Weaponry in Schools and Its Effects

by Colin Modzelewski

As numbers of cases rise within a single year, the threat of weapons in schools has become a real worry amongst many. Just this year, there have been 66 recorded cases of shootings in the US already, and there is definitely more to come. So even that brings up the question of how many weapons are smuggled into schools, how often are they used, and how to prevent the possible increase of injuries? 

The United States has become infamous for its rise of mass school shootings and attacks. These attacks are mostly driven by things like a mental disability, bullying, or simply wanting to do it for pure fun. In the 2021-2022 US school year, there were 5000 cases of children from kindergarten to 12th grade possessing a firearm in school. It is very obvious that these numbers have been increasing over the past 3 years. Almost 300 fatal weapons, such as knives, brass knuckles, and guns, were caught in students' hands in NYC public schools during 2023-2024. In addition to that, almost 4000 dangerous instruments like box cutters and pepper spray were found in that same area. All of this happened in just one area, so if those amounts of instances were to be spread across the entire country, it is clear to see how devastating this issue really is.

This is pretty well-known by this point, but the growing numbers by the years is a real threat. This problem could not only affect bigger areas such as NYC, with its larger population and therefore more students, but could affect anywhere. At any point, an incident could strike anywhere. It always poses a burden to teachers, parents, and especially children. So what is the proper way to combat this rise? Well, stronger security, possibly anti-bullying programs that students will actually follow, and overall telling students it’s not cool to have a weapon. As much as it is to show off, it’s seriously dangerous and that little knife’s consequences aren’t so small.