Imagine yourself as the communicator of a brand that needs to inform an audience of 85 million people accurately and quickly. In a global, national, or regional disaster or crisis situation, you need to think comprehensively and take the right steps.
Under the heading of public communication during disasters and crises, we will address the activities carried out by vocational and technical education institutions under the Ministry of National Education, one of Türkiye’s most established institutions, within the scope of production mobilization. It would be more appropriate to start with the public communication approach for this.
The principle of inclusivity is essential in public communication. In line with the principle of inclusivity, the aim is to ensure that all citizens have access to public services. This is achieved through a robust communication coordination mechanism. Considering the increased misinformation during disasters and crises, it is vital for public authorities to provide accurate information to citizens to ensure public safety.
While strategic actions and crisis communication plans are central, local public authorities are thoroughly informed by the central authorities. These activities are periodically supported by collaborations with local governors, municipalities, and non-governmental organizations. The COVID-19 pandemic has been the most striking example of this. Public institutions communicated decisions taken at the central level to citizens through digital media, traditional media, mass SMS, mobile applications, and telephone lines. Additionally, face-to-face visits were conducted to reach all segments of society. In line with the principle of inclusivity, village heads and district governors actively worked as communication ambassadors to ensure that all citizens were informed.
These comprehensive communication efforts, conducted simultaneously across Türkiye’s 81 provinces, ensured that more people were reached through close cooperation with local public institutions, governors, municipalities, and specific non-governmental organizations.
Turning to Vital Needs during Disasters and Crises
We see more clearly how important our basic needs are during disasters and crises. A rush begins, and we wonder what to do next. We search for ways to meet our basic needs such as shelter, food, clothing, and hygiene. In recent months, the earthquake has been on our minds and hearts, and looking further back, the forest fires, flood disasters, and COVID-19 crisis also focused our lives on accessing basic needs.
The situation is clear; needs must be produced urgently, but how? To quickly change the planned production process of the industry, many factors such as investment costs, production capacity, employee training, and supply chain may need to be altered. Let’s go back to 2020, when we had just met the COVID-19 pandemic. How were masks and disinfectants going to be supplied? Or how would stoves be produced to provide warmth in harsh winter conditions in earthquake zones? The problem of accessing all humanitarian needs had to be solved urgently, and production had to continue.
At this point, the Ministry of National Education, through its vocational and technical schools, contributes to aid mobilizations during disasters and crises with rapid solutions and needs-based support. In these mobilization efforts, vocational high school students and teachers produce aid materials for people’s needs and actively participate in their distribution.
These efforts provide students with opportunities to develop their vocational skills and enable them to participate in the production of materials needed during disasters and crises. Thus, while performing their professions, students in vocational high schools also gain a sense of serving society.
Looking first at the COVID-19 pandemic period, vocational high schools in Türkiye played a pioneering role in producing the medical materials needed during this time. Coordinated and led by the Ministry of National Education, vocational high schools began producing personal protective equipment such as masks, face shields, disposable overalls, disinfectants, and thermometers. A production mobilization began across Türkiye, with teachers working tirelessly with their students to produce and enhance the production capacities of their schools. Even a single school produced over 100 tons of disinfectant. This mobilization, which began in the first months of the COVID-19 pandemic, quickly spread throughout Türkiye. As needs changed, production models evolved and improved. A synergy developed day by day between students and teachers. Thus, the production of the medical materials needed nationwide was achieved, contributing to the protection of the public.
The cooperation of students and teachers in producing for people became a great source of pride for each school. Schools intensified their communication efforts to share their work with the public. During this period, schools conducted many promotional campaigns on social media channels. In 2021, Anadolu Agency headlined an article, “We see this process as the revival of vocational high schools.”
The Ministry of National Education conducts many activities for the development of vocational and technical education within the framework of strategic planning. However, what was revived here was the realization of how valuable the production by vocational high schools and their students is, and the importance of vocational high schools in economic development.
The Earthquake of February 6…
Looking at the communication efforts made to inform the public during the last disaster period, among the communication methods used to share decisions taken at the central level with the public, such as the suspension of schools and the new academic calendar, were official letters sent to Provincial and District National Education Directorates, and digital and traditional media channels. Locally, needs were quickly identified, and efforts began to meet these needs. A crisis desk was established within the Ministry of National Education to coordinate efforts in the region. All teacher houses, practice hotels, indoor sports halls, and schools in the earthquake-affected areas were opened to the public. Vocational high schools began producing according to needs. News of the production by vocational high schools locally was communicated to the central level. Information was provided through digital and traditional media channels both locally and centrally by the Ministry of National Education. The impact and numerical data of these productions were regularly shared with the public.
Some of the work done by vocational and technical education institutions during the disaster period includes:
- Hot meals, mobile kitchens, bread, and packed food were produced in food and beverage workshops.
- Paper towels and toilet paper were produced in printing workshops.
- Tents, blankets, clothes, sleeping bags, and textile products were produced in fashion design technology workshops.
- Toys were produced for children in child development workshops.
- Containers were produced in metal technology workshops.
- Solar-paneled containers and solar-powered benches were produced in electrical and renewable energy workshops.
- Infrastructure support was provided for electrical, water, and plumbing works in container cities.
- Furniture was produced for people relocated from the earthquake zone to other cities.
While the effects of the earthquake are still ongoing, vocational high schools continue to produce according to needs. For more information and to follow the agenda related to vocational and technical education, you can visit meslegimhayatim.meb.gov.tr and follow @meslegimhayatim on social media accounts.
