This document summarizes research and evaluations in the field of youth disaster preparedness and education. Findings based on this literature review are presented in three principal categories: individual/youth preparedness education, school programs and curricula, and community engagement for youth preparedness. The report then concludes with recommended practices for youth disaster education and research to help achieve greater levels of preparedness activities among children and their families. In 2006, 73.7 million ...
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This document summarizes research and evaluations in the field of youth disaster preparedness and education. Findings based on this literature review are presented in three principal categories: individual/youth preparedness education, school programs and curricula, and community engagement for youth preparedness. The report then concludes with recommended practices for youth disaster education and research to help achieve greater levels of preparedness activities among children and their families. In 2006, 73.7 million children were under the age of 18 in the United States, and it is projected that this number will grow to 74.4 million children by the year 2010, constituting more than a quarter of the entire U.S. population (National Commission on Children and Disasters, 2009b; U.S. Census Bureau, 2004). Additionally, 14.1 million children live in poverty, which constitutes 35 percent of the poor population, causing them to be disproportionately affected by disasters (U.S. Department of Commerce, 2009). At the end of the 20th century, an estimated 66.5 million children each year were affected by a disaster (Penrose and Takaki, 2006), and this number will most likely increase, owing to shifts within society and large climate changes. Despite this vulnerability, however, scant attention has been given to this particular population regarding emergency preparedness and planning. Both researchers and practitioners have traditionally overlooked children
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