Arming Teachers In Schools
Armed and Educated
The debate of arming teachers to defend our nation’s students
Since the establishment of public education in the United States, schools have provided a sense of security and belonging to their students. Although sitting through lectures and doing homework may not be the most exciting thing in the world, students will always have a lunch to eat, a roof over their head, and a supportive teacher or counselor that they can talk to. Despite the “safe” environment and presence of authoritative figures on school campuses, trouble always finds a way to break out. Simple misbehaving and occasional fights are a common occurrence on most school campuses, however a new breed of troublesome and violent students has hatched. The type of violence that nobody should ever witness or be involved in, a crime so sickening that no proper-functioning human being could ever commit. Now, more common than ever before, school shootings threaten the lives of those who attend school, jeopardizing the structure of public education. Will students and faculty continue going to school, just hoping that someone won’t come in campus with a high powered assault rifle and slaughter everyone in their sights, or will educators rise to the occasion and protect their students? August 1st, 1966. Charles Whitman, a 25-year-old engineering student and former marine attending the University of Texas, opened fire from the clock tower on campus. Soon police arrived and exchanged shots, eventually killing Whitman. However, Charles managed to kill 17 people (including an unborn child) and wound 31. This was the first shooting of its kind of the 21st Century, shocking the nation and striking fear in the hearts of all school attendees. Fortunately, another mass school shooting in the U.S. didn’t break out for another 30 years. On February 2nd, 1996, Barry Loukaitis gunned down his teacher and two other students, then held his class hostage for 10 minutes until he was restrained by a P.E.
The debate of arming teachers to defend our nation’s students
Since the establishment of public education in the United States, schools have provided a sense of security and belonging to their students. Although sitting through lectures and doing homework may not be the most exciting thing in the world, students will always have a lunch to eat, a roof over their head, and a supportive teacher or counselor that they can talk to. Despite the “safe” environment and presence of authoritative figures on school campuses, trouble always finds a way to break out. Simple misbehaving and occasional fights are a common occurrence on most school campuses, however a new breed of troublesome and violent students has hatched. The type of violence that nobody should ever witness or be involved in, a crime so sickening that no proper-functioning human being could ever commit. Now, more common than ever before, school shootings threaten the lives of those who attend school, jeopardizing the structure of public education. Will students and faculty continue going to school, just hoping that someone won’t come in campus with a high powered assault rifle and slaughter everyone in their sights, or will educators rise to the occasion and protect their students? August 1st, 1966. Charles Whitman, a 25-year-old engineering student and former marine attending the University of Texas, opened fire from the clock tower on campus. Soon police arrived and exchanged shots, eventually killing Whitman. However, Charles managed to kill 17 people (including an unborn child) and wound 31. This was the first shooting of its kind of the 21st Century, shocking the nation and striking fear in the hearts of all school attendees. Fortunately, another mass school shooting in the U.S. didn’t break out for another 30 years. On February 2nd, 1996, Barry Loukaitis gunned down his teacher and two other students, then held his class hostage for 10 minutes until he was restrained by a P.E.
Cited: Trump/ President of National School Safety and Security Services, Kenneth S. "National School Safety and Security Services." Arming Teachers and School Staff with Guns. National School Safety and Security Services, n.d. Web. 03 Feb. 2013. Welsh, Teresa. "Should Teachers Be Armed?" US News. U.S.News & World Report, 20 Dec. 2012. Web. 03 Feb. 2013. "SUNDAY ISSUE: Should Teachers Be Armed? Meadville Tribune."Local News ATOM. The Meadville Tribune, 30 Dec. 2012. Web. 03 Feb. 2013. Stephens, John. "Gun Advocate On Connecticut Shooting: Armed Teachers Could Have Minimized Tragedy (VIDEO)." The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 14 Dec. 2012. Web. 03 Feb. 2013. Maass, Harold. "Should Teachers Be Armed? - The Week." The Week. N.p., 17 Dec. 2012. Web. 03 Feb. 2013. Scherer, Michael. "Gunfighters" Time Magazine 28 Jan. 2013: Web. 03 Feb. 2013. McKinley, James C., Jr Boyle, John. "Armed Teachers? Surely We Can Do Better." The Asheville Citizen Times 02 Feb. 2013 Stockard, Sam 31 Jan. 2013 Kinsey, Michelle