Violent incidents at schools leave parents, teachers and community members feeling angry and helpless. Some schools are already allowing teachers to carry concealed, and many gun owners feel that it is just common sense to let licensed teachers carry their weapons at work.
For anyone wondering if allowing teachers with concealed carry permits to carry handguns prevent school shootings, there are clear reasons to consider it.
4 Good Reasons Teachers Should Carry Concealed:
- Teachers with a CCW have the ability to stop an active shooter who enters the classroom, saving the lives of many students and educators.
- Gun Free Zones make students and teachers vulnerable. Potential shooters will think twice about targeting a school known to have armed teachers.
- If a teacher is already licensed to carry concealed, he or she should be prepared to carry anywhere—including schools.
- Parents and community members can have peace of mind that teachers will be empowered to protect their students if a shooter enters the classroom.
Teacher and Officer Training and Preparation
Some opponents of having teachers carry concealed argue that their main function is to educate the children, not to fight off an attacker. They believe that campus safety should be enforced by increasing the presence of security guards or armed police officers instead.
This could be an option if they have been trained and will continue to reinforce their training to handle armed shooting incidents. While teachers may have undergone intensive firearms training, some argue they may be unprepared for the chaos and stress posed by an active shooter situation and may inadvertently put their students at risk.
Although increasing the amount of security on school grounds is a great idea, adding the additional personnel is not affordable for some schools. Teachers armed with CCW could be an affordable way to increase campus security.
To prepare teachers to be mentally and physically prepared in the event of an active shooting situation, school districts should require additional screening and training.
