CYP Now - In the news - An alternative take on last week's media (4)

- "We've had a very disturbing trend of school shootings in the US. It is my belief this is caused by making schools gun-free zones," David Thweatt, school superintendent of Harrold in Texas, told The Guardian. The paper reported on the isolated farming town's efforts to protect pupils from attack by armed maniacs - by issuing teachers with firearms.

"We're 30 minutes away from law enforcement," explained Thweatt. "How long do you think it would take to kill all 150 of us? It would be a bloodbath." Carefully selected teachers will be trained in crisis management, including handling hostage situations. They will be required to get a state gun licence and use bullets "of a type less liable to ricochet off walls or desks".

"When you have the good guys with guns, the bad guys do less damage," said Thweatt. But teachers' unions are up in arms, so to speak. Gayle Fallon, president of the Houston Federation of Teachers, described the move as "a disaster waiting to happen". "It's up there with the worst ideas in the history of education," she said. Even worse than outsourcing Sats marking to ETS perhaps?

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