Projection of Bosai Culture in Natural Disasters: The Case of the Turkish Republic of North Cyprus

Abstract

Since the existence of the world, several destructive disasters have been experienced that have shaped the earth and threatened the existence of mankind in this world. Events such as landslides, floods, earthquakes, avalanches, wars, industrial accidents and epidemics, which occur almost on a daily basis in different geographies, have caused a very high number of casualties and property losses. These destructive events are classified into two according to their sources, namely natural and human disasters. Natural disasters began to take place long before man existed on the planet and they will probably continue until the end of the world. Each natural disaster affects the lives of societies and people from physical, sociological and economic aspects. Disasters such as earthquakes, floods, hurricanes, storms, forest fires, volcanic eruptions and landslides are of natural origin and they cause loss of life or property. In addition, people also experience psychological and sociological devastation. Millions of people lost their lives and billions of dollars of economic losses occurred due to disasters in the last century. Therefore, the development level of countries plays a critical role in terms of their preparedness for disasters and their relationship with resilience. Earthquake is a natural disaster of high importance in terms of the area it affects and the destruction it causes. As in every sector of the countries exposed to earthquakes, deep wounds can be inflicted in their education system. Since living with an earthquake brings with it several problems and phenomena, the issue of education stands out as a concept that countries should take precautions and study. For example, its ability to adapt to and make investments in innovations, to pay attention to pre-disaster education, and to learn from past mistakes has raised Japan to the level of the country with the highest disaster preparedness in the world. At this point, with the correct methods it applies and the precautions it takes, Japan sets a good example for a country with a high earthquake risk, such as the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. Therefore, using a literature review, this paper focuses on the extent to which the reality of earthquakes is included in the secondary school geography curriculum of public schools in TRNC, which is located in the first-degree earthquake zone. According to the findings, Social Studies and Geography textbooks were examined at all levels, and only 6th grade Social Studies and 9th grade Geography textbooks found information about earthquakes. However, it has been observed that this information needs to be more extensive on earthquake preparation, earthquake time, and what to do after the earthquake, and no application is included. As a result, earthquake is a natural phenomenon, which is turned into disaster due to lack of education and knowledge. From this perspective, in order to prevent economic and human capital losses, the country’s population must be prepared at all levels of education for the steps to take before, during and after the earthquake.