Getting at the roots of the school shooting problem...
There has been an overload of debate posts since the Parkland Florida school shooting. This happens everytime. It's a vicious circle. I try not to get too involved unless I think it's a group of people who can talk without devolving into mudslinging. Because, that's helpful! Here is my ramble about the current state of affairs.
I support the 2nd Amendment. I like to go target shooting. I don't own a gun, so this has nothing to do with 'mah guns'. If I thought stricter gun laws would truly help, I'd support reasonable reform despite my political views on that subject. We all have to be willing to step down from our respective high horses and talk about real solutions instead of just playing the same old talking points volley ball game.
The thing is that the root of the problem is complex and we didn't get here over night. No single solution is going to impact the issue overnight. So, let's offer our practical solution ideas from our respective view points instead of just standing in our corners pointing at each other or expecting Washington to bail us out. Here are my thoughts...
Working in special ed, when we want to impact a learning challenge, we scaffold by placing supports where we need to which we always hope will be eventually taken away once we have given the student the skills needed to function without them. So, going on that analogy on a broader scale, I think it would be wise to put some defensive measures in place at schools. These might be uncomfortable to live with, but this is the world we have all created together and the daily threat of these shootings is more uncomfortable. School districts should consider arming some well-trained staff or security guards and be diligent about security at schools. I work in a school where there are cameras all over and a locked front door, but no security staff. Our school is easily penetrable. And while we have been trained in ALICE, we only practice lock-down. We are essentially fish in a barrel during that.
After shoring up the schools to be better-equipped to defend against an attack, our communities need to focus on improving social and mental health for at risk kids. I don't mean that government needs to do this (this kid clearly slipped through the system. He was on a lot of official radars and nothing was done) I mean, we in our communities need to do these things. We need to teach kids to include the outcasts, to be bold when dealing with bullies, and not to stand for it when it happens. Some of this is already being done in some communities and I think we will start to see an impact as more people step up to support these efforts.
Folks need to stop using graphically violent video games and TV shows as babysitters. We have emotionally at-risk three and four year olds whose only play scripts are death, blood, cannibalism and guns. These kids' parents are the parents that we need to have blunt conversations with, but we don't. We don't want to pry or judge. We tell ourselves that we watched Bugs Bunny and Tom and Jerry and played shoot 'em up when we were kids. But this is not the bang-bang, your dead of our youth. It's much deeper than that. Some of these kids have no coping skills and little support from anyone in their family. There is only so much schools can do - though we are expected to be psychologists, behavior modification experts, and parents while also teaching academics. None of it does any good if everything we have done all day is undone at home.
As for guns and gun reform, a friend of mine (who owns and shoots) recently suggested changing the ammo that is used in the AR-15 and outlawing the ammo that is currently used. This does not infringe on 2nd Amendment rights, but can perhaps limit the amount of damage that is done in a shooting like Parkland. This could be a good compromise for folks on both ends of the debate. And we have to face the fact that all of us may need to compromise if we are ever going to get anything done. Also, I think folks should be knowledgeable about guns, how they are used, what the laws are, etc. Take a class, learn things other than what is seen on the internet in the form of memes and extremely biased sources. There is a ton of misinformation about automatic vs. semi-automatic weapons, what an 'assault' rifle actually is, etc. Knowledge is power. Let's not fear guns and cower from them. If we do that, then it will be the bad guys who are the most proficient with them.
I guess I could go on. But those are my thoughts for whatever they are worth.
I support the 2nd Amendment. I like to go target shooting. I don't own a gun, so this has nothing to do with 'mah guns'. If I thought stricter gun laws would truly help, I'd support reasonable reform despite my political views on that subject. We all have to be willing to step down from our respective high horses and talk about real solutions instead of just playing the same old talking points volley ball game.
The thing is that the root of the problem is complex and we didn't get here over night. No single solution is going to impact the issue overnight. So, let's offer our practical solution ideas from our respective view points instead of just standing in our corners pointing at each other or expecting Washington to bail us out. Here are my thoughts...
Working in special ed, when we want to impact a learning challenge, we scaffold by placing supports where we need to which we always hope will be eventually taken away once we have given the student the skills needed to function without them. So, going on that analogy on a broader scale, I think it would be wise to put some defensive measures in place at schools. These might be uncomfortable to live with, but this is the world we have all created together and the daily threat of these shootings is more uncomfortable. School districts should consider arming some well-trained staff or security guards and be diligent about security at schools. I work in a school where there are cameras all over and a locked front door, but no security staff. Our school is easily penetrable. And while we have been trained in ALICE, we only practice lock-down. We are essentially fish in a barrel during that.
After shoring up the schools to be better-equipped to defend against an attack, our communities need to focus on improving social and mental health for at risk kids. I don't mean that government needs to do this (this kid clearly slipped through the system. He was on a lot of official radars and nothing was done) I mean, we in our communities need to do these things. We need to teach kids to include the outcasts, to be bold when dealing with bullies, and not to stand for it when it happens. Some of this is already being done in some communities and I think we will start to see an impact as more people step up to support these efforts.
Folks need to stop using graphically violent video games and TV shows as babysitters. We have emotionally at-risk three and four year olds whose only play scripts are death, blood, cannibalism and guns. These kids' parents are the parents that we need to have blunt conversations with, but we don't. We don't want to pry or judge. We tell ourselves that we watched Bugs Bunny and Tom and Jerry and played shoot 'em up when we were kids. But this is not the bang-bang, your dead of our youth. It's much deeper than that. Some of these kids have no coping skills and little support from anyone in their family. There is only so much schools can do - though we are expected to be psychologists, behavior modification experts, and parents while also teaching academics. None of it does any good if everything we have done all day is undone at home.
As for guns and gun reform, a friend of mine (who owns and shoots) recently suggested changing the ammo that is used in the AR-15 and outlawing the ammo that is currently used. This does not infringe on 2nd Amendment rights, but can perhaps limit the amount of damage that is done in a shooting like Parkland. This could be a good compromise for folks on both ends of the debate. And we have to face the fact that all of us may need to compromise if we are ever going to get anything done. Also, I think folks should be knowledgeable about guns, how they are used, what the laws are, etc. Take a class, learn things other than what is seen on the internet in the form of memes and extremely biased sources. There is a ton of misinformation about automatic vs. semi-automatic weapons, what an 'assault' rifle actually is, etc. Knowledge is power. Let's not fear guns and cower from them. If we do that, then it will be the bad guys who are the most proficient with them.
I guess I could go on. But those are my thoughts for whatever they are worth.
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