Parkland Teacher Reflects on Continuing Gun Violence
On May 9, more than one year after a gunman opened fire at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., killing 17 students and teachers, the governor of Florida passed a bill allowing teachers to carry guns at school.
This came just two days after yet another school shooting occurred in Colorado, just miles from Columbine High School.
Melissa Falkowski, a language arts and journalism teacher at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, has grown frustrated over the lack of change in the past year. “It is very frustrating that the Florida Legislature has just voted to arm teachers despite huge opposition from the public,” said Falkowski. “I think politicians and the government have a duty to protect the public and they are failing.”
Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School itself has implemented several changes since the shooting. Every day 15 security guards and three resource officers monitor the school. The school installed self-locking doors and every classroom has a Stop the Bleed kit, a first-aid kit specifically designed to stanch excessive bleeding.
Falkowski wasn’t a fan of guns before Feb. 14, 2018, as she had a negative experience with guns as a child. She and her siblings found a loaded gun and played with it thinking it was a toy, until it fired. Thankfully nobody was injured. Because of that experience, Falkowski is a firm believer in safe storage laws.
“I also don’t think anyone needs military style weapons and, I personally disagree with how the Supreme Court has interpreted the 2nd Amendment’s language to mean that anyone can own a gun, but I respect that they have set the law of the land,” said Falkowski.
After the Parkland shooting, Falkowski decided to incorporate new material into her journalism lessons. This is because she did not like how journalists cover mass shootings and other acts of gun violence.
“I think the media needs to minimize the coverage of [the perpetrators] because the level of coverage has created copycat incidents and encourages other unstable individuals to commit these acts,” she said. “I think journalists need to cover the long term effects of gun violence and not just the immediate aftermath.”
As a journalism teacher and advisor of the school newspaper, The Eagle Eye, Falkowski is in a unique position to teach her students how to be sensitive journalists. “We talk a lot about wellness in our newsroom,” added Falkowski. “It’s really important to me that my students continue to take care of themselves and to step back when things become overwhelming for them.”
Not only do Falkowski’s students create The Eagle Eye, but they also wrote a book, We Say #Never Again. The book is made up of stories from students and Falkowski herself. Each entry is about something different, from what students experienced the day of the shooting to their healing processes.
“I think it is important for there to be positive experiences to come out of this terrible tragedy,” she mused. “I think the more my students write about their experiences, the more it helps them to cope and process their feelings.”
While Falkowski has encouraged her students to write about their trauma, everyone, students and teachers, still have a long way to go. “Every day we return to the scene of our trauma and greet students that are also struggling with their trauma.”
“We are supposed to so what we have always done — teach our students, but it is incredibly difficult,” added Falkowski, who realizes she, like every Stoneman Douglas teacher, has a duty to her students. Just as she protected students in her classroom storage closet on Feb. 14, 2018, she needs to support them now. Nevertheless, she is hopeful for the future.
“We are a work in progress.”
