Terrorist Training For Schools, Good Idea, Or Not?

[trt]

I saw a little bit of this on the lunchtime news, where in case of a terrorist attack, all children have to hide under their desk/tables, the teacher closes the blinds, and turns off the lights, as if the classroom is empty.

In one way its good idea, but at the same time, is it a bit alarming for the kids?

[ToraToraTora]

what about the NRA suggestion? Arm all the kids and the teachers with guns, what could go wrong?

[jim360]

I think it's a terrible idea to train kids to be terrorists. Oh wait, that's not what this is about?

* * * *

I don't think the children will take it seriously enough to be alarmed. Rather like a different kind of fire drill. Wasn't it the same (in the US, at least) when they had to go through the "in case of a thermonuclear detonation, hide under your desk from the coming Armageddon" safety drills?

[-Talbot-]

Great idea and just to make sure the kids do take it seriously have a fully garbed terrorist (actor of course ... let's not get silly) run into the classroom and fire a few blanks.

[albaqwerty]

Saw this earlier, I'm saddened that this is thought necessary.

[jno]

quite so, jim

[anotheoldgit]

How history repeats itself, no different to the kids of WW2 they had to go to the air raid shelters and don their gas masks.

[jourdain2]

They've been doing this in France for at least a year. Kids are resilient. OH remembers gas-mask and shelter drills as a bit of excitement.

[dannyk13]

And also a break from lessons.

[youngmafbog]

Dont see a problem with it. Better for a few delicate flowers (the parents) to be upset but the kids all prepared.

[Kromovaracun]

I think, like the "duck and cover" ads referenced above, this is a Linus blanket that is very unlikely to actually make anyone safer.

But it's also harmless, and it's free. And Linus blankets have their uses. So why not?

[fiction-factory]

This happens already in a way- it's the latest wheeze for schoolkids when they get a supply teacher- at regular intervals someone gives the signal/codeword and they all disappear under their desk. Seems to work quite well

[EDDIE51]

Reminds me of the nuclear attack drill we had in my school back in the 1963 Cuban crisis . We had to line up in our classroom and then march out to the playground but not until the teacher told us to. Once in the playground we had to line up, one line to each class so that the teachers could count us. It took way over the 4 minutes warning we would have got if there had been a real Nuclear attack.

[EDDIE51]

^ Even then I did not see how it would do any good!

[vulcan42]

Japanese children have been doing this sort of training for years in case of earthquakes, I'm sure our children can take it in their stride.

[pastafreak]

It certainly not a new thing. We had similar exercises in the '50s...just in case a bomb was dropped near our suburban grade school. I don't think any of us were traumatised by it.
I'd forgotten about it until I'd seen the report on the morning news.

[Peter Pedant]

// How history repeats itself, no different to the kids of WW2 they had to go to the air raid shelters and don their gas masks.//

but what of a warning - ( a la droning of the air raid sirens )

I know ! - a call to prayer and machine gun fire in the backfround- or the wailing of children