Over the summer, a rural Texas school district unanimously agreed to allow teachers to carry a gun at school. The policy aims to protect against school shootings, as long as the gun-toting teachers follow certain requirements. These requirements include bearing a Texas license to carry a concealed handgun; they must be authorized to carry the gun by the district; they must receive training in crisis management and hostile situations, and they must use ammunition that is designed to minimize the risk of ricochet in schools.
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,404721,00.html
The question is: Even with all these requirements is our country ready to allow teachers to carry guns in our schools with our children?
Jenn:
By Texas allowing teachers to carry guns (with proper permits) opens a whole world of problems and controversy. Parents already worry about their children going to school and the dealing with the temptation of drugs, being picked on by a bully, etc, and now this school district is allowing teachers to carry weapons inside their schools. I mean come on. What in the h*** were these people thinking? From recent scandals in the news, we already see that some teachers are not the most emotionally stable people teaching our children (ex: Debra Lafave), and now these people want to allow teachers to carry a loaded weapon. Not to mention what if a student manages to get a hold of a teacher’s gun. We as a society should feel safe when our children go to school.
Michael:
I think that schools should not allow any individual, besides police, to carry guns in a school. The entire act of taking guns out of schools is for students to feel safe and not worry about being shot as they exit class. One might add that the guns are for a teacher’s possession only, but who says a student cannot just take the gun without the teacher's knowledge? To bring guns into school, to fight guns, is not a valid argument or act.
Jake:
I think that the teachers should be allowed to carry firearms to school since the teachers would be crisis-trained and have to be certified to carry a concealed handgun in Texas. I think that it could control student shooting and lessen the chance of it happening. Do you think that this could have a chain reaction and lead to other states and school allowing teachers to carry firearms? Do you think you would feel safer or worry more if you knew your child’s teacher was armed?
Tessa:
In these days and times, I think teachers should be able to carry guns. Although I am not sure of all the details of all the previous school shootings, but it seems like there was no plan in place for either of the schools in case of tragic events like school shootings. Where was the protection for the staff and students? Most inner city schools are loaded with police officers, metal detectors, security guards and so forth, but the inner city schools aren’t where you hear of mass shootings (if there is, it’s not reported). So until these schools that offer absolutely no protection wake up and realize that this is a dangerous world no matter where you’re from, all teachers should be allowed to bring guns.
Now, there are some teachers who are not mentally fit to carry guns and that is why I feel that before we give any teacher the right to carry a gun into a school there should be some sorts of psychological evaluations done. Who’s to say that a teacher whose class has completely frustrated them to a point where they say, hey I have a gun, let’s show these kids whose boss and won’t go on a rampage themselves? So I guess the point I’m trying to make is, if schools are not going to protect their staff or students, then why not let teachers protect themselves and their classes but only after they've undergone the proper psychological evaluations?
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23 comments:
I'm, perhaps, the last teacher on earth to whom you would want to bring up this sort of topic. I'm anti-gun, having lived in two countries where guns are provisionally outlawed, and as a result, the overall crime rate is extremely low.
I don't disparage those who feel it is within their Constitutional right to bear arms in order to protect themselves (not to mention their families & homes--especially as it was needed in wartime). However, I believe that if we’re to have the right to bear arms, we should be held accountable for the correct usage of the firearm. Gun control laws should be mandated. Some of you have noted, what of the teachers (and this isn’t simply about teachers—it cuts across the board here with anyone, I think) who are mentally unstable, even to the slightest extent where they are able to pass a psychological evaluation with nary a hitch? Besides the requisite firearm training, how else would we regulate which teachers/employees could be licensed?
I personally think that the teachers should not be able to carry guns to school. It can be plenty of other security measures to consider for safety before they allow a teacher to carry an armed weapon to school. No one on campus should be able to carry armed weapons except for the police officers on the campus. Also, I also think that for some crazy people out in this world it would just leave a school more likely to have a gun-shooting. Some of the teachers may end up using their guns for the WRONG reasons and it is not safe to have near the students because they could get a hold of it and use them. Overall, I just think that teachers feeling safer by having a firearm is a bad idea!
Hmm... let's see. They want stop violence by adding weapons? Yep, sounds like our kind of logic. Wasn't the reason most places did away with spanking in schools because some teachers used it excessively? (There was a locker outside one of the classrooms at my elementary school with head dents in it from the amount of force.)
So now we give them something with much more potential for harm and let them loose. I agree with Tissany, it's a bad idea.
Teachers should not be allowed to carry guns at all, because there are some teachers who have actually taken extremes and having a gun can only make matters worse. If teachers need to carry something lethal then they should have mace, something that doesn't have the potential to kill, or be stolen and once stolen can be usedagainst them and that could only increase the danger risk.
Being that i am studying to be a teacher this article was really interesting to me...
Personally i do not think that teachers should be allow to have armed weapons at school.As Amanda stated how are we supposed to stop violence by adding weapons?
Students look up to there teachers and they watch everything they do we need to be good examples for our future generation.
Well in my opinion, i believe teachers should not be allowed to carry guns on school campus. Just think of all of the things that could happen. With teachers having a concealed weapon in their possession, classrooms will no longer be safe. Children lives will be at risk. Anything could happen, even though the teacher takes the classes and have the licenses and papers, God forbid a child getting ahold of the gun and putting their life as well as others in danger. Then whos problem is it now. Who will take the blame of a child shooting another child, or a teacher having a nervous break down and holding innocent children as hostages. No one will want the responsibility. In short, teachers having guns is a completely bad idea.
In my opinion no a teacher let alone any one should be able to carry a gun. This would just push the trouble maker to see if the teacher would use the gun. Being of the last generation of students that were spanked in front of the class, which was an effective way of control. Somebody always pushed the limits, but no one was killed, maimed, or injured besides their ego. That was how a person learned respect for themselves and others. You take the beating and go on. To have the teacher able to shoot and then go to jail what was learned, other than guns kill. This is a societal issue linked to lack of discipline in the home.
It saddens me deeply that it would come to this. But, if a teacher has adequate training, I believe that arming teachers would not be a bad idea. The fact of the matter is, protection is a necessity in present day society. It is truly a sad assessment of society when students respect an armed officer instead of their teachers. We cannot forget that not every school has an officer in it. And one officer can be overwhelmed by several attackers, especially armed attackers. Allowing teachers to carry concealed weapons in the classroom is already a protected right in 40 states.
The most important element is prevention.
The topic of guns in public places, alone, scares the crap out of me. So just imagine the single-parents who worry that the minute their children are out of their sight, something as horrible as a "accident" in school, would crush their lives forever.I believe that armed teachers are preosterous. It makes no sense to even think that it would not bring problems on top of the problems with gun control that is happening nationally. If it is that serious to the point where we give teachers the right to be armed in class, then maybe we as a nation could lower the unemployment rate, and hire security guards!!! As a student i think that it's pure nonsense.
I think maybe twenty years ago America would have been ready. As for America today, I don't think so. Teachers today have been getting a bad rap. At one time it seemed like there was a teacher on the news about every week for sleeping with a student. I think if guns are allowed in schools everywhere that there may be a good chance a teacher may assault or threaten a student for being disrespectful or something. There is also a chance a student would get hold of the gun. I understand what they're trying to do, but it's a bit extreme.
I don't think that letting teachers carry guns in our school is a good idea. I think it would end up on something bad happening or some kid is going to get a hold of it. letting teachers carry gun is almost asking for it
I think that there shouldn't be any other person in the entire school to be aloud to have a gun in there possession, including teachers. Eventhough they are in charge of the classrooms and need to have protection over the kids they still should not carry a weapon to school.
I think that guns should not be allowed anywhere near a school campus no matter the guidelines or precautions taken to prevent mishaps. It is a struggle to keep guns out of the school, but yet you are wanting to put them into the schools via teachers. Kind of contradicting isn't it?
No way. If some of the teachers that I have had in the past were armed, they would go way overboard with the "power" that they have with a gun in their hand. If teachers were alowed to be armed, there would be power hungry teachers that would use the gun as a reason to conduct class however they please. Plus, there are some students that are dumb enough to try to get the gun away from the teacher, therefore making the classroom even more dangerous.
I believe that teachers should not be allowed to carry guns or other weapons on school grounds. Some students may see this as a threat and would carry their own protection. If they are worried about the sheriff office being so far away, then the school needs to have a sheriff on campus at all times.
I think allowing teachers to carry guns on campus is only a "band aid" for this issue. I think we need to get to the root of the problem which is making sure kids don't bring guns to school period. So I think if school districts are that concerned with protecting the lives of there teachers and students they should maybe start by putting in metal detectors like an airport or courthouse.I think school districts should consider doing that before allowing teachers to have guns in the classroom.
I don't agree with teachers being armed during school. Like c.rice said, we try so hard to keep weapons out of school, yet we want teachers to carry a gun. I feel that students will begin to think that they too need to be armed to ensure their safety. Also, like Jesse said, there are some overbearing teachers that I could see using a gun to their benefit.
I feel that teachers should have the right to bear arms in school only if it is necessary. In areas where violence is prominent then the teachers need to have a way to defend themselves from the danger of working in such areas. I feel that in area where violence is not prominent then protection from students is no necessarily needed. It all deprends on how safe or unsafe the working enviornment is and whether the teacher feels it is needed.
I believe that allowing teachers to have a consealed weapon will start many more problems. Parents will have complications with sending their children to schools. I agree with Megan, by needing to find the root of these issues. Also there are many other ways with dealing with this issue besides getting more guns. Why not get a tazor or mace???
Well, after yesterday's campus-wide lockdown, I think it's only appropriate to resume our conversation here.
For those of you who were not on campus later on after class, here's the story:
http://www.theledger.com/article/20080922/NEWS/809220278/1410?Title=PCC_Closes_Campuses_Because_of_Threat
Of course, there are a few details that have been left out due to shoddy reporting.
Where were you when this happened?
If you were on campus, do you think the safety procedures were adequate enough? Did you feel safe?
Do you think faculty and staff here at PCC should be permitted to be armed?
I was at the campus yesterday, and if anyone else was they'd see why we need more protection. The "lock-down" was more of a shove everyone into one area and then leave the doors unlocked deal. Only after the cops got here did anything seem safe at all, and they were about 15 mins after the lockdown had started.
As far as teachers carrying guns, I think there are some issues that should be handled before we get to that point, but it comes down to cost as to what we can do. Officers, gaurds and metal detectors all cost money. Money which at this point is needed else where.
If the government would step in and increase funding for things like that it would work great.
And as far as the tazers and mace ideas, I have this feeling that it would be used in the class on the disrespectful long before the guns would.
We need a fix, but nothing is really looking that good at this point.
I still feel that arming teachers will just add to the problem. The lock down was not very security effective and that was with a warning. What if there was no warning like that of Columbine. Arming teachers will also not ensure that when the time comes that the teacher will take action.
There are less than lethal alternatives that have proved to be effective from long distance. Security is not arming everyone, it is taking action financially and mentally to protect those at risk.
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