The endless, ubiquitous gun debate still powers through the airwaves and the Internet. New legislation seems to be proposed daily and editorials circulate about the importance of Americans being able to carry guns, whether certain firearms should be banned and whether they should be removed from the country altogether. The debate has now shifted because a group associated with and funded by the NRA is drafting an initiative that employs an armed security guard in every school in the U.S., according to CBS News. As announced by Ark. Rep. Asa Hutchinson, the NRA National School Shield Initiative also proposes arming teachers. The discourse has now moved to whether schools should allow employees, either security guards or teachers, to carry a firearm in the hallways. Does this make the school safer or does the increased prevalence of guns increase the stress of students?
To those who have been affected by gun violence or any sort of intruder, the threat of a seemingly impending invader sits in the back of their mind. Seeing armed security guards in the school may soothe their worries, but it also heightens their awareness that the armed guard, or gaurds, are walking their hallways because there is a constant threat of danger.
This does not protect the entire school from all threats, though. Increased protection in the hallways might ward off some assailants, but there will always be the possibility of one, or multiple, entering the school. Nothing will completely stem off shootings except for a police state or if guns were abolished from the country altogether. This initiative does, however, show viable solutions to some dangers.
The well-being of faculty and students is important, but those weapons should not land in the hands of teachers. Even after an intensive background check, a 40-to-60 hour training workshop and certification, should teachers be responsible to protect their students with a firearm? The knowledge that a teacher has a firearm — whether it is concealed or in plain view— changes the dynamic between the teacher and student. For younger children, this might instill fear-fueled respect instead of a hierarchical respect. Because guns have been so widely vilified along with the mass murderers, younger, less mature students could irrationally fear their teachers. Students should feel as comfortable as possible in the learning environment, and should not be given such a potential cause for distress.
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