Name:__________ Date​:______ Block​:​_______

Do Now
05.21.18

● Activator​: Since the shooting at Marjory Douglass High School in Parkland,

Florida lawmakers are suggestions we arm teachers in preparation for danger. Do
you agree or disagree with this idea? Why? How can we make our schools safer?
[RI.1] ​(3-4 complete sentences)

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Finish early? Begin reading the article. Level=0.

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 Learning Targets
I will be able to...
● Use ​textual evidence​ to support my response ​[RI.1]
● Make ​logical inferences​ ​using ​textual evidence​ [RI.1]
Teachers are outraged at the idea of carrying weapons. And they should be. By ​Petula Dvorak
Columnist February 22, 2018

A warning sign outside a school in Claude, Tex., in 2016. (Creede Newton/AP)

[1] When we slashed budgets, America’s teachers paid for their own art supplies. They volunteer
to supervise the senior dance, and yes, they spend their evenings grading papers and answering
emails from parents.

[2] But weapons training?

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[3] “We’re already asked to wear too many hats throughout the course of the day,” said Christine
Campbell, a high school chemistry teacher in Wilmington, Del. “Teachers are outraged by this.”

[4] They should be.

● Write & Reflect:​ According to paragraph 3, what can we infer about educators’
opinions on carrying weapons at school? Draw logical conclusions using evidence
from the paragraph.​(2-3 complete sentences)
○ Sentence Starters:​ ​According to paragraph 3, I can infer… I know this
because...
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We Do

1. Read and annotate ​paragraphs 5-8​.

2. Underline the ​central idea​ ​in every paragraph.
3. Answer the Comprehension Check ​questions.

[5] The proposal by President Trump, the National Rifle Association and some lawmakers to arm
teachers as a solution to America’s sick epidemic of school shootings is preposterous. It is a
transparent effort to stave off the common-sense gun-control measures being pushed by the
Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School ​students who survived a horrifying mass shooting ​in
Parkland, Fla., last week.

[6] “I am a combat veteran of the war in Vietnam,” a teacher from Pennsylvania who retired after
32 years in the classroom wrote to me. Ed Mihalacki is a guy who understands how a human
head responds when it is targeted by M-16 automatic rifles, M-14s, M-60 machine guns,
.45-caliber pistols and .38-caliber pistols.

[7] “With that in mind . . . I would NEVER carry a weapon into a classroom. EVER.”

[8] The politicians who have been bought by the NRA want to train teachers to carry arms in
classrooms — though ​Trump was quick to tweet ​he meant only about 20 percent of teachers with
“military or special training experience” who could “immediately fire back if a savage sicko
came to a school with bad intentions.”

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 Comprehension Check

1. According to the information in paragraph 5, why is Donald Trump suggesting teachers

should be armed with weapons? [RI.1]
A. Teachers are better equipped to handle situations, since we trust teachers with the
responsibility of teaching children
B. In the wake of school shootings, teachers feel motivated to use weapons to defend their
students
C. Since the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglass High School, there is the belief
teachers can prevent mass shootings
D. Arming teachers with weapons is a proven, safe way to end the epidemic of mass
shootings

2. What can the reader infer from the text about the problem of arming teachers with weapons?
[RI.1]
A. Teachers and students will be more likely to argue outside of school
B. There is no way to properly train or monitor the safety of weapons used by teachers
C. Students and staff feel comfortable with having weapons on campus
D. Unless given permission by Donald Trump, no teachers should have weapons

You Do

1. Read and annotate​ ​paragraphs 9-35​.

2. Work silently and independently--Ms. Dawson will come to you!
3. Move on to multiple choice. Finish early? Complete the Extension Activity.

[9] Here in Washington, we have multiple police forces trained to carry weapons. So I went to
someone who does this for a living, a retired law enforcement officer who once trained a large
force of armed officers. I cannot use his name or the agency he worked for.

\[10] But this is the nation’s capital, so you know I am not talking to the sheriff of Hicksville and
his four deputies.

[11] “It’s not as simple as just putting a pistol in a school,” he said. “There are enormous issues.”

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[12] First, it takes at least 100 hours of work before an officer who is trained to use weapons in
crisis situations is ready for action. This goes beyond a gun, bullets and a paper target, the trainer
said.

[13] “The building blocks to put round [of ammo] on a threat — we don’t call them a target, we
call them a threat — involve more than the fundamentals of shooting, which are sight picture,
grip, trigger control,” he said. “When we give our officers and agents guns, every situation [he or
she] is in is a shoot-or-don’t-shoot situation.”

[14] It is not just target practice. It is about assessing the scene and knowing whether it is really a
situation that calls for gunfire.

[15] That is a complex and sensitive issue law enforcement officers across the nation have
wrangled with for ages.

[16] Classrooms can be chaotic. In many school shootings, it is a student who is the shooter.
What about a child running for cover? What about a student who starts acting up in the middle of
class? We are asking a lot of teachers in such a frenetic scenario.

[17] Campbell, the chemistry teacher, said she talked to her students about it. They said they
would not feel comfortable in a school full of armed adults. “Like those airports in Third World
countries where you see them standing around with guns out in the open,” she said.

[18] Our retired weapons trainer said he had a whole team of folks, an armory, who did nothing
but service and maintenance on thousands of firearms.

[19] If we decide to dole out the money to arm some teachers — around $600 to $700 for the
average service weapon and around $10 for a box of ammo — who will be responsible for the
maintenance?

[20] “At this rate firearms purchases and money spent on training will soon become tax
deductible for educators,” said a frustrated Lester Green, a music teacher at Duke Ellington
School of the Arts in Northwest Washington. “Do we also get to write off Kevlar vests?”

[21] He would leave teaching before carrying a weapon.

[22] So would the other two teachers I interviewed.

[23] Hello, lawmakers, this is reality calling.

[24] Because it is not just the 100 hours of training to get them ready to shoot.

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[25] Some police departments require their officers to renew their training and requalify on the
range every year. Elite forces may require quarterly or even monthly training. What will it be for
teachers?

[26] All parents are familiar with the “professional development day” thing, when our kids get
random days off from school so their teachers can learn new curriculum and policies. Now they
will add days off to go to the shooting range?

[27] Then there is storage. Law enforcement agencies have sophisticated, temperature-controlled
and heavily fortified storage facilities.

[28] Schools cannot keep kids from hacking into grading systems, and now they may have to
find a way to safely store a small arsenal? Or will teachers be asked to take their service weapons
home every night?

[29] “When hearing the idea of arming as many as 20 percent of teachers with guns, the
overwhelming reaction of Maryland educators is total disbelief. How could any elected official
really believe that putting so many more guns in schools could make them safer?” said Betty
Weller, president of the Maryland State Education Association, which represents more than
74,000 educators across the state. “It’s why you’re seeing educators across the state take to social
media to talk about arming us with more school counselors and psychologists, more time to work
on social and emotional learning and less time testing, and smaller class sizes so we can devote
more attention to each and every student.”

[30] I tried to reach teachers at Maryland’s Clarksburg High School, where police found an
AR-15 style rifle, a shotgun, two handguns, ammunition and a tactical vest in the home of a
student who was jailed for allegedly bringing a loaded 9mm handgun to school.

[31] This is the second time the student, Alwin Chen, brought a gun to school, Montgomery
County officials said.

[32] But I doubt they would have said anything different from Sue Kochman, who teaches at
Hempfield Area High School in southwestern Pennsylvania.

[33] “I have been a high school English teacher for 30 years, and I assure you we do ​not​ want to
carry weapons,” Kochman said.

[34] Her school already has armed guards and active-shooter training, and Kochman said she
believes that is enough classroom prevention.

[35] “I will never carry a gun,” she said. “I want kids to believe that the pen is mightier than the
sword.”

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 Guided Questions

1. According to paragraph 25, why is it challenging to arm teachers? [RI.1]

A. It is challenging to keep track of training and qualifications
B. It is much easier to enlist teachers to fight than in the military
C. Military or former military teachers have an advantage over civilian teachers
D. Instead of arming teachers, we should give teachers the option to carry instead of
forcing these rules

2. Which of the following BEST supports the idea that arming teachers is a complex issue?
[RI.1]
A. “It’s not as simple as just putting a pistol in a school,” he said. “There are
enormous issues.”
B. “I am a combat veteran of the war in Vietnam,” a teacher from Pennsylvania who
retired after 32 years in the classroom wrote to me.”

C. “I have been a high school English teacher for 30 years, and I assure you we do
not​ want to carry weapons,” Kochman said.

D. I tried to reach teachers at Maryland’s Clarksburg High School, where police

found an AR-15 style rifle, a shotgun, two handguns, ammunition and a tactical
vest in the home of a student who was jailed for allegedly bringing a loaded 9mm
handgun to school.

3. What can the reader infer from the text? Cite evidence from the article to support your answer.
[RI.1] [​Sentence Starters:​ ​The reader can infer that.. For example, in the article it states… This
shows…. All in all…]

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 Extension Activities:  
Finish early? Choose a minimum of 2 activities to complete due Friday, March 23

● Extension Activity #1 [Argument!!]​: ​Do you agree or disagree with arming

teachers? Write a 1-2 page argumentative essay EXPLAINING your reasoning. You
MUST cite evidence from the text to support your response.
● Extension Activity #2 [Public Service Announcement!!]:​ Create a brochure
informing the public about school shootings. Include facts, statistics, and a call to
action to our government to change gun control laws.
● Extension Activity #3 [Rap or Rhyme!]:​ ​ Create a 2-3 minute rap about ending gun
violence. Use figurative language to tell your story.
● Extension Activity #4 [Letter to a Teacher]:​ ​Choose ONE teacher at SCCS and write a
1-2 page letter expressing gratitude and appreciation for their efforts. Many teachers wear
multiple hats and push themselves to motivate their students. [Choose someone other
than me please!!]