Teachers Fake Gunman Attack

Slashdot reports on an unbelievable story out of Tennessee yesterday.

Staff members of an elementary school staged a fictitious gun attack on students during a class trip, telling them it was not a drill as the children cried and hid under tables. It'll be interesting to see what happens to these teachers after the charges brought against students in recent months.

From the article itself:

During the last night of the trip, staff members convinced the 69 students that there was a gunman on the loose. They were told to lie on the floor or hide underneath tables and stay quiet. A teacher, disguised in a hooded sweat shirt, even pulled on a locked door... Principal Catherine Stephens declined to say whether the staff members involved would face disciplinary action, but said the situation "involved poor judgment."

Oh. My. God.

I am so freaking sick and tired of the FUD (Fear, Uncertainty, Doubt) coming out of the school system. My 10-yr-old can't sleep at night because of the bloody Code Red drills at school, and is convinced that the least noise outside her window is a gunman coming to kill us all.

What the bloody hell is wrong with people? Who do they think they are really helping here??? Do the teachers or the principals get their warm fuzzies from scaring the hell out of their students, or do they not even enter the equation? Is it really necessary to drill for a school shooting?

How many children are killed at school by gunfire on a yearly basis, compared to those killed in automotive accidents?

And exactly where do they think kids get the idea to go on a rampage at school from? Doesn't it occur to them, that by "glorifying" past actions (media coverage, hysteria by authorities) they are handing kids the perfect avenue to get attention in a deadly way?

Can the government not see how they trivialize a tragedy like Columbine or Virginia Tech by pressing the FUD into the public mind to further their own agendas?

I'm just so overly disgusted by this whole deal. I think criminal charges should be pressed on those teachers and the principal individually, and sued for therapy fees for each and every student. I know I'd be screaming at the top of my lungs if they pulled a stunt like this at my daughters' schools.



Seriously.

Here, just so you don't think I'm completely off the handle, I'll reprint some choice comments from the Slashdot article:

Rather, the issue here is that too many teachers and principals are little tinpot dictators who view their schools as their fiefdom and students as little serfs answerable to them. It's part of why they become teachers and principals in the first place, a great chunk of them HATE kids but see it as a way to get a piece of their own little world, isolated from the adult world and with a more vulnerable, ignorant populace more fearsome of authority and thus more easily controlled. Oh, plus the summer off.

If there wasn't a way to force respect based on authoritarianism they wouldn't be interested, they're sado-masochists in disguise, mix them in with children and that makes them predators

Year after year there's always something or other frivolous thing they're trying to control. This year, in my neighbourhood, it was them trying to ban Axe body deodorant. I remember when I was a kid they tried to ban Doc Martens. Somewhere in between it was friggin' multi-colored shoe laces. Now it's MySpace. It never ends.

Now, another comment claims that the press release shows a different side of things - granted this is from the school system itself, and purported that "...Apparently, there was no "attack" staged; rather, the teacher told the children that there were people somewhere nearby shooting guns, though not at people. Most of the children did not seem upset by the incident. A few did, but supervisors talked to them and reported that they seemed fine afterward..." Now, the page linked to was supposed to have a press release regarding the above, but the only thing I found on the page was a pdf entitled "Disciplinary Action Announced by Director of Schools":

Director of Schools Marilyn Mathis has suspended lead teacher, Mr. Quentin Mastin, and assistant principal, Don Bartch, for unprofessional conduct and neglect of duty due to actions taken with Scales Elementary School students on May 10, 2007 at Fall Creek Falls State Park. The suspension is without pay and will commence on May 14, 2007 and continue through the end of this school year ending June 1, 2007.

Obviously the school system deemed the action inappropriate.

Further on in the comments I did find a link to the original press release. So now, as the commenter relates, "...the only decision you have to make is do you believe the 11 year olds description of 'about 20 kids started to cry' or the schools 'the children remained there quietly for a short period of time'?"

But I'll leave you with the best quote yet.

Unlike the student who was arrested a while ago for completing his essay assignment as [asked], these teachers will not be arrested. At best they may be fired after a couple months of looking in to it. They will probably only get a slap on the wrist. Don't forget that America in not interested in protecting children. This is a perfect example. By pulling this stunt, the teachers were able to scare the kids and [permanently] brand the image of terrorists into the Children's minds. It doesn't matter that the thing turned up to be a hoax, the less educated/experienced of the kids will live with fear for quite a while, perhaps their whole lives. The teachers are acting much as the rest of America acts. It [is] more important to mold children into the "American Cog" than to treat them fairly, or to give them an education. I mean, after all, what about the terrorists?

Read the rest of the comments if you're interested, there are far too many for me to wade through while I'm at work. And I'm done venting for now anyways.