This is the dramatic moment when quick-thinking pupils took cover under their desks as an earthquake struck their school in China.

CCTV footage shows a teacher delivering a lecture and students listening attentively when tremors suddenly hit. They raised their heads in unison before ducking beneath their desks.

Moments later, the calm and composed learners stood up and exited the room alongside their teacher in the village of Leshan.

Authorities confirmed that the magnitude 4.7 earthquake struck northeast of Luocheng, China, on September 15 at approximately 4:42 pm local time.

Officials said the quake had a depth of 10 km. No injuries were reported.

The Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery (GFDRR) said China accounts for one-third of the world's destructive continental earthquakes. Since 1900, more than 550,000 people have died in earthquakes in China, which is 53 per cent of the total casualties in earthquakes worldwide.