Teachers Train in Active Schooter

Teachers Train

The Alabama Association of School Resource Officers conducted Active Shooter Training for educators recently.  The training was different in that the educators were training like the law enforcement officers.  The used guns with simmunitions, real-life guns that shoot paint bullets.

This type of training puts the educators in the shoes of the police officers, and gives them a glimpse of what an Active Shooter Incident is like from their perspective.

Analysis

The Indiana School Safety Specialist Academy conducted similar training a couple of years ago at the Muskatatuck Urban Training Center, specifically in an old hospital.

                                                  Indiana educators move in a 'diamond' formation

I had the privilege of acting as the "red team", which means I played a bad guy.  I had previously received certification from the Indiana Law Enforcement Academy in Basic Active Shooter Doctrine, and had conducted previous exercises with the Academy.

Watching the educators learn how to move as a response team offered me additional insights into teaching educators tactics.  The teachers and administrators who were involved in the training were eager to learn, and the exposure to the tactics gave them a new-found respect for law enforcement.  In that regard, the training succeeded.

But as far as providing educators with the tactical skills needed to survive in those environments, the two day training fell far short.  I recall in one scenario, a teacher stuck her gun around a corner, turned her head away, and opened fire into a room.  While giving those around the teacher a good chuckle, it was not a sound tactical move.

All in all, the training was excellent, and the educators involved learned a lot.

The personality types of educators does not often lend itself to the learning of tactical skills.  This concept will be examined further in future blog posts.