In recent years, natural disasters such as earthquakes, heat waves, and floods have increasingly disrupted communities worldwide, resulting in significant loss of life, widespread destruction, and enduring socioeconomic impacts. For instance, in 2017, a 7.1 magnitude earthquake struck Mexico City, claiming 326 lives, 187 of whom were in the city itself (UNDRR, 2024). Similarly, during July 2022, a series of heat waves in Portugal led to approximately 2,400 fatalities and triggered widespread forest fires (UNDRR, 2024). More recently, on 29 October 2024, extreme weather events and subsequent flooding in Spain’s eastern Iberian Peninsula caused 223 deaths (Lekkas et al., 2024). In Turkey, the earthquakes of 7.7 and 7.6 magnitude in Kahramanmaraş on 6 February 2023, followed by a 6.4 magnitude earthquake in Hatay on 20 February 2023, caused over 48,000 fatalities, severely damaged more than half a million buildings, and affected 11 provinces profoundly (T.C. Cumhurbaşkanlığı Strateji ve Bütçe Başkanlığı, 2023). These examples underscore the necessity for robust disaster preparedness at all levels, as such events severely disrupt daily life, cause substantial property loss, and strain local capacities.

Disasters, whether stemming from natural phenomena like floods and avalanches or geophysical events like earthquakes and tsunamis, are inherently unpreventable but require proactive preparation. This preparation must encompass diverse domains, including family, education, workplaces, and public institutions. The rising global frequency and intensity of disasters—now occurring at rates four times higher than two decades ago (Das, 2011)—highlight the increasing urgency for disaster readiness. Studies emphasize that fostering disaster awareness from an early age significantly contributes to creating resilient societies (Mutch, 2014). For individuals, disaster preparedness involves the capacity to comprehend, evaluate, and apply relevant information for effective decision-making and action during the phases of mitigation, preparation, response, and recovery (Brown et al., 2014).

This concept, referred to as disaster literacy, represents the ability to access, understand, and utilize disaster-related information to make informed decisions that safeguard or enhance quality of life throughout an individual’s lifetime (Çalışkan & Ünal, 2021). Teachers, as pivotal societal figures, play a crucial role in fostering disaster literacy. By equipping themselves with disaster knowledge and skills, they can raise awareness not only among their students but also within their broader communities, thereby enhancing collective resilience to disasters (Çalışkan & Ünal, 2021; Erdoğan & Kaya, 2024; Zhang et al., 2021). Disaster education introduced at the preschool level and reinforced through primary and secondary education allows teachers to integrate disaster literacy with other disciplines, thereby strengthening the interdisciplinary framework of disaster education (Birinci-Konur et al., 2023; Şeyihoğlu et al., 2021; Şeyihoğlu et al., 2024).

This study introduces a novel approach to disaster education through the development of an "Interdisciplinary Disaster Teaching Cycle," a hands-on, activity-based framework derived from the disaster management cycle proposed by Le Cozannet et al. (2020). The cycle encompasses the phases of prevention, preparation, response, and recovery, aiming to enhance teachers’ disaster literacy and their ability to deliver effective, interdisciplinary disaster education. The implementation emphasizes practical, experiential learning, enabling teachers to address diverse disaster types while integrating concepts from various academic disciplines. This comprehensive approach ensures that disaster education spans pre-disaster, disaster (crisis), and post-disaster phases, fostering a deeper understanding of disaster dynamics and preparedness. This content is called DAFET (interdisciplinary disaster education).

The research aims to assess the effectiveness of this interdisciplinary approach by addressing two key questions:

1.What is the effect of learning content designed according to the interdisciplinary disaster teaching cycle on teachers’ disaster literacy?

2.What are teachers’ views and experiences regarding the implementation of the interdisciplinary disaster teaching cycle?

This study employed an embedded mixed methods research design, integrating qualitative and quantitative methods. The inclusion of qualitative data aimed to enrich the quantitative outcome measures by capturing personal, contextual, and cultural experiences from participants' environments (Creswell & Plano Clark, 2018). Quantitative data were collected prior to the experimental intervention, followed by the experimental study. Both qualitative and quantitative data were gathered during and after the intervention. Participants were selected using criterion sampling, a purposeful sampling method. The study included 25 teachers (11 primary, 14 secondary) from public schools across Turkey. Participants had not previously participated in TÜBİTAK (The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey) projects or received formal health and disaster education. The Disaster Literacy Scale (DLS), developed by Çalışkan and Üner (2023), was used to assess teachers' disaster literacy levels. Additionally, a semi-structured interview form was designed to gain in-depth insights into teachers' experiences. The form was developed with input from experts in science education, disaster education, and primary education. Following expert feedback, adjustments were made, and a pilot study was conducted with two teachers outside the research group. Quantitative data were analyzed using SPSS software, and the Mann-Whitney U test was employed due to the non-normal distribution of the data. Inductive content analysis was used for qualitative data analysis. Sample sentences of the participants (in the form of K1, K2...) are given to concretize the qualitative data. The study developed 25 activities addressing disasters such as earthquakes, floods, landslides, and avalanches, all designed within the framework of interdisciplinary disaster education by the research team. To demonstrate the integration of disciplines (multidisciplinary, interdisciplinary, transdisciplinary) in disaster education, sample activities from each approach were included. For example, the activity "Natural Disasters in Dede Korkut: The Story of a Museum" aimed to connect the topic of disasters with literature by using a quatrain from Dede Korkut. The quatrain was paired with visuals, and participants created a story presented with a simple song and melody, integrating the discipline of music. This multidisciplinary approach linked literature and music under the pre-disaster stage of the disaster teaching cycle, illustrating how disaster education can intersect with various academic disciplines.

The first research question explored the effect of learning content designed according to the interdisciplinary disaster teaching cycle on teachers' disaster literacy. Results indicated a significant increase in teachers' disaster literacy scores after engaging with the interdisciplinary disaster teaching cycle (z = -4.104, p < .05). Analysis of rank averages and sum differences showed that this improvement favored positive ranks, particularly in post-test scores. These findings suggest that the learning content developed within the interdisciplinary disaster teaching cycle significantly enhances teachers' disaster literacy. The second research question examined teachers' opinions and experiences regarding the learning environment designed according to the interdisciplinary disaster teaching cycle. Findings revealed that teachers addressed several deficiencies in their prior knowledge and improved their disaster teaching skills through various interdisciplinary activities and modeling. This qualitative data supported the quantitative findings, demonstrating the comprehensive impact of the teaching cycle on disaster education. One teacher, identified as K24, reflected on the activity “Let's Understand Earthquake with Models II: Observing Buildings.” K24 stated, “While trying to build the right earthquake-resistant building structure, we intertwined our own imagination and engineering knowledge, and we came up with results that even we did not expect. It was definitely a very fun and beautiful activity.” This feedback underscores how the interdisciplinary approach fostered creativity and practical understanding, enhancing teachers' confidence and skills in disaster education. Overall, these results highlight the efficacy of the interdisciplinary disaster teaching cycle in improving disaster literacy and teaching competencies among educators.

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