I believe that there should be a disaster curriculum that can be included within lessons for children at all levels, whether primary, middle, or high school.
Surabaya, East Java (ANTARA) - The curriculums of schools, especially those located in disaster-prone regions, must cover disasters, Regional Representative Council (DPD) Speaker A. A. LaNyalla Mahmud Mattalitti has said.

"Students at schools should receive an education on disaster, and it is very necessary," he remarked here on Thursday.

According to Mattalitti, a disaster curriculum can become a foundation for children to protect themselves and help other people in case of disaster.

Moreover, the number of disasters in various regions, whether floods, earthquakes, landslides, volcanic eruptions, and fires, has risen in recent years, he said.

These various incidents should make the government realize the importance of providing disaster knowledge to children, starting from pre-disaster, emergency response, and post-disaster period, he added.

"I believe that there should be a disaster curriculum that can be included within lessons for children at all levels, whether primary, middle, or high school," he remarked.

"Because, thus far, there have been many victims as a result of lack of knowledge in encountering disaster," he said.

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Women and children are vulnerable groups who become victims when a disaster occurs, Mattalitti added.

"Which is why there should be a systematic effort so that someone has the knowledge and capability to act quickly and accurately before, during, and after a disaster," he said.

Disaster education should be initiated at an early age and should be long term because that will build knowledge that can be applied until adulthood, he remarked.

"Later, this disaster knowledge will be transferred to families, which can maximize the family and the public's resilience in encountering a disaster," the speaker explained.

"Then, by having readiness when disaster strikes, it can minimize casualties, service disruption, and damages," he added.

To prepare for an accurate disaster curriculum, synergy between the Education Office, Social Office, and Regional Disaster Mitigation Agency is necessary, he said.

In addition, regional heads are expected to support this as a precautionary measure for disaster handling, he added.

Schools can also involve nature-loving university students and trained experts to serve as teachers, he advised.

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Translator: Fiqih Arfani, Fadhli Ruhman
Editor: Suharto
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