FEATURES OF TEACHING FIRE SAFETY TO SCHOOLCHILDREN
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.31110/2616-650X-vol14i7-008Keywords:
fire safety education, safety culture, Theory of Change, Child-Centered Disaster Risk Reduction concept, evaluation criteria, safety patrol, risk mappingAbstract
The traditional system of fire safety education in general secondary schools is often limited to a declarative study of rules, failing to ensure the formation of a sustainable safety culture. The absence of a separate school subject and the professional competence gap between schoolteachers and State Emergency Service rescuers necessitate the development of innovative methodological approaches to organizing preventive education. The article aims to theoretically substantiate and develop a logical framework model for modernizing school fire safety education based on the Theory of Change and the concept of Child-Centered Disaster Risk Reduction. The study substantiates a three-component structure of the model, which encompasses target, content, and procedural-activity blocks. The implementation of preventive education is differentiated into three age stages: primary school (sensory-motor level) aimed at forming primary self-preservation reflexes and action algorithms in case of a threat; basic secondary education (level of constructive co-participation) aimed at developing conscious responsibility for environmental fire safety and building teamwork skills; and high school (level of leadership and civil protection) aimed at fostering senior students as conscious subjects of civil protection and coordinators of safety processes within the educational institution. Furthermore, a didactic algorithm for conducting classes based on the "multiple messages – multiple methods" principle has been defined, which includes behavioral skills training: instruction, modeling, rehearsal, and feedback. For the first time, a comprehensive set of evaluation criteria for the effectiveness of fire safety education has been developed. It combines indicators of students' individual development (cognitive, behavioral, socio-communicative), institutional effectiveness of the school (advocacy and engagement outcomes), and real changes in safety culture (transfer of knowledge to the family). Descriptors for high, medium, and low levels of safety environment maturity are provided.
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