Schools And Campuses Should Step Up Security

Improvement in security will also contribute to a safe environment. High schools should implement the use of metal detectors as well as random searches. Although, it may be tedious to remove all metal and coins from your pockets, it will ensure safety. This security measure can be specific to each school. An example being to make the checks random throughout the week or only require it for students to have a late arrival. Random searches can also be specified such as only searching lockers or classrooms. Motion sensored cameras can also be a very effective with safety. In many school’s cameras are only in the hallways and lunchroom, but what happens when violence occurs in a classroom? All evidence will be based off hearsay. This is not an effective way of assessing the incident considering there are 3 sides to every story. Adding motion cameras to classrooms will make evidence accurate. Not only will student-student altercations be recorded, but teacher-student altercations will be recorded. Security guards themselves should also be improved. Security guards should be posted in hallways upon children arrival, during passing periods, and upon school dismissal. Security guards should also be fit enough for the job. “The results indicated that utilization of multiple security measures reduced the likelihood of exposure to property

This shooting was the worst in United States history, and it left families speechless and people in disarray. Two teens committed the treacherous actions of that day. The speculations were that they did this because of bullying, goth culture, or music or video games; these though were all just theories and were never proven(history). After this event, schools, venues, and events have endured grand security increases in the danger of shooters or other violence. Throughout my school days, I have wondered why we do the silly lock down drills at school, but in reality, lives could be saved in the event of an actual attack on my school. I realized this my eight grade year at Guntown Middle School. There was an unidentified man on campus, a code red lock down would amerce. I still remember sitting under my desk, shaking, and almost to tears. I did not want to be remembered as just another statistic if it was a shooter. But it had been our lucky day, the man who had stirred up all the commotion was just looking for the school’s office. Those fears I experienced however, would stay with me. We all believe that we are invincible and that it would never be us. However, with the world as it is today, no one is safe. I have been affected by the Columbine shooting through security changes in schools that I

You hear almost every day another school goes into lock down or some crazy lunatic takes a gun to school its every tragic to hear of students and teachers getting shot. You hear of parents so afraid to send their child to school or not knowing when they drop their son or daughter off it will be there last. What if we can take preventive measures to help prevent a troubled individual or make them think twice about taking a gun to school? There are many things that schools can do to secure the students inside and are being implemented, but who are the students always around? And who sees the students more than anyone else? The teachers and I believe we can do the most good by arming them with guns after the proper training and

School shootings are a common occurrence on daily news. Students shouldn’t terrify going to school with the mindset that a shooter will show up with intention of killing people. Ideally, students leave home for school to learn, and not worried someone will come in and shoot everyone. When I was younger I would go to the bathroom worried a shooter would enter my school leaving me alone in a life or death situation. School security improvement is extremely important because children should feel safe and never in danger. Also, schools need better ways of helping children feel safe when they come for six hours everyday. More could be done for students, not only as prevention from shootings occurring but from relieving young children of unnecessary anxiety.

Unfortunately, the notion of schools being a safe place is no longer a trend across American schools. Disturbing mass shootings in the U.S continue to shock the media. A school shooting is when someone attacks a school using a gun. The Secret Service says these shootings are "deliberately selected as the location for the attack". The reasons massacres occur in schools is because of poor security, violence in video games/media, and bullying. Shockingly the U.S. has the most school shootings than any other country in the world. According to the FBI, mass shootings occur, on average, every 2 weeks in the U.S. While the cause of school shootings are sometimes unpredictable, it is a growing issue and they need to be prevented. Most shooters don’t have mental issues, they have a plan to kill, so there is no singular cause that creates violent people. On April 16th, 2007, the most deadly school massacre occurred. Seung-Hui Cho killed thirty-two students at Virginia-Tech. As Americans, we no longer should turn on the news and witness these gruesome murders. We try to make sense of these murders, but it’s ineffectual. There are measures we can take as a society to help. The number one question in a school massacre is, "why would a person that has a capable sense of mind even do that?” It is our moral responsibility to fix these issues. In order to stop this problem, we need to find its roots.

The effort of this paper is designed to provide an audience with the basic framework in preventing, reacting to, and recovering from a school shooting. By analyzing the crisis of a school shooting, this paper will lay out the practical steps in preparing schools, communities, and local agencies for a tragedy that has already shook many communities across the nation. This paper will also follow the steps necessary to implement and evaluate a school shooting preparedness plan. In concluding this paper, school staff, local agencies, and families will be able to take the practical steps towards providing a safe and comfortable learning environment for students.

The intention of this paper is to look at and present some issues and strategies that members of a school community think about when trying to create safer schools. Particularly when addressing an active shooter in a school setting. A major issue to consider when trying to keep all schools safe, is the simple fact that no two schools are the same. Understanding this can lead us to the conclusion that it is impossible to have one global plan or program that can be 100% effective in all schools. “Violence prevention programs work best when they incorporate multiple strategies and address the full range of possible acts of violence in schools. For any set of policies to work, it must be established and

School shootings have become a tragedy so common in America, that all of us has been affected in one way or another. Despite the fact that they happen once every few years, one time should be the enough and change should follow, this is not the case in most places. Some people think the solution to this problem can be solved by stricter gun laws, others believe the problem lies in Mental Health Awareness, both are uncertain but are the best option people can think of. Being a student and a member of the community, both of are well thought of solutions but they have their flaws. I believe the best way for schools to be safer is for the school system to be more in their community.

Tuesday April 20th, 1999 began like any other day. Parents went to work, and the children went off to school. Neither worried about the other, or how their day would turn out. But, hours later everything changed (“Columbine Highschool Massacre.”). Little did the residents of Columbine, Colorado know their high school would be a statistic for one of the largest school massacres in US History. On this day, two teenage boys were responsible for killing 12 innocent students and a teacher, wounding 23 more students, and then killing themselves (Miller). While a horrific event, the Columbine tragedy improved the safety in schools by upgrading security systems, improving administration’s knowledge on school security, and increasing

During the past few years, the number of school shootings has increased markedly. In 2013, there were 19 school shootings that occurred, taking so many innocent lives. Some may remember the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting on December 14th, 2013. It was the second deadliest massacre shooting in United States history, behind the 2007 Virginia Tech Massacre. Adam Lanza shot twenty children, six staff, his mother, and himself that day. School shootings are tragic. Violence continues to increase with these shootings, as well as with violence within the schools among the students. The big question is, how do we protect ourselves from these horrible occurrences? How do teachers protect the innocent lives of their students? One common suggestion is for the teachers and administration to be armed. The premise is that if the school staff has possession of firearms this would discourage shooters, thereby making the schools much safer. However, it is my belief that teachers should not be able to have access to weapons. There should never be any type firearm on a school property, excluding trained security personnel, such as police officers and security guards.

Thirteen people were killed at Columbine High School in 1999, thirty-three died during the Virginia Tech shooting in 2007, and twenty-seven people, twenty of whom were children no older than seven, were killed at Sandy Hook Elementary School in 2012 (Kirk). These name only a few of the larger and most well-known school shooting incidences. In total, 297 people have lost their lives due to school-based shootings since 1980 (Kirk). Although this number may be small in comparison to death by guns overall, these instances are completely unwarranted and it is likely that they could have been avoided or at the very least reduced. These people, college and high school students, teachers, and even children, might still be alive today if our

School shootings are terrifying and a big problem in today’s society. Schools have added lockdown drills, bullet proof glass and metal detectors. School should be a safe area for children to learn instead of fearing for their life. Instead of buying metal detectors and hiring more officers, there is a much easier solution in order to decrease and prevent school shootings. We have to be more alert about securing weapons at home and being aware of suspicious behavior at school in order to keep children and faculty safe.

On April 16th 2007 at the Virginia Polytechnic Institute, a student with psychological problems began a two hour killing spree that left 33 dead (Reader). The massacre that occurred at this school is now the worst recorded incident in the history of the United States and eclipses the University of Texas massacre of 1966. In the wake of tragedies like these, students, teachers and administrators propose more measures to make us feel safe on campus. But why weren't these measures in place before? School administrators and police have a responsibility to protect their students and faculty on campus, and these instances clearly shown a lack of fulfilling that responsibility. And yet several campus' refuse to allow law-abiding and

Teaching at a typical small town school in rural America one day, shots ring out. Active shooter drills come to mind, but what do we do, where do we go, how many students are present? Panic sets in. Thoughts of hiding, running, calling out for help and screaming all flash across the forefront of the mind when a person can be seen walking down the hall with a large gun in hand. No one ever thinks it could happen in a town, school, or church like ours but when the act is committed everyone feels the betrayal. Although schools from elementary to universities have adopted drills for active shooters and have routes with plans drawn up we never know how we will truly react until the time comes. Armed guards stand at the ready at most entryway doors but they are only one person and can not be everywhere always. In a recent study of active shooters for the Federal Bureau of Investigations, J.Pete Blair and Katherine W. Schweit have said, “The second most common incident locations were in educational environments…and the study results established that …these incidents involved some of the highest casualty numbers” (20). Crime is always a threat to education and defending our students nationwide should be a priority. The trouble begins with the fact that the school shootings are becoming more regular. Allowing teachers to be armed gives administration, faculty and students a more successful chance at survival against an active shooter in our education systems.

     “That could never happen in my school.” This is one of the first thoughts that goes through a students mind when they hear about a school shooting. The fact is though, it can. School shootings can happen at any school at any time. Lack of security is only a small part of the problem. The major issue lies in the low morality of students and warning signs overlooked by administration.