My Students Wouldn't Like It Either

The idiocy of arming teachers discussed in my previous post didn't even take into account how my students would react.

Kids, especially younger ones, often don't have the capacity for a lot of rational thought. They ardently believe, for example, in the Tooth Fairy. The curriculum even explicitly lays out teachings so they can learn cause and effect. Kids say they're "Seven and a half" years old the week following their seventh birthdays.

So, exactly, how are they going to react to their teacher--the one tasked with nurturing them--if she/he is carryng a gun during the school day?

Actually, a couple will think it's cool--their teacher is a gun-toting superhero.

The others? Not so much.

They'll worry. They'll wonder things like "Will the bad guy come to our room because my teacher has a gun?" "Will the gun ever explode?" "Who will stay with us while my teacher goes out hunting the bad guy?" "Will my teacher accidentally shoot me?"

I know this exists because my students display the same worry when discussing fire drills and tornado drills: "What if there's a fire right outside our door and a tornado's coming?" "What if the first tornado opens the door and another one reaches in to get us?"

I've had students display anxiety about storms (independent of their school experience) when clouds or winds are visible through our windows. Some have panicked upon hearing the fire alarm for drills. Imagine what thinking that their teacher had a gun would do to them.

If I was carrying a gun, there would be waiting and wondering when I'd use it, what might happen--not peace of mind--for virtually all of my students.

And, you know, I'll do whatever I can to protect them--just as I'm sure every teacher or coach has done from Columbine to Sandy Hook to Florida's Stoneman Douglas. I have designated evacuation and constantly updated protective plans for which I've trained and have had my students practice. And, should it ever come down to it, I'm willing to sacrifice my life to save theirs.

But, God willing, better gun laws, more help for those with mental health issues, and maybe even more educational staff members in schools to increase positive connections with troubled students and better personalize an educational experience that can sometimes be lonely and confusing will reduce the rhetoric and the belief that teachers should be armed.

It would be a relief for us all.

Armed Teachers are NOT the Answer

"A teacher would have shot the hell out of him."

Thus sayeth the man playing the role of President, who now is advocating for educators to take on armed gunmen.

The idea is so wrong, I hardly know where to begin.

From this long-time teacher's view, his suggestion--and his flippancy-- are abhorrent. His idea is also filled with rampant twisted logic and inhumanity--which apparently pleases his NRA-rabid base and its pals. Shame on them all.

First off, the answer is LESS guns, not more. More thorough background checks and less accessibility to "weapons of war" would surely stop at least some of this horrific carnage. That is so incredibly basic and do-able, most polled Americans agree these are measures that should be taken.

One of Trump's/NRA's fallacies (in addition to the garbage about Democrats taking away the second amendment) is that simply having armed security would deter a gunman.

No. It didn't.

Regardless of the security guard's subsequent actions in Broward County, the shooter was very aware that Stoneman Douglas High School had an armed security presence. He obviously wasn't deterred.

Another fallacy: Trump assumes 10-20% of the teaching staff would gladly take on the additional burden of determining life and death by agreeing (maybe "give them a bonus") to carry a firearm during the day.

No. We wouldn't.

Teachers gladly take on the privilege of inspiring, nurturing, encouraging and challenging the children entrusted to them each day. Teachers are charged with daily assessment and individually-matched teaching, which support a student's social, cognitive, and personal-growth needs. Now Trump/NRA wants them to pack heat, too? A quick survey of my elementary school staff found that NOT ONE would want to carry a gun, too.

"A teacher would have shot the hell out of him."

No. She/he wouldn't.

This particular gunman wore a vest and carried a semi-automatic weapon. The belief that a pistol-packing teacher would have prevented this is not just misguided, it's ludicrous.

And realistically, teachers are often in our profession because we're compassionate. Personally, even if I was carrying a gun, it would have been virtually impossible for me to pull the trigger on a former student.

Most teachers love their kids.  Imagine a parent having to make the same decision--do I try to talk my son into disarming and getting help/having a chance in life, or do I shoot him dead where he stands?

So, what now?

Instead of money for more guns, and teacher gun training, and armed security guards, invest more money in counselors. Or hire and train more educators to provide even more eyes and suggestions and chances to help a kid before he moves to such a heinous act (and gets tabbed by the President as a "sicko").

More guns are not the answer.

Compassion is.