I mean seriously!?!

I try not to re-post news articles too often, but this one has me slightly outraged.  It is one of the reasons, when asked by GBGM what kind of domestic placement would be a make-or-break for me, I said, “If you send me to Texas, I’m liable to quit.” *

To me, it is the equivalent of saying to a child, “Don’t smoke – here, watch your teacher smoke so you can see how gross it is.”  And then blowing the smoke right in their face. 

You have just got to be kidding me!  What really surprises me the most is how it was passed unanimously.  What is even more baffling than that is – this is a school of 110 students!!  My homeroom in high school was half that size and I’m not even kidding.  I’m sorry, but if you can’t manage 110 students without giving your teachers guns – you have WAY more serious issues!!!  Maybe instead of giving teachers permission to bring lethal weapons onto school grounds, school systems should be focusing more on the root issue at hand.  The students.  Offer them outlets for aggression and/or depression so it never reaches a volatile state.  Offer peer and adult counselors and activities that aren’t necessarily sports (any one else notice the increase in violence as the arts are decreasing in our schools?) I’m all for training your teachers how to respond in a crisis situation (which should be done regardless of school shootings – there are other crisises – crisi? – that affect schools), but how likely is it that a teacher with a gun will actually be able to shoot a student, even in the most extreme of situations.  Is that the kind of teacher we want up there teaching English or Math?  They are there to teach – not kill or maim. And seriously, you are going to arm the man or woman in charge of 40 7th grade boys?  One spit wad too many aimed at a teacher already on the edge…..

Instead, train your teachers in crisis prevention – so they know warning signs to look for when a child is depressed or angry.  Give them safe avenues to express their concerns, with people in charge who will listen and take action when needed.  How about smaller classrooms so teachers have a greater influence on their students.  Instead of wasting state and government money on political campaigns and needless wars, how about channeling that money where we need it most – our schools!  By arming our teachers, the only thing we are doing is confirming to these impressionable students that the only way to win is through violence. 

I want to hear your thoughts on this.

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*Editor’s note: This is, of course, a slight over-dramatization of the actual conversation, and should be put in context.  I was asked for honesty about locations, what kind of environments would be helpful or harmful to me to live in.  I have a strong desire to live outside of the South, and expressed that with honesty to my director – and while I did say that living in certain areas would be cause for greater consideration than others, the above comment was made more in jest than anything else.