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Tasks: School Shootings

Read:

Before you start working with the tasks, you should know a few things about gun laws in the United States. Read the information in the expandable box and use this as background information.

Gun laws in the United States

In the United States, the right to keep and bear arms is protected by the Second Amendment to the American Constitution:

A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.

The amendment is interpreted to mean that the right to own firearms is a basic right for all individuals over the age of 18.

A third of American adults say they personally own one or several guns. In fact, the estimate of firearms in civilian possession is about 390 million. The American population, by comparison, is 330 million.

States are allowed to adapt some laws to suit their needs and their residents’ views of right and wrong, and as a result, you will find different laws in different states. In 37 states, you need a permit before you can carry a gun, and seven states have banned open carry of guns. In fourteen states, you need a permit to purchase a firearm, and eight states have a firearm registry. You can read more about gun laws in the United States here:

Link to Guns to Carry: The Complete Guide to Gun Laws by State

In an attempt to keep guns out of the wrong hands, federal law requires background checks for all gun sales carried out by licensed firearm dealers. However, no law requires background checks for guns sold by unlicensed sellers that operate online or at gun shows. This means that about 22% of all sales are carried out without a background check. This loophole enables people with domestic abuse restraining orders, mental illness, or felony convictions to buy firearms with no questions asked.

Discuss:

How can school shootings in the United States be prevented?

In the expandable box, you will find a list of actions that have been suggested or tried out to help prevent school shootings.

A cartoon showing a young boy with a gun. He looks angry. His thoughs are presented in a thought bubble: "I gonna show them who's the dork..." — Govva: Miguel Mendoza / CC BY 4.0

Individual work: Using the information in the expandable box, make a prioritised list of what you believe would be the most effective ways to prevent school shootings.
Group discussion: Compare your answers with the rest of the group and argue for your point of view. Are you able to agree on a common list? Do you have ideas for measures that are not on the list?
Class discussion: Share your answers with the rest of the class.

Possible solutions to school shootings:

Introduce a 48-hour waiting period for all gun sales. This means that you have to wait 48 hours after you have bought the gun before you can pick it up at the store.
Ban all assault weapons. Guns for target shooting and hunting should be allowed.
Give teachers weapons training and let them carry concealed weapons in the classroom.
Hire more teachers so they can take a more active role in their students' lives and intervene when they see students struggle, in or outside the classroom.
Require universal background checks for all gun purchases, not only the ones carried out by federally licensed firearms dealers.
Improve mental health services for young people by adding more school counsellors and psychologists.
Make sure that guns are stored safely at home, so that children cannot get hold of them.
Introduce better security at school, such as armed guards and metal detectors.
Introduce more frequent drilling of students and staff to make sure they know what to do in case of a shooting.
Close the gun show loophole. Today, it is illegal for federally licensed firearms dealers to sell handguns to anyone under 21. However, non-professional private sellers at gun shows can sell to anyone over 18.
Create a way for students, faculty, and staff to report potential threats. This could, for example, be an app or a place to write anonymous tips in the counselling office.
Make students wear transparent backpacks or ban backpacks altogether to make it more difficult for students to bring a gun to school.

Class project

Work as a class and divide the English-speaking countries between you.

Compare the United States to other English-speaking countries. How does the United States stand out with regards to ...

... the number of weapons in private hands.
... gun-related violence (homicide and suicide numbers).
... the number of school shootings and mass shootings.
... gun legislation.

Vocabulary

Handguns and weapons are an ingrained part of the American society, and this is also reflected in the language.

Do the activity below: match the expressions to their meaning.
Write a short story of maximum 550 words where you use as many of these expressions as you can. Use your imagination.

When you are finished, share your short story in a group. Give each other feedback: point out two things that were good about the story, and one thing that could be improved.

Write or present:

Pick one of the topics from the list. You can either write a longer text or make a presentation for the class.

The Second Amendment is regarded as one of the most important individual freedoms that have been granted to the American people. Explain what the Second Amendment says and why this amendment is so controversial.
What is the NRA, and how does this organisation influence American politics? Why is the organisation so controversial?
There is a great divide in the American population when it comes to the question of gun legislation. Find statistics and information that present this divide and explain the pattern you find.
The United States is a federal country. Explain what federalism is and how this complicates gun policies in the country. Give examples of how gun laws can differ from state to state.
After the shooting in Parkland, Florida in February 2018, the grassroots movement #NeverAgain was established by students at Stoneman Douglas High School. Explain how this movement came about, what they did, and why it was successful.
Compared to the United States, Canada has strict gun legislation. Find out about gun legislation in Canada and discuss whether gun control is the reason why Canada has fewer mass shootings than the United States.

Watch:

By following this link, you can watch a short animation called The Opposite Game on the TED webpage. Watch the film, then answer the questions below.

Link to the film The Opposites Game on the TED webpage

What is the plot of the film?
What is the theme of the film?
What is the message of the film?
The film ends with the sentence " Your death will sit through many empty poems". What do you think this means?

Analyse:

I Don't like Mondays by The Boomtown Rats, Brand New Kicks by Foster the People, and Jeremy by Pearl Jam are three songs that have school shootings as a theme.

Choose one of the songs. Find the song lyrics by making an online search, and listen to the song, for example on YouTube. Also find out about the background for the song: why was it written?
Write a text where you look at language features and literary devices used in the lyrics, and explain how they help convey the theme and message of the song. Also discuss whether the music helps convey the mood, theme, and message of the song.

If you know of another song that has school shootings as a theme, it is OK to analyse that instead.

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School Shootings

This resource explores how school shootings affect the American society.