Examining middle school students’ knowledge and beliefs about earthquake and tsunami

This study examined middle school students’ knowledge and beliefs about earthquake and tsunami through a multidimensional perspective of conceptual change theory. Four related constructs of conceptual change were examined including students’ science knowledge, preparedness knowledge, ontological beliefs, and epistemic beliefs. Students responded textually and graphically to prompts in workbooks and verbally in semi-structured interviews. Four prominent themes were identified in the students’ responses: (1) supergiant tsunami wave with near absolute and unavoidable catastrophic effects, (2) diminished effect of earthquakes as compared to tsunamis, (3) earthquakes and tsunamis could occur at any time in the area, and (4) strong intent to protect self and family from harm. Study results indicate that all four conceptual change constructs contributed to the students’ conceptions represented by these prominent themes. Students hold parallel ontologies of the nature of earthquake and tsunami geophysical phenomena and preparedness phenomena. Earthquakes and tsunamis are emotionally charged topics for students living in a region subject to a megathrust earthquake and resulting tsunami. Students seek information about these hazards, often through online sources which may foster naïve conceptions. Educational theory for earthquake and tsunami instruction can be further developed using the methods and initial results of this study to examine in greater detail the relationships between students’ geoscience and preparedness knowledge and their ontological and epistemic beliefs. Implications for instruction include formative assessment that makes visible students’ knowledge and beliefs in order to develop metacognition of their own conceptions and to inform subsequent instruction. Results indicate that geoscience instruction should be accompanied by instruction on preparedness actions that are locally relevant to students’ lives in order to reduce fear and anxiety and to develop students’ perceptions of themselves as active agents who can have a positive influence on the outcome of these events.