Examining the earthquake perceptions of middle school students living in earthquake-prone areas in relation to various variables

This study, which examines the role of social studies classes in raising earthquake awareness among students living in earthquake-prone areas, covers 1,006 students attending imam hatip and other middle schools in the central districts of Şanlıurfa. The study aimed to determine the impact of social studies classes on disaster awareness among students, given Turkey's location in an active earthquake zone and the major disaster that occurred on February 6, 2023. The study examined different learning areas of the social studies curriculum within the scope of the Turkey Century Education Model and the 2018 Social Studies Teaching Program; it evaluated the extent to which students could relate the knowledge they acquired in these courses to their daily lives. The study focused on how earthquake awareness could be shaped by variables such as grade level, gender, socioeconomic status, parental education, and regional risk. The Earthquake Attitude Scale was used in the data collection process, and the study was supported by the Earthquake Knowledge Scale; the reliability coefficients of the scales were calculated as 0.85 and 0.78, respectively. Parametric tests were performed using t-tests and ANOVA, and the Scheffe test was used for the differences observed in the ANOVA. In line with the data obtained in the literature, it has been concluded that the knowledge levels of teachers and students, curriculum content, geographical and cultural factors, and application methods can have a direct impact on disaster awareness. As a result, it has been revealed that the impact of social studies courses on creating disaster awareness is limited. It was observed that students' level of internalization was low and their capacity to relate the information to daily life was weak. According to the research findings, having experienced an earthquake did not create a significant difference in students' knowledge and attitude scores. No statistically significant difference was found in earthquake scores for variables such as gender, grade level, economic status, regional risk, and drill participation. Only the parents' education level was found to have a significant effect on students' earthquake scores. Keywords: Social Studies, earthquake awareness, student attitudes, disaster education, curriculum, educational variables.