Case Study: Haiti Earthquake (2010)

Active learning turns Haiti’s tragedy into tangible insights. Students analyze real data, debate trade-offs, and role-play responses, transforming abstract geographic concepts into lived experience. This approach clarifies how tectonic events become disasters through human choices, not just force of nature.

• Year 12
• Geography
• 4 activities
• 35 min–50 min

Learning Objectives

1. Analyze the interplay of physical factors, such as fault lines and seismic waves, and human factors, including building codes and urban planning, that contributed to the severity of the 2010 Haiti earthquake's impacts.
2. Evaluate the effectiveness of international aid organizations and national governments in coordinating and delivering humanitarian relief to Haiti post-2010 earthquake, considering resource allocation and local needs.
3. Explain the long-term challenges faced by Haiti in its recovery and reconstruction efforts, such as infrastructure development, economic stability, and public health, within the context of a developing nation.
4. Compare the vulnerability of Haiti to other developing nations facing similar seismic risks, identifying key socio-economic and environmental factors that increase disaster impact.

Jigsaw

⏱ 50 min·Small Groups

Jigsaw: Earthquake Factors

Divide class into expert groups on causes, physical impacts, human vulnerability, and responses. Each group researches key data and creates a summary poster with evidence. Regroup into mixed teams to share findings and build a class composite report.

Prepare & details

Analyze the physical and human factors that exacerbated the impacts of the Haiti earthquake.

Facilitation Tip: For the Jigsaw Activity, assign each expert group a unique factor (tectonic, structural, economic, environmental) and provide them with a one-page brief using only the data they need to teach peers.

Setup: Flexible seating for regrouping

Materials: Expert group reading packets, Note-taking template, Summary graphic organizer

• Understand
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Relationship Skills
• Self-Management

Case Study Analysis

⏱ 40 min·Pairs

Debate Carousel: Response Effectiveness

Pairs prepare arguments for and against the success of international aid, using metrics like reconstruction rates and aid disbursement data. Rotate to debate with other pairs, then vote on strongest evidence in whole class debrief.

Prepare & details

Evaluate the effectiveness of the international humanitarian response.

Facilitation Tip: During the Debate Carousel, place three signs around the room labeled 'Effective,' 'Ineffective,' and 'Conditionally Effective,' and have students move to the stance they will argue using specific case evidence.

Setup: Groups at tables with case materials

Materials: Case study packet (3-5 pages), Analysis framework worksheet, Presentation template

• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Create
• Decision-Making
• Self-Management

Case Study Analysis

⏱ 35 min·Small Groups

Timeline Mapping: Recovery Challenges

Small groups plot key events from 2010 earthquake to present on interactive timelines, annotating physical, economic, and social hurdles with photos and stats. Present to class and discuss patterns in vulnerability.

Prepare & details

Explain the long-term challenges of recovery and reconstruction in a developing country context.

Facilitation Tip: In Timeline Mapping, provide blank strips of paper for each event and have students physically place them on a wall timeline to visualize gaps and overlaps in recovery phases.

Setup: Groups at tables with case materials

Materials: Case study packet (3-5 pages), Analysis framework worksheet, Presentation template

• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Create
• Decision-Making
• Self-Management

Case Study Analysis

⏱ 45 min·Small Groups

Role-Play Simulation: Aid Coordination

Assign roles as government officials, NGOs, and locals. Groups negotiate resource allocation in a mock crisis meeting, using real Haiti data cards. Debrief on conflicts and real-world parallels.

Prepare & details

Analyze the physical and human factors that exacerbated the impacts of the Haiti earthquake.

Facilitation Tip: For the Role-Play Simulation, assign roles with hidden agendas (e.g., aid agency under budget pressure, local official with corruption concerns) so students experience real-world constraints.

Setup: Groups at tables with case materials

Materials: Case study packet (3-5 pages), Analysis framework worksheet, Presentation template

• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Create
• Decision-Making
• Self-Management

Teaching This Topic

Teach this topic by layering scales: start with the fault line, zoom into buildings, then examine poverty and governance. Avoid overloading students with numbers; instead, focus on how these layers interact. Research shows that when students trace cause-and-effect across scales, they retain the link between geophysical events and human vulnerability better than through lecture alone.

What to Expect

By the end of these activities, students will connect physical causes to human consequences, evaluate aid effectiveness, and explain why recovery stalls. Success looks like evidence-based discussions, precise mapping, and collaborative problem-solving grounded in Haiti’s context.

Watch Out for These Misconceptions

Common Misconception

During Jigsaw Activity: Earthquake Factors, watch for students who assume magnitude alone determines impact. Redirect by asking groups to compare Haiti’s 2010 quake to Chile’s 2010 quake (magnitude 8.8) in their teaching segments.

What to Teach Instead

During Jigsaw Activity: Earthquake Factors, have each expert group present a short comparison slide showing Haiti’s 7.0 quake alongside a similar-magnitude event in a higher-income country with better building codes, using the data provided in their briefs.

Common Misconception

During Debate Carousel: Response Effectiveness, watch for students who equate aid volume with success.

What to Teach Instead

During Debate Carousel: Response Effectiveness, require each debate point to cite a specific logistical or governance obstacle (e.g., Port delays, land tenure disputes) and quantify its impact on delivery timelines using the case materials.

Common Misconception

During Timeline Mapping: Recovery Challenges, watch for students who assume recovery follows a linear path.

What to Teach Instead

During Timeline Mapping: Recovery Challenges, provide a set of mixed-up timeline cards that include setbacks (e.g., cholera outbreak, political instability) and have students rearrange them to show non-linear progress, then justify their order in small-group discussion.

Assessment Ideas

Discussion Prompt

After Debate Carousel: Response Effectiveness, facilitate a whole-class synthesis where students vote with a show of hands on the most convincing argument, then justify their vote by referencing specific evidence from the debate or timeline.

Exit Ticket

After Jigsaw Activity: Earthquake Factors, collect index cards with: 'One physical factor and one human factor that made Haiti’s earthquake more devastating' and 'One specific way Haiti’s recovery is still challenged today', using responses to identify remaining misconceptions.

Quick Check

During Timeline Mapping: Recovery Challenges, pause after 10 minutes and ask students to write on a sticky note: 'One immediate need and one long-term challenge' visible to you, then cluster responses on the board to assess class-wide accuracy before proceeding.

Extensions & Scaffolding

• Challenge early finishers to design a one-page infographic proposing a single policy change that could reduce Haiti’s future earthquake risk, citing evidence from the role-play discussions.
• Scaffolding for struggling students: Provide sentence stems for debate points (e.g., 'The international response was ineffective because...') and color-coded timeline templates to sequence events.
• Deeper exploration: Invite students to compare Haiti’s 2010 response to Japan’s 2011 earthquake through a Venn diagram, focusing on preparedness, infrastructure, and public trust in government.

Key Vocabulary

Epicenter	The point on the Earth's surface directly above the focus of an earthquake, where seismic wave energy is strongest.
Liquefaction	The process by which water-saturated soil or sediment temporarily loses strength and acts as a fluid, often caused by seismic shaking.
Vulnerability	The susceptibility of a community or system to the impacts of a hazard, influenced by social, economic, and environmental factors.
Humanitarian Aid	Assistance provided to people in need during and after humanitarian crises, often coordinated by international organizations and governments.
Development Indicators	Statistical measures used to assess a country's level of economic and social progress, such as GDP per capita, life expectancy, and literacy rates.