Localized Practices on Disaster Preparedness of Selected Public Secondary Schools in Albay Division

Abstract

Disasters chronically disrupt education and have caused substantial financial losses, fatalities, and psychological consequences. This study described the localized practices on disaster preparedness of selected public secondary schools in Albay Division, particularly in planning, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation; the school’s profile in terms of geography; disaster risk with respect to hazard and vulnerability, damage to life and property of specific typhoon-associated disasters; the extent of disaster preparedness in terms of comprehensiveness and inclusiveness; and the problems and challenges faced by these schools and how these were addressed over the past five years. A Disaster Preparedness Operations Manual was also developed based on the experiences and practices of these schools. A case study research design was employed and conducted in four public secondary schools in Albay Division that are exposed to multiple typhoon-associated hazards. The 151 key informants were purposively selected and included key school role players, students, parents, barangay officials, DRRM project development officers, and vulnerable groups in the community including women, young children, persons with disabilities, elderly, and LGBTQ. Findings revealed variations in localized practices on disaster preparedness, geography, and disaster risk. Moreover, while fatalities were rare, both infrastructure and non-infrastructure damage were common in these schools. The study also found that the extent of disaster preparedness for typhoon-associated hazards in public secondary schools in Albay Division was between Limited to Moderate. This underscored the importance of investing more in disaster preparedness for prioritized hazards, guided significantly by local decision-makers and with substantial input from vulnerable members of the community.