Teachers-parents cooperation in disaster preparation when schools become as evacuation centers

Various initiatives have been taken for disaster preparedness since the Great East Japan Earthquake. Disaster education and management at schools have been strengthened. Collaboration among parents, teachers, and students is considered essential to ensure the school safety and providing routine education to the children. However, as per our knowledge, teachers were not able to dedicate their efforts to continue regular education as they involved in post disaster management when schools were using as shelter centers. This study aims to clarify the importance of collaboration among parents and teachers, disaster preparation, and proper responses following a disaster. A cross-sectional design was used. A survey was conducted in Hiroshima, Japan in 2018. Questionnaires were distributed to 2481 households and 255 teachers; responses were received from 1557 (response rate, 62.8%) and 145 (56.9%), respectively. Perceptions of parents and teachers were compared and found their planning on the determination of children safety were 21.5% and 38.2%, respectively (p < 0.001). The results showed that parents and teachers at schools their children attended differed in their preparation, knowledge, and concerns about disasters. The level of disaster preparation was related to whether the respondent was a teacher and had experienced a disaster. Although few parents had thought about disaster preparation or knowledge, and many had anxieties when they had not disaster experiences. In order to avoid confusion and academic disruptions when a school is used as an evacuation center, it is important to develop the correspondence between parents and teachers at the normal time.