Earthquake perception of social studies teachers in the specific case of the 6 February 2023 Kahramanmaraş earthquake

Natural disasters occur as a result of events that negatively affect the socio-economic and cultural activities of society, cause significant loss of life and property, and are largely or completely caused by natural factors. Natural disasters are classified into two groups according to their causes of occurrence, the environment in which they occur, and the speed of their occurrence. This study aimed to reveal the earthquake perception of social studies teachers in the context of the February 6, 2023 Kahramanmaraş Earthquake. The study was conducted in a qualitative phenomenological design. The study was conducted with 15 social studies teachers working in secondary schools affiliated with the Ministry of National Education in the Elbistan district of Kahramanmaraş Province. The principle of easy accessibility was taken into account in determining the study group. The answers obtained as a result of the interviews with the participants were evaluated with the content analysis technique. The vast majority of the participants equated the earthquake with negative emotions such as terrifying, fear, anxiety, worry, sadness, pain, tears, helplessness, feeling of loss, surprise, and panic. According to the results obtained from the participants' opinions, the February 6 earthquakes were caught unprepared. They stated that they realized this lack of preparation during the February 6 earthquakes and that there were many deficiencies. This result explains the reasons that turned the earthquake into a disaster. When the participant views on what to do during an earthquake were examined, three different categories were identified. The most striking of these were the emotions that dominated the moment of the earthquake. According to the participants, the categories of what to do after an earthquake were correct intervention and planning. The majority of the participant views explained the reasons for the earthquake with natural features. However, conceptual errors were also identified among the participant views. While some of the participants stated that the earthquakes experienced increased earthquake awareness, some stated that they did not make a positive contribution in terms of earthquake awareness and that the lack of social and individual awareness and insensitivity was still an important problem.