In the face of National tragedy due to school shootings, politicians and individuals seek to find the solution to ending these acts. One solution, arming instructors.
In the face of National tragedy due to school shootings, politicians and individuals seek to find the solution to ending these acts. One solution, arming instructors.
After the shooting in Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida where 17 individuals were found dead, President Donald Trump said that the White House is “very strongly” considering the possibility of arming teachers and other school staff.
The voice of Elon University Students and faculty at Elon University reflected a pollrecently released by the University stating that three-quarters of North Carolina public school teachers believe that allowing teachers to carry guns in school is a bad idea.
Sophomore Nicole Saey agreed with the 78 percent of individuals who reported that arming teachers is a “bad idea.”
“The likelihood that a teacher could accurately aim and shoot the gunman is so unlikely,” Saey said. “Providing teachers guns is not an actual, effective solution to what’s happening in our country.”
Saey said she would actually feel uncomfortable if her professors had guns. “It’s so easy for guns to get into the wrong hands,” she said. “Especially at the elementary school age, it’s just too risking having them in the classroom.”
Saey said that it is “unfair and unrelaistic” to expect teachers to be equipped with gun skills while also providing students with a higher education. Her ideal solution; hire more school security who specialize in guns.
“Teachers shouldn’t be required to handle a gun to do there job,” Saey said. “It’s just not something that comes with the job description of a teacher.”
Elon Professor David Bockino agrees that the role of the teacher is not to keep students safe through the use of guns.
“I don’t want a gun, I never want to own a gun and if someone made me have a gun, I would probably leave the job,” said Bockino. I see not benefits, only determinants. There would be a population that might feel safer, but I don't think they would be safer.”
Bockino said he hasn’t done anything in his classroom to discuss shooting or prevent them from happening and that it isn’t the role of the professor to keep students safe from this type of violence, but rather a university problem.
Gun owner and student at Virginia Tech University said that he can see the benefits of having guns, especially by making students feel safer.
“More guns that are in the right hands will stop people with bad intentions,” said Blomdahl. “People are scared of guns because most of them have never seen, shot or been taught about them, and that needs to change.”
Elon Senior Chris Bertrand said that his “natural instinct” would be that equipping teachers with guns is a bad idea. “I lean on the side of limiting guns rather than giving them,” he said.
His idea: implement Australia’s gun laws where homicide have been the lowest in 25 years.
Following the shooting at Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida, people have been looking to this Pacific country as a model for the next states the U.S. should take.
In 1996 Australia faced a similar tragedy were a 28-year-old, armed with a semiautomatic rifle, shot and killed 35 people, and injured 18 others.After the event, the country banned certain semi-automatic, self-loading rifles and shotguns, while also imposing stricter licensing and registration requirements.
Bertrand said giving people less access to guns would be a better solution that arming professors. “I hope to see more regulation and less tragedy.”
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