With the recent attacks such as the one at Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, a big question has arised:  Should teachers be armed? Although the ideal of having gun in a classroom is completely preposterous, it could actually allow for some sort of security.

As seen in cases like Sandy Hook and Parkland, on campus security have done almost nothing to stop the massacre. This is the ugly truth, and it’s something we must face. By the time the police arrive, a gunman has a already entered and/or killed say, five people. Already he is storming classrooms, breaking open doors and killing children. We have to remember that on most of these massacres, the gunman is not using a small 9mm pistol. They have been seen more recently with AR-15’s. It isn’t possible for one or two men to neutralize a man with only a pistol. The assault rifle will do a lot more damage than that.

Now, giving guns to teacher won’t completely stop mass shootings in school. What it will do though is make it harder for assailants to get into classrooms if someone is shooting back. The teacher has the upperhand here, the shooter does not know where exactly the armed individual is. Knowing that there is only one entrance, the teacher can then just wait for the person to come inside. Not only this but this could provide teachers with a higher pay. Teachers who are experienced and know how to handle firearms should be paid more. After all, they are the second line of defense against people who are trying to harm our schools.

You can argue that having a weapon in a classroom can put the lives of students at risk. While being true, there should be extremely deep background checks and regulations so that only the most trustworthy and professional are on possession of something as powerful as a handgun. This can easily limit the amount of mass shootings because knowing that teachers are armed, people would find it harder to do.

It is tragic that it has come to the point where we have to seriously debate these topics. Having guns in a place that is ideally one of the most safe places to be is horrible. This is just the world we live in.