As an educator, I’ve been a part of many types of drills for safety, including active shooter drills. Most schools practice active shooter drills by “calling” the drill while students are already in class. When the drills are called, the teacher shuts the door (that typically is already locked from the outside) and the students sit in the corner away from the door. Then the drill is “cleared”, and that’s pretty much it. There are a variety of problems with this, and as parents we can do some things to improve the safety of our students by helping them be more independent and aware.
We have already discussed ways to improve safety at the bus stop, on the bus, and while entering the school. Now, let’s move on to what students can do inside the school to increase their safety.
Walking Through the Halls
Each day, students change classes upwards of 5-7 times, depending upon their grade level, and walk the halls of their school each time. In the lower grades, typically fifth grade and below, a staff member walks them from location to location. In the lower grades there tends to be much less congestion in the hallways. From sixth or seventh grade (depending on how the district divides their middle school) and up, the quantity of students in the hallway magnifies. In some schools, there are specific stairwells for specific grades because of the quantity of students. There may be 500 plus students moving through the halls at any given time. Again, this creates a prime location for the most devastation to occur. Anyone with ill intent will definitely pick a time such as this to cause the most casualties.
Continue reading“Student Safety in Active Shooter Situation- Part 2, by P.N.”
