Abstract: Deformation and failure of overlying rock strata during coal mining poses a threat to the safety of mining roadway, can cause land subsidence, and can affect the safety of the buildings on the ground surface and the geological environments. Therefore, it is of great significance to carry out real-time deformation monitoring of overlying strata during coal mining. In this paper, the deformation and failure mechanism of overlying strata in coal seam is investigated through laboratory model test. The distributed fiber optic sensing technique is used. The fiber optic cables are vertically buried in the model to form a fiber optic monitoring system for measuring distributed deformation information. The fiber optic test results are consistent with the results of conventional photogrammetry system. They reveal the deformation mechanism and evolution process of the overlying rock mass during coal mining. It is found that using empirical formula, the height of water flowing fractured zone is calculated to be about 30.6cm, which fits well with the fiber optic estimated results of 30cm. The test results show that the application of distributed fiber optic sensing technology to the model test on mining-induced damage of overlying strata is feasible and accurate, which provides a new method for relevant research in the future.