Empire to nationhood: heroism in natural disaster stories for children

Abstract

PurposeNatural disaster stories narrate unsettling natural events and proffer scripts for social action in the face of unforeseen and overwhelming circumstances. The purpose of this study is to investigate stories of natural disasters recounted for New Zealand school children in the School Journal during its first 100 years of publication.Design/methodology/approachContent analysis is used to categorise the disaster event and to identify two distinct periods of disaster stories – imperial and national. Textual analysis of indicative stories from each period centres on the construction of social scripts for child readers.FindingsIn the imperial period tales of individual heroism and self‐sacrifice predominate, while the national period is characterised by stories of ordinary families, community solidarity and survival. Through this investigation of natural disaster stories for children, the paper identifies the shifting models of heroic identity offered to New Zealand children through educational texts.Originality/valueThis study adds to the existing literature on the School Journal and to the broader study of the history of imperialist and nationalist education in New Zealand. In these times of increased disaster awareness it also draws attention to the significance of disaster narratives in offering social scripts for children to draw on in the event of an actual disaster experience.

Belajar Dari Masa Lalu, Bersiap Untuk Masa Depan: Integrasi Pendidikan Kebencanaan Dalam Pembelajaran Sejarah Indonesia

“…Beberapa strategi pelaksanaan pendidikan kebencanaan juga telah coba dilakukan di luar negeri. Di New Zealand, anak-anak jenjang sekolah dasar diberi kisah heroik dan kesediaan rela berkorban untuk membantu sesama dalam situasi bencana, yang dimanfaatkan agar siswa memiliki kepekaan terhadap bencana dan sekaligus dibekali dengan nilai-nilai moral agar bersedia bertindak solider pada masyarakatnya (Bell, Patterson, Dryburgh, & Johnston, 2012). Di Taiwan, dikembangkan game interaktif berbasis Shikakeology agar siswa memiliki kepekaan terhadap bencana banjir dan sekaligus upaya mitigasi untuk mencegahnya (Tsai, Wen, Chang, & Kang, 2015).…”