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School shootings
Preventing school shootings. What the experts say
Last Updated September 15, 2006
CBC News
In the aftermath of violent crimes at schools, parents, teachers and school administrators alike wonder: Could this happen here?
The shootings at Dawson College on Sept. 13, 2006 cap a series of murderous rampages including the one at École Polytechnique in 1989 and those at Columbine High School in Colorado and W.R. Myers High School in Taber, Alta., a decade later.
Keeping schools safe has been a priority long before these and the dozens of other outbursts that have shocked people all over the world.
Here's what the experts say about safeguarding our schools:
Emergency management
Disasters cannot be prevented completely. Schools must identify potential risks — either natural or human-caused — and be prepared for emergencies.
The Canada Safety Council recommends that schools create up-to-date and complete emergency kits at the beginning of every school year.
Kits should include floor plans noting emergency exits, detailed information on how to shut off alarms, sprinklers and utilities and a current school roster. Principals' offices, staff rooms and custodial offices are examples of safe places the kits should be kept throughout the school. Administrators should also share copies with the local school board, police and fire departments.
The Canada Safety Council's information package titled "If disaster strikes, is your school ready?" reminds schools across Canada of the need to have disaster preparedness plans.
Identifying at-risk kids
"Profiling is not effective for identifying students who may pose a risk for targeted violence at school," warns a U.S. Secret Service Safe School Initiative report released in 2002. It says that profiling students by background, academic record or socio-economic status holds no merit and causes the identification of students who pose no risk.
Monitoring student behaviour and character plays a more effective role in identifying students early on that may be at risk.
Intervention programs, suggests Stu Atty, president of the Canadian Safe School Network, can target young children "so that they don't get into the state where they become very angry" and feel alienated or marginalized, he told CBC.
In a number of school violence cases, the attacker had been a victim of bullying, experiencing harassment and torment. Many school boards across Canada already have anti-bullying programs and policies.
Educators also acknowledge the importance of monitoring internet use in identifying children who may be at risk for dangerous behaviour.
Break the silence
Loyalty to friends and an unwritten code of silence are important to children, but it is more important for them to realize the need to report plans of violent behaviour.
The U.S. Secret Service Safe School Initiative report "Preventing School Shootings" found that prior to most incidents, attackers told someone, whether it was a friend, schoolmate or sibling, about their plans.
Only in rare occasions did the confidant report anything to an adult prior to the attacks.
Responding to threats appropriately
Threats should be assessed for their severity before any action is taken, recommends the Columbine Review Commission Report issued by the State of Colorado, stressing the importance that all risks should be assessed.
It is sometimes challenging for educators to differentiate serious and troubling threats from behaviour linked to "bizarre senses of humour," says Harvey Nagelberg, a social worker for the Toronto District School Board.
"We have to try to understand where this threat came from. Were they trying to amuse, evoke, scare, were they just trying to be theatrical or was this a serious intent?" he told CBC.
Security equipment
There has been much debate over the installation of video surveillance cameras and metal detectors as a means of improving safety and security in schools.
This equipment can be used to deter some crimes, such as theft or graffiti, but according to the Columbine Review Commission Report, "they have not yet been proven to be cost-effective in preventing major school violence."
The commission recommended against the installation of these security measures as they "can serve only to offer transient solutions to specific problems."
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