Arming Teachers And School Shootings

Arming Teachers

In the last ten years there have been eighteen school shootings in the United States. Elementary Schools, Middle Schools, High Schools, and Universities are all included. From these eighteen shootings there were one hundred and one students and faculty members killed, the majority being students. In the average classroom, there is at least fifteen students to one teacher. One adult is tasked with insuring the safety of fifteen to thirty students. How are teachers expected to accomplish this in the event of a shooting? There are safety codes and drills practiced such as code red, code blue, and evacuation drills that can help keep students safe. In the event of a code red students are to gather in the corner of the room farthest from the door; teachers turn off the lights and lock the door. Some teachers do what they can and barricade the classroom door with desks or filing cabinets… but hiding in a dark room isn 't enough. A code red is called out when an intruder is in the building. The shooter would hear the code red being announced and know the students are hiding, especially if the shooter is a member of the school, then they know exactly what the procedure is. A barricaded door might deter a shooter, but they will most likely move on to the next class-- or they decide that the barricade isn’t going to stop them. In the high school I attend the vast majority of classroom doors are mostly glass; in theory a school shooter can shoot right through without even having to enter the classroom. The best way to protect students is to have a more effective defense against threats.

In December 2014 an elementary school was attacked by an armed gunman. The shooter’s name was Adam Lanza. He killed twenty first graders an...

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... a high school student, I don’t take much stock in the safety codes and drills in place to keep students safe in the event of a shooting. I would feel much safer knowing my teacher has the ability to protect the class, rather than hide and lock the door. An educator is responsible for the students in their class. They are responsible for their education and their safety while the children are in their classroom. The safety of fifteen or more students would be much more easily secured by one person if that person was armed. Promoting teachers to arm themselves also prevents school shootings; criminals don’t attack a victim that can fight back. At least 60% of school attacks would be prevented with an armed faculty warning sign. School faculty members should be armed to secure the safety of the countries students, and in hand prevent the majority of potential shootings.