Earthquake Mitigation Literacy as an Effort to Enhance Student Preparedness at SMPN 15 Jakarta

Indonesia is located in a seismically active region, making earthquake risk a persistent threat, including in the Jakarta area. This condition highlights the importance of strengthening disaster preparedness from an early age through school-based education. Schools play a strategic role in fostering earthquake mitigation literacy by developing students’ knowledge, attitudes, and skills in responding to earthquake hazards. This study aims to examine the level of earthquake mitigation literacy as an effort to enhance student preparedness at SMPN 15 Jakarta. The research employed a descriptive qualitative approach, with data collected through observations, interviews, and questionnaires administered to students. Mitigation literacy activities were implemented through the delivery of disaster-related materials, simple earthquake evacuation simulations, and interactive discussions tailored to the characteristics of junior high school students. The results indicate that earthquake mitigation literacy activities contribute to improved student understanding of earthquake risks and appropriate self-protection measures before, during, and after an earthquake. Furthermore, students demonstrated increased awareness of personal safety and the importance of school preparedness in emergency situations. These findings suggest that earthquake mitigation literacy implemented in the school environment has a positive impact on building a culture of disaster preparedness among students. Therefore, the integration of disaster mitigation literacy into school learning activities is essential as part of a sustainable disaster risk reduction effort.   Keywords: Disaster preparedness; Disaster risk; Earthquake mitigation; Readiness; School