Ministry of Education Outstanding Schools Promoting Disaster Resilient Campuses Group Visits Japan to Learn About Its Disaster Prevention Education
Five elementary schools in Taiwan—Wenshan Elementary School in Miaoli County; Shihu Elementary School Ruihu Branch in Shihu Township, Miaoli County; Quchi Elementary School in Xindian District, New Taipei City; Tongtou Elementary School in Zhushan Township, Nantou County; and Dashu Elementary School in Dashu District, Kaohsiung City—are Feature Campuses for the Ministry of Education's Disaster Risk Reduction Education and so a group of 35 teachers and students from these outstanding schools was organized to visit Japan in mid-April to learn about the promotion of disaster prevention education there, with the assistance of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Osaka.
The visiting delegation, led by Huang Chih-Chun, a senior official in the Miaoli County Government's Education Department, visited three benchmark schools in Japan: Wakayama Prefectural Kihoku Special Needs Education School, Hyogo Prefectural Maiko High School, and Wakayama City Saikazaki Elementary School, on April 15 and 16, 2025.
Lin Yu-Jou 林育柔, the Cultural and Educational Affairs Attaché at the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Osaka, assisted in the negotiations before the visit and accompanied the delegation on the exchanges with the Japanese schools throughout its visit. The visitors learned about Japan integrates disaster prevention education into the curriculum and implements it in different school settings. They were given briefings and participated in disaster prevention experience activities, such as disaster prevention sports games, evacuation drills, and eating emergency rations. Taiwan and Japan are both subject to earthquakes and typhoons, and the teachers and students from the schools in Taiwan and Japan shared details of their experiences of disasters, and their experiences and achievements in disaster prevention education, and ideas about promoting disaster prevention in schools.
The exchange visit had very substantial results. It helped to enhance the direction, methods, and depth of Taiwan’s disaster prevention education and it also expanded the range of practical interactions and friendly exchanges between Taiwan and Japan.