Why Guns Should Be Banned In Schools Research Paper

From February 18th to March 2nd, sixteen students on the college campus of The University of Texas at San Antonio were surveyed on whether the students approved or disapproved of the “campus carry” law. Out of the sixteen students, only nineteen percent, or three of the respondents, approved of the law while thirteen students, or eighty one percent, did not approve of the “campus carry” law. The margin of error of this survey was 24.49 and the 95% Confidence Interval was 26.51 to 75.49 percent. This shows that the low end of the confidence interval is below fifty percent, therefore it cannot be concluded that a majority of the student body approves of the law. For that reason, the difference between the percentage that approves and does not

Although eight states have passed provisions allowing concealed weapons on public campuses and several other states allow campuses to decide if they are allowed, instead colleges should take a holistic view and approach to provide a robust security program, safety training, communication network and guidance on behavior awareness for faculty and students. As States continue to pass campus carry laws the colleges continue to funnel the majority of their focus dedicated to passing the law. This has eroded and overshadowed the end result, which is to protect students and faculty. Campuses should not allow students to carry guns on campus. By providing this false sense of security it dilutes the opportunity to implement tools, train and provide strategies to improve campus safety.

HB 910, better known as the Open-Carry Bill is a bill that was passed on May 29, 2015 and signed into law by Governor Jim Abbott after it cleared both chambers of the Legislature. The Open-Carry Bill allows licensed holders to carry concealed handguns on public college campuses. Abbott claims that the bill will not only strengthen Texans second amendment rights, it will secure them (The Associated Press, 2015). However, the bill has raised questions regarding the safety of students and faculty on college campuses. As a team, we initiated our research by questioning the results of how the bill will affect college campuses across Texas. The objective of our research is to gather qualitative and quantitative data that defines

controlled on each campus throughout the state. The University of Texas in Austin is one of the universities that is required to comply with the new regulation. After reading some articles discussing Campus Carry, I realized there were compelling arguments in support of and in opposition to this expansion of gun rights. While some students support Campus Carry, others are quite concerned and feel that it may very well threaten their safety. In this essay, I will analyze the arguments made in support and opposition to the law, how the law may affect the students and faculty on campus, and provide alternate solutions which could provide the desired result.

A major issue in the United States is gun control. Due to multiple mass shootings in schools and public areas, restrictions regarding guns have been implemented across the United States. Andrew Parks, a student at The University of Alabama, wrote an article against gun restrictions. His article, “The University should allow concealed carry,” supports the idea of college campuses like The University of Alabama, allowing students to conceal carry firearms. In an article written by Jennie Kushner, the opinions of students on the University of Alabama’s Police Department’s gun policy are presented. The safety of student body relies on the students’ feeling safe. That safety comes from less gun control laws and policies on campus. Each of the articles stated provides information against gun control in different ways.

Reports indicate violence on a college campus are commonly caused by a student against students (Dickerson). Most cases of college violence occurred in the earlier 1990s and 2000s but severely of the incidents out of 272 cases the perpetrators killed 281 people incapacitated 247 or more (Dickerson). With the effective passing of Concealed carry laws, they have caused a possible increase of violence on college campuses (Dickerson). Even though guns on campus seem like a good idea for young adults for safety. Their brains are still developing as they still being perceived as physical mature (Dickerson). Many college students are easily persuaded and pressure to enact in risky actives. They get indulged more with alcohol and drugs staying on campus and it shows one risk students are faced with (Dickson). Dickson believes there are alternative ways to keep college students and faculties safe without the handling of guns on

One of the most important aspects of the debate on concealed carry on college campuses is one rarely spoken of — college students own opinions on the debate and how it will affect their safety. Most points support or disagree with the debate of concealed carry on college campuses are facts, laws, and opinions of mostly older

Students and staff with guns are not only a danger to other people, intentions malicious or not, but also to themselves. Students under high stress and emotional distress in general do not need to be around tools that can cause so much harm with so little effort. This argument, with the resounding knowledge of the high use of mind altering drugs on college campuses, mixed with the statistics surrounding the unhealthy psyche of students should be enough to show that campus carry is a bad

Gun ownership is on the rise and even college students want firearms now. Since 1999 college students owning firearms for protection has increased over 19 percent (DiMauro 17). With this rise whether or not these numbers should increase has become a heated issue. As of now 26 colleges allow concealed carry on campuses, totaling in over 70 campuses(Burnett) and many others are in consideration. Organizations such as Students for Concealed Carry are at work to educate the public on the truths of how on campus carry would to some degree benefit college students, professors, and all visitors. Firearms can be and should be allowed on college campuses primarily because it is a not only a fundamental right guaranteed by the constitution but also

Concealed weapons on college campuses has become a widely popular, controversial topic over the years. Through gathered research, there has been a discovery of in depth data and statistics from opinions of faculty and administrators from American colleges and universities. According to the scholarly journal, “Packing Heat: Attitudes Regarding Concealed Weapons on College Campuses” recorded a study that examined college students and faculty opinions about guns being prohibited on college campuses. During the fall of 2008 and spring 2009 over 2,100 students and faculty members participated in this research. (Patten, Thomas, and Wada, 551). This research concludes that students carrying concealed weapons on campus would make the students and faculty

The difference on perspectives has been a major issue especially after President Obama’s constant effort to pass more gun control laws. In contrast, the presumably and deeply Republican state of Texas, which has very few restrictions on guns, has just passed a law that makes concealed carrying on college campuses legal. Such law has been a controversy and had divided reactions from Texans all around the state. The problem that is tried to solve with this bill is to prevent more mass shootings from happening in the facilities of higher education institutions. It is very important to

According to the NCSL, National Conference of State Legislatures “Over the last five years, campus safety legislation has been a hot issue across the country”. Authors like Jazz Silva are standing up for student’s rights that some State Legislatures might not care about. Not only are weapons dangerous but it is unsafe to students who may struggle with mental health issues. College campuses are safer than the communities that surround them. The University of Louisiana system states “93% of the violence against students occurs off campus.” Allowing guns on campus would lead to an escalation in violence, can lead to an increased number of suicides by college students, and the possibility that a weapon can go off by accident.

About 4,400 colleges and universities in the United States forbid the carrying of guns on their campuses (“Colleges”). With more and more shootings on campuses, especially with the tragedy at Virginia Tech in 2006, the states are starting to rethink their position on whether guns should be allowed on campuses; especially in Texas, where Texans are known for their guns. Even with a state like that, however, the questions still remain: Will allowing students with guns make campuses a safer environment? Will it make students feel safer? As most controversial issues goes, there are two sides to the debate.

“Colleges and universities occupy a special place in American society. They are much more than a series of buildings and collection of individuals. Instead, they are dynamic living and learning environments where individuals with varying levels of maturity interact, often under stressful circumstances. While recognizing the right of responsible individuals to possess firearms under other circumstances, the unique characteristics of a university campus make the presence of firearms problematic. The shootings that have occurred in recent years at US colleges and universities have generated passionate debate about how best to prevent such violence and whether persons should be allowed to carry concealed guns on campuses. Experts believe there is no credible evidence that students or staff carrying guns would reduce crime. In fact, research has shown that the brains of most college students have not fully developed regarding impulse control and judgment” (Dickerson). Therefore, guns should not be allowed on college campuses because it would lead to an escalation in violent crime, distract from the learning environment, and lead to accidental discharge incidents.

Safety is a tremendous issue on college campuses, and additional procedures need to be taken to prevent crimes from happening. When walking onto a college campus as a young adult, people get a rush of the unknown. The unknown could be going to college parties and late night study groups. College should be like any high school or elementary school and have better security measures to protect their students. The reasons we need these extra steps are to prevent violence, give students a sense of security, and monitor visitors on campus.