has developed the Guidelines for Teachers on Disaster Risk Reduction in Schools. This is a step towards involving all teachers in the school, irrespective of the subjects they teach, in the urgent task of guiding their students to prevent disasters and protect them during emergencies. These guidelines identify class-wise and subject-wise topics in the NCERT textbooks prescribed for affiliated schools, which can be used by subject teachers to create awareness about Disaster Risk Reduction in their classrooms.
Activity based sample lesson plans covering 5 to 6 chapters from each of the 5 main subjects (English, Hindi, Math, Science and Social Science) of Classes VI to X has been created to link the lessons to Disaster Risk Reduction topics. Teachers may follow the suggested lesson plans or develop their own teaching-learning strategies suitable for their students. Classroom discussions on Disaster Risk Reduction should be conducted with a positive approach, helping students develop confidence to deal with such situations.
As per CBSE’s plan, every subject teacher should allot at least one period per class per month in her regular timetable to teach a lesson by relating it to a topic of Disaster Risk Reduction in school. Principals are requested to ensure its implementation in your respective schools
It is expected that if all teachers follow these guidelines on Disaster Risk Reduction in Schools, it will help students:
- Learn about Disaster Risk Reduction principles and actively participate in DRR practices taught in school and outside.
- Take note of disaster risks in their own locality and actively seek solutions to preventØ and reduce their impact.
- Prepare and implement the School Safety Plan by participating in mock drills andØ appropriate response strategies available in the school and community.
- Spread the knowledge on DRR acquired in school to their families and communities.Ø
CBSE has directed all schools to download the Guidelines for Teachers on Disaster Risk Reduction in Schools (Classes 6 to 10) available in the Board’s website and incorporate it in their regular classroom teaching and learning.
