chaim
Member
Some of the expedient ideas here are good ideas (and some I already use).
The umbrella was added to this post almost as an afterthought as I have a number of items that can be placed into use if I'm in the right place. In my classroom I always have an extra pair of (very pointed) scissors in a few places in the room as a makeshift knife if there is a school shooter. I have a broom with a metal shaft in my storage closet (if I have time to get to it). I used to have a very sturdy wood yard stick until it was taken from me since I'm a social studies teacher and didn't need it and it was given to the math teacher (I assume if I buy one and label it so it is clear it belongs to me and not the school it would be left alone). I love the dish soap idea. While I don't have a sink in my room so there is no obvious need for soap, we do have a big container of hand sanitizer and a bunch of hand sanitizing gel on the floor would have the same effect.
I do have a nice, and sturdy, wood cane from the last time I was injured (a few years ago I lost a significant amount of weight: being older and out of shape, but working out to get back into shape, can result in frequent injuries). However, it has been a few years and someone everyone knows to be healthy carrying a cane could be pretty obvious. The umbrella could be with me behind my desk at all times, and (at least on overcast days) wouldn't draw unwanted attention when on recess or bus duty. The advantage of the sturdy pen (whether tactical or not) is that it is always on my person.
I don't walk into a new classroom (or anywhere) without situational awareness and part of that is surveying the room and identifying what I can use. Most of the time, it is at best a second best option (my broom handle is very light aluminum, a stapler is bulky and not shaped well for a bludgeoning expedient weapon but can be used, a chair is very bulky and slow, etc.). I haven't thought to use a flag pole (I see the flag more than the pole), but I could hand that to a student if something happens (I would not be one of those "he shielded the students" teachers as that leaves them totally defenseless as soon as the teacher is killed, I'm fighting if there is a shooter, but if I am killed or injured badly enough to be out of the fight, I want my students to have a fighting chance).
The umbrella was added to this post almost as an afterthought as I have a number of items that can be placed into use if I'm in the right place. In my classroom I always have an extra pair of (very pointed) scissors in a few places in the room as a makeshift knife if there is a school shooter. I have a broom with a metal shaft in my storage closet (if I have time to get to it). I used to have a very sturdy wood yard stick until it was taken from me since I'm a social studies teacher and didn't need it and it was given to the math teacher (I assume if I buy one and label it so it is clear it belongs to me and not the school it would be left alone). I love the dish soap idea. While I don't have a sink in my room so there is no obvious need for soap, we do have a big container of hand sanitizer and a bunch of hand sanitizing gel on the floor would have the same effect.
I do have a nice, and sturdy, wood cane from the last time I was injured (a few years ago I lost a significant amount of weight: being older and out of shape, but working out to get back into shape, can result in frequent injuries). However, it has been a few years and someone everyone knows to be healthy carrying a cane could be pretty obvious. The umbrella could be with me behind my desk at all times, and (at least on overcast days) wouldn't draw unwanted attention when on recess or bus duty. The advantage of the sturdy pen (whether tactical or not) is that it is always on my person.
I don't walk into a new classroom (or anywhere) without situational awareness and part of that is surveying the room and identifying what I can use. Most of the time, it is at best a second best option (my broom handle is very light aluminum, a stapler is bulky and not shaped well for a bludgeoning expedient weapon but can be used, a chair is very bulky and slow, etc.). I haven't thought to use a flag pole (I see the flag more than the pole), but I could hand that to a student if something happens (I would not be one of those "he shielded the students" teachers as that leaves them totally defenseless as soon as the teacher is killed, I'm fighting if there is a shooter, but if I am killed or injured badly enough to be out of the fight, I want my students to have a fighting chance).
I've been teaching for nearly 20 years, I am very good at classroom management and de-escalation. It is rare that things get too bad, let alone physical. At my current more upscale school it has never happened. Some disrespect and backtalk (very occasional) is as bad as it gets. At my old (Title I) school, it occasionally happened. I was one of those teachers who never hesitated to break up fights, until a few years ago when a student pushed me to the ground and with the age difference I was injured (him an over 6' tall athletic teenager, me an overweight, then 48 or 49 year old man). After that, if the violence wasn't directed at me (which never happened), I did what admin wanted me to do and waited for the school resource officer (police), the behavior techs, or the behavior specialist. As a former special ed teacher, for 15 years I was trained in CPI (deescalation and, failing that, "hands on" techniques) and when I worked at the psychiatric hospital I worked at before teaching, I was asked to be a trainer for my unit for similar techniques used by the hospital.That said, how do you deal with an unruly student (more likely).
If I had something that the powers that be would classify as a weapon I'm not risking being fired and losing my pension. I'd be breaking federal law and risking a felony. In fact, I'm now so used to not carrying them that I don't carry my pocket knives and pepper spray when in my off hours as much as I'd like since they are no longer part of my daily "uniform" and I don't think about them as much anymore. Now that I finally have a MD carry permit and I keep them by my carry gun I hope to start carrying them in my off hours more often again. I recently bought some ASP pepper spray in a small metal container that looks a lot like my pocket flashlight and I was tempted to carry it despite being illegal, but decided the risk to my freedoms wasn't worth it (even if I wasn't jailed, being convicted would mean no more gun rights and getting any job would be tough).Just ensure you do not get jammed-up and lose a valuable pension this close to retirement!
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