When the Past Teaches the Future: Earthquake and Tsunami Risk Reduction through Episodes of Situated Learning (ESL)
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1. Introduction
As Thucydides taught as early as the 5th century B.C., “One must know the past in order to understand the present and affect the future”. The “past teaches the future” concept stands at the basis of Uniformitarianism, formulated by the geologists James Hutton and Charles Lyell, who summarized their understandings with the well-known slogan, “the present is the key to the past”. More recently, Carl Sagan famously wrote, “You have to know the past to understand the present”. The past and the future are not very different, and this concept is even truer concerning natural hazards. Indeed, if an area has been affected in the past by significant natural events (earthquakes, tsunamis, floods), similar events will certainly occur again in the future, because every natural past event has causes that continue to work in the same way. Likewise, each past event has implications for future ones, and, when a disaster event takes place, society is deeply transformed. As such, for a better understanding of the future, we must study the past with a critical approach.
The designed educational activities described in this paper have two main aims: (1) to demonstrate that a careful study of past earthquakes and tsunamis, on the basis of modern concepts, can offer a present-day understanding in order to infer events that may happen in the future; (2) to trigger critical thinking, stimulating reflection and increasing preparedness in response to earthquakes and tsunamis and thus strengthening resilience [1].
According to the “Hyogo Framework for Action 2005–2015: Building the Resilience of Nations and Communities to Disasters, International Strategy for Disaster Reduction and to the Chart of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (2015–2030)”, particularly in relation to Priority 1 (Understanding Disaster Risk), we aimed to substantially reduce the disaster risk and loss of lives for a more resilient society (UNISDR, 2015; https://www.preventionweb.net/files/44983_sendaiframeworkchart.pdf, accessed on 12 December 2023). The INGV activity addressed to schools was focused on the prevention of future natural events, favoring the reduction of hazard exposure and the vulnerability to disaster.
Since the introduction of the Episodes of Situated Learning (ESL) method in Italy by Prof. Rivoltella [2,3], the INGV has applied it to its research topics, in order to involve students by using technology at school [4].
Following the ESL methodology, complex scientific concepts are “divided” into small pieces of fundamental knowledge that students can acquire in order to transfer key concepts to their peers. Students’ communication products, e.g., digital posters, are the creative results of their personal learning processes. ESL is structured in three phases: preparatory, operative and debriefing, and implementing the principles of flipped lessons [5]. Researchers are not mere “dispensers of knowledge”, but they are tutors in an assisted laboratory, acquiring significant observations and considerations through shared research and the reworking of learning by doing activities.
The need to design engaging and educational distance learning activities to support students and teachers during the COVID-19 pandemic led us to test the online use of this innovative digital teaching method, previously used only in person [6,7].
On the occasions of European Research Night 2020 and on both World Water and World Earth Day 2021, the distance lab activities “Earthquakes: history teaches us the future” and “Tsunamis: history teaches us the future” were performed by the INGV. The first ESL was tested within the NET Science Together project, and the second one was tested both within the European Interreg Italy–Croatia project called PMO-GATE and within the project Future Responsible Citizens (FCR)—Educational Paths of Civil and Environmental Responsibility, in collaboration with the Italian Associazione per lo Sviluppo Sostenibile e Centro di Educazione Ambientale (ASSOCEA Messina APS).
Approximately 2200 students from middle school third-year classes (13-year-old students) and from all classes of high school (14-to-18-year-old students) took part in our ESL experimentation. After the INGV researchers’ explanatory lesson on past earthquakes and tsunamis, students became “researchers for a day” and prepared, independently, 150 creative digital artifacts describing some of the most important historical events in their region. Researchers’ knowledge was at the service of the school, using a curiosity-driven approach in order to help homebound teachers and students during the pandemic. The activities were designed to increase the awareness of the risks related to earthquakes and tsunamis through the study of past events, bringing students closer to the world of research and encouraging them to independently develop content after a discussion with the experts. The main purpose was for them to understand how the past is an important key to reducing the impact of future events. At the end of this experiment, some students reported their experience in “Noi Magazine”, the insert in Gazzetta del Sud dedicated to education.
At the end of each scientific event, different satisfaction questionnaires were distributed to both teachers and students. The feedback was very useful in assessing the perceptions and appreciation of our educational learning activities, and they encouraged us in the design of new ESLs. In addition, every teacher, every student, and all classes were handed a certificate of participation for the event.
3. Results
In the context of fast socio-cultural transformation, teaching must adapt, embracing the new educational needs through new means of engagement and learning towards a positive outcome. This need was particularly evident during the COVID-19 pandemic, when it was necessary to combine the traditional in-person classroom method with e-learning [33]. Some activities that usually took place in the classroom were performed online by means of mobile systems (smartphones, tablets). Indeed, technology played a very important role, not only in supporting in-person lessons but also in favoring interaction remotely and in providing online resources [34]. In this particular historical period, it was necessary to explore new means of using digital teaching methodologies, such as ESL. This method, based on the flipped class model, has a teaching approach that focuses on emotional, cognitive, and behavioral components. The students autonomously acquire new information at home; then, with their teachers and schoolmates, they rework, share, and discuss their assignments [35]. Our experience in using the ESL method applied to geosciences at schools highlighted that this approach is an effective tool to enhance motivation and learning, developing positive emotions and favoring higher levels of self-efficacy [36,37]. This is an opportunity to train students’ skills in an active and participative environment. The low level of perceived anxiety in students also improves their learning [38]. Indeed, this method works in a real-life context, in which learning occurs in everyday situations and not only in dedicated teaching environments. The didactic becomes more experiential and reflective, providing meaningful learning. This context improves the teacher–student relationship and grants teachers the necessary conditions to achieve an effective and authentic assessment, observing students during all three phases of ESL [39].
To celebrate 10 years of the method, the Catholic University of Brescia organized the “ESL Day”, titled “Gli EAS tra didattica e pedagogia di scuola—10 anni di metodo” (“ESL between didactic and school pedagogy—10 years of the method”). On this occasion, we were invited by Prof. Rivoltella to present a lecture on our ESL experiments in the earth science disciplines, as we were pioneers in the application of the method in teaching geosciences and geophysics.
The sharing of the experiences of students from across Italy, during a period in which the entire population was homebound due to the COVID-19 pandemic, was the main strength of the activity.
Concerning “Earthquakes: history teaches us the future—researchers for a day with experimentation in didactics for ESL”, we collected many warm and enthusiastic comments of gratitude from the students as they felt part of a community, able to learn in an active and cooperative manner. Among the many testimonies of satisfaction, the most notable ones from high school students were as follows.
“An interesting and useful project on a subject about which people are often misinformed and underestimate the risks. It gave us the opportunity to learn how to reduce natural hazards”.
“We were able to learn new and interesting topics, and at the same time we learnt how to work together in the most effective and efficient way”.
“This activity allowed us to know earthquakes in a different way from the scholastic one, certainly more engaging, giving us a creative stimulus. I was fascinated to learn how a historical seismologist works”.
“This project was really interesting both because it was different from all the others, and because of its practical approach. We used new digital tools to manage earthquake data working in teams. It was fun and made the work less burdensome, even dealing with a very delicate subject. I hope to do similar activities soon”.
In addition, numerous appreciative e-mails were received from the teachers involved in the activity. Similarly, this positive trend was highlighted by the answers to the questionnaires distributed to the students and teachers after the learning activity.
Moreover, regarding “Tsunamis: history teaches us the future—researchers for a day with experimentation in didactics for ESL”, we collected many very appreciative posts from the participating schools and reports in Noi Magazine, a supplement of La Gazzetta del Sud dedicated to education. In the related TGweb, the students reported about their experiences like “little journalists”. The following are two of the most significant comments received from teachers:
“It was a stimulating and engaging initiative that let the students be protagonists and induced them to ask questions and look for answers, as researchers do”.
“A fruitful and exciting activity that puts students at the center of their learning process, making them the protagonists of their own education. An opportunity to experience a conscious and responsible use of new technologies”.
At the end of each ESL activity, a survey was conducted by providing a satisfaction questionnaire, which was different for teachers and students. The feedback was very useful in assessing the perceptions and appreciation of our educational proposal and they guided us in the design of new learning activities. The answers received, in fact, confirmed the appreciation and interest of both students and teachers. The following figures (Figure 4, Figure 5, Figure 6, Figure 7, Figure 8 and Figure 9) show the results of the satisfaction questionnaires administered.
Concerning the importance of the collaboration between schools and researchers, in general, the teachers answered the questionnaire with a higher degree of positivity than the students. The students seemed to be less impressed by the projects than the teachers, but if we combine the answers describing the initiatives as “very interesting” with those describing them as “interesting”, this accounts for 87 percent of the respondents. Nonetheless, twenty years of experience with this type of initiative in schools has shown that students generally do not enjoy completing satisfaction questionnaires at the end of an activity. In fact, much less feedback is typically collected compared to the number of participating students.
The ESLs tested during the COVID-19 pandemic allowed us to reach a very high number of students and teachers simultaneously connected on the internet, improving the interaction between schools and researchers during this difficult period. The encouraging feedback received on the satisfaction questionnaires from all participants proves the educational efficacy of the designed ESLs.
Within the framework of the 90th Congress of the Italian Geological Society “Geology Without Borders”, held online in September 2021, a talk titled “Experiments of e-learning: ESL (Episodes of Situated Learning) during the Pandemic” was presented. As a result of this presentation, the University of Pavia permitted us to experiment with didactics for ESL within the Path for Transversal Skills and Orientation (PTSO). The activity was conducted through distance learning during the first two phases, while the debriefing phase was held in person. The resulting blended (or hybrid) learning was an integrated teacher (in this case, researcher)/learner approach strategy in a combination of different learning environments [40].
Future developments include the design of new ESLs on scientific topics, both in the field of earth sciences and geophysics and in environmental issues, such as one realized by request for the Geothermix 2023 conference. This ESL dealt with geothermics in Italy and a ThingLink interactive map was presented within the keynote speech titled “Experiments in innovative Geosciences Education through Episodes of Situated Learning (EAS) as interactive teaching tools for modern School: the case of Geothermal and Geo-resources”, presented at the Geothermix 2023 conference held in Pisa in November 2023.
4. Discussion
An ESL is a “simplex” strategy, creating connections between real life and didactics, helping students to find simple tools to aid their learning and cope with complexity and to develop students’ skills by means of devices [41]. The term “simplexity” originates from the biological strategies through which living species adapt themselves to the surrounding complexity. The solutions to deal with different situations consider past experiences and anticipate future ones; these are new means of addressing problems so that actions may be taken quickly and efficiently [42]. The philosophy behind ESL is “say a lot in a few words and, if possible, make people think more than they say” [43], triggering a process to simplify various principles for a complex world.
According to Howard Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences [44,45], humans do not have only one intellectual capacity, but they have many types of intelligence that fulfill eight criteria: visual–spatial, linguistic–verbal, logical–mathematical, body–kinesthetic, musical, interpersonal, intrapersonal, and naturalistic. Many teachers use multiple intelligences in their teaching to integrate Gardner’s theory into the classroom. In relation to this, one of the strengths of the ESL method is the development of active learning in which students are free to express all their abilities [46]. Another of the most relevant benefits of the ESL method is that it allows the student to use his/her own intelligence with respect for all identities [47]. Each student might demonstrate specific strengths and abilities, so that, in a classroom, a wide range of different talents is available [48]. These are the reasons for which ESL is an appealing didactic method that could be performed worldwide to favor a modern school approach.
ESL is a methodology that is particularly suitable for the study of natural hazards in order to promote the spread of good practices, fostering the development of emotional intelligence, which is key to well-being, when the right and left parts of the brain are in equilibrium. Daniel Goleman describes emotional intelligence as an ability to understand and manage one’s own emotions and influence the emotions of others [49]. Examining the interpersonal and intrapersonal aspects, human intelligence is deeply linked to the social and affective dimensions of human life. ESL is a didactic methodology that is able to put into practice this creativity found between rational and emotional thinking. Thanks to this creativity, students can learn spontaneously in a friendly environment. The advantages of flipping are to promote peer interaction and collaboration skills, to make learning central rather than teaching, to foster independent learning, to encourage stronger student engagement, and to provide increased individualized attention [50].
The ESLs developed during online meetings with the INGV researchers (informal learning) focused on microlearning activities to achieve self-production, starting from real life (knowing the seismological setting of the student’s own area, which is a crucial factor in seismic hazard reduction). This is placed within the context of gathering together knowledge, skills, attitudes, and competences. Students learn more effectively if they start from situations of daily life or in their territory, in which they can focus their attention, acting based on microcontent and developing their thinking skills, problem solving, and reflective learning [51]. The situated education action as a minimum but significant unit is a clear example of how it is possible for teachers to work with ESL in the virtual classroom with students at home, connected by the internet and not only in person [52].
5. Conclusions
ESL proposes an innovative means of studying with the use of new technologies, as a new method of teaching and learning. Our experience with ESL with 13–18-year-old students shows that a good lesson plan for this method can foster the development of critical thinking. The activities are designed to support authentic language use and to develop a type of thinking that involves making fair, careful judgements and evaluations based on evidence, reason, reflection, and open-mindedness. In brief, ESL involves teaching learners to analyze complex settings [53]. Students have to understand the core problem and suggest solutions through the creative assembly of cultural objects [54]. In order to create a digital communication product for their peers, the students must acquire the ability to focus on the key concepts of the studied topic, reworking and understanding them in a more comprehensive manner. An example is the ESL named “Earthquakes: history teaches us the future: researchers for a day with experimentation in didactics for ESL”, in which the students discovered the differences between microseismology (analysis of seismic signals) and macroseismology (damage estimation). Under the guidance of the researchers, the students understood how multi-faceted seismologists’ work is: it can deal with different branches of seismology, studying the various aspects of earthquakes for a greater understanding of the Earth system as a whole. During the second phase of the ESL, to enrich the final macroseismic map with further information about the chosen earthquake, the students searched the internet and analyzed parts of original texts describing the earthquake’s effects, as well as images and historical maps. In this way, they were able to identify themselves in the work of the historical seismologist, performing an engaging educational activity.
The ESL model leads to higher levels of scholastic engagement in students and reduces their levels of perceived anxiety. Moreover, this method facilitates embedded assessment activities, thanks to assignments and exercises focused on a particular learning outcome. Indeed, the evaluation is formative: it is not only a score for the students’ final digital creative product, but it is the result of the teacher’s observation during all three ESL phases. The assessment encompasses the behavior of the student, who, independently and in groups, works on a project and then presents its product to others. The teacher can evaluate the student’s work, using an assessment rubric, designed as an ad hoc summary statement describing their competences and indicating the degree of achievement of the set objects. The synthetic outlines of the declination of competences grid provide a further detailed evaluative tool that forms an objective evaluation criterion, pointing out which parameters are to be considered in the evaluation. This type of evaluation allows teachers to identify students’ skills within a particular domain (e.g., social, academic), favoring future lesson plans to support each student’s progress [55]. Moreover, it enables them to discover whether the designed learning activity is effective. ESL needs a carefully designed lesson plan to create situated and meaningful learning experiences, leading students to realize digital artifacts and fostering the personal appropriation of content. The effort of finding suitable video stimuli and learning trigger activities requires a lot of time and sometimes discourages teachers, who have to search the internet to design creative activities through free apps, addressing students’ self-production activities [56]. Therefore, teachers particularly appreciate the availability of ready-to-use ESLs on topics of their interest to implement in their classes. In this case, the teachers do not need to have extensive knowledge of the method or particular expertise to apply it. They only have to follow the exercise step by step.
The ESL experiments of the series “History teaches us the future: researchers for a day with experimentation in didactics for ESL” are two examples of the digital teaching of geoscience, created to help students and teachers during the COVID-19 pandemic. They are perfectly aligned with the INGV’s mission to distribute geophysics research results. This activity is not merely dissemination and communication: it is education [57]. It is also a means to bring future responsible citizens closer to researchers’ work and to make students aware that public research is at the service of society. Researchers and schools can achieve a great deal together, focusing on protection, knowledge, and awareness of natural disaster prevention, and they can encourage good practices and safe and sustainable behavior [58,59,60]. This is a means to build resilience at school, involving students, teachers, school leaders, and families too, because children can be a valuable vehicle by which to increase awareness among adults [61].
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