The recent, tragic shooting of Newton, Conn. has raised many questions about the safety of our nation’s schools.

Several schools have changed policies and reemphasized policies already in place, such as locking all classroom doors during school hours.

Recently, there has been talk about providing guns in the classrooms. These guns would provide protection if an attacker were to burst into a classroom and start shooting at students and staff.

Does this mean teachers should be armed in classrooms? Absolutely not.

If an attacker were to enter a classroom, it is entirely possible that many students or possibly even the teacher would be shot before the gun could be reached or pulled out, especially considering that the shooter could be using an automatic weapon that sprays out bullets quicker than many can react.

How many of us would feel comfortable sending our kids to school knowing that there is a weapon in the classroom?

Weapons are not as simple to use as TV or movies might portray. If the staff is not properly trained to use them, the students are still at risk during an attack.

Even with a properly trained staff, questions about the safety and well-being of the students arise.

With the knowledge of a weapon in the classroom, a student could snoop around to find the weapon and endanger themselves and their peers.

There are a lot of questions, but common sense shows that they are very real concerns when any of kind of weapon is introduced into a learning environment.

I’m for people knowing how to defend themselves, especially in schools, but there are other ways to defend oneself without the use of weapons.

The main priority should be to disarm the attacker and get away. At the very least, schools should provide training for staff members to emphasize this idea.

I work at an elementary school and if my employer asked me to carry a gun, I would refuse. I wouldn’t want the students to feel unsafe with the idea that I have a gun. And honestly, I don’t want the weight of having shot someone on my shoulders.

Not to mention that a child should not have to witness me shoot someone. A staff member should not be a perpetrator of violence, but a role model for peace.

No one can be prepared for an attack that could happen at any moment. There’s no way to practice for an exact situation like the Sandy Hook shooting.