Article Analysis Essay on States Considering Nearly 250 School Safety Bills Already in 2019

Introduction

The article talks about the safety of school children. School children have recently been involved in gun violence with most recent cases leaving the nation under great sorrow. Shooting in schools notably at the Marjory Stoneman Douglas high school in Parkland Florida where a former student shot and killed seventeen children and adults and injured more have led to safety measures being enacted at the schools to avert damage. Safety measures such as setting up school safety plans, performing emergency drills, installing door locks and metal detectors and implementing parent notification systems in schools are some of the measures put in place. Also, arming school guards and declaring the elimination of gun free zones in schools are the measures put forth to reduce gun violence in schools.

Is your time best spent reading someone else’s essay? Get a 100% original essay FROM A CERTIFIED WRITER!

Save 25%

Bullying is also another category that has been on the radar with the focus being on bills that curb cyberbullying, hazing and school counseling. The bills tabled enable emergency preparedness plans for schools and also increased funding for school resource officers also providing them with increased training on handling firearms and additionally allowing them to carry their firearms (Camera, 2019).

Policy implications to arming teachers would be that the parents would have to raise their property taxes to fund the arming of teachers in schools. This means that parents will have to spend more money so that schools can raise the amount to fund arming of teachers and other personnel that need to be armed in schools. Parents and families are likely to go through periods of anxiety if the teachers and other staff members are armed. Families insist that arming teachers at schools make them feel insecure about their children's safety. Most parents argue that in case of disagreement or extreme cases of misunderstanding between teachers and parents then there is a likelihood that the guns could be used inappropriately and in the process hurting the students. Also, parents feel that arming teachers places more risk to students if a teacher for instance misplaces the firearm and it falls in the hands of a child who might use it to harm other people or even themselves. Parents argue that carrying a gun to class would hinder proper coordination and social interaction between teachers and students. They argue that the element of fear would be instilled in the class atmosphere leading to a poor understanding of concepts. This would ultimately lead to the production of poor results from the students. Families also argue that money that should be used in the development of schools and to better education of their children should not be used to buy guns and arming teachers. Families also expressed their concerns in areas where racial discrimination is still rampant citing that giving out guns could heighten the amount of discrimination in schools in cases involving teachers who have been armed (Camera, 2019).

The article clearly states that legislation about beefing up security in schools has been on the rise which is true in recent times. It is also important that students are given the maximum available security to prevent cases of murder or shooting in schools. Also, coming up with policies that would do away with bullying in schools is a good initiative in curbing physical and emotional damage that might be done to children and students.

Reference

Camera, L. (2019). States Considering Nearly 250 School Safety Bills Already in 2019. Retrieved from https://www.usnews.com/news/education-news/articles/2019-02-26/states-considering-nearly-250-school-safety-bills-already-in-2019