Our district has undergone many efforts to increase our school safety in the last 2 years. We have controlled access entries now in all our schools, we have increased security supervision by contracting with a private security firm, and we have video camera surveillance on just about every corner of district property (and we use it, much to our students' annoyance). All this is to say that obviously our district has wisely chosen to invest in the safety of its staff and students.
Things were taken even one step further this year when every school was provided intensive intruder training. At first we were all a little nervous about it, but everyone quickly got on board with the project. Since my parents are uber-safe about everything all the time (wrist guards while rollerblading anyone?), I get a big kick out of this sort of thing. Being prepared is the best way to be!
It started with a basic classroom session. We listened to sound and video footage of various shootings and learned a lot of important lessons. We watched demonstrations on how to barricade doors, how to fight back, how to evacuate. It was simple knowledge stuff but it was very important and really made you think.
The next phase was a hands on training. We were put in classrooms to practice barricading doors and locking out intruders. We were taught how to fight back. And then we had drills. First they had us run a drill with the previous method of school safety- no locking out the intruder, every man for himself, hide. I had scoped out my hiding spot and was positive I could be completely unseen. But another teacher saw me headed there and joined me. We both scrunched ourselves into the corner and anxiously hoped the "shooter" wouldn't see us. It didn't work. Well kind of. She was more exposed than me so she was "hit" but I was not. It was eye-opening to feel so powerless in that sort of situation.
The second situation let us lock down the classroom. Whoo! That's where things got serious. Another teacher and I ended up in the dark right by the door anxiously holding on to the rope to keep it closed. Fortunately we did.
Each drill upped the ante and each time we got better and better in securing ourselves and our "position." It was an adrenaline rush for sure. We were proud that the intruders were never able to get into our room. By the time we finished we had some rope burn on our hands, were hot and sweaty, and definitely breathing hard. But it was worth it! We, and I say we because of course we all talked about it, feel much more empowered and in control should we face an intruder situation. The information isn't just for school invader situations either, you never know where you will face a violent situation.
Obviously we hope that this was all for nothing. That we never face this sort of situation. But the facts of life today are that you need to be prepared, and our crew is.
"Active shooter" training is what we call it around here. At the district I was at last year we ran a live drill, but so far at my current district we've focused on our mental game.
ReplyDeleteYou're right, this is a very important and serious issue; at the same time, the informational campaigns are becoming overwhelming. We had a half day teacher session on November 8th, and it was the first meeting of any kind since December 14th of last year that did not in some way cover "active shooter." Seriously, every. single. meeting. And knowing how many meetings we attend throughout the course of a year, that is a LOT of talk about dead kids and dead teachers. But we can't relent, because if we're not vigilant a kid could come up behind us in the bathroom with a box cutter.
While again I definitely believe this training is important and worthwhile, had you told me this would be such a central component of my ongoing "professional development" when I was going to school to become a teacher, I never would have been able to believe it. It truly saddens me that this is what it means to be a teacher now.