The two largest teachers unions in the United States called Wednesday for big changes to active shooter drills in schools, arguing that they are unnecessarily traumatic and do not make students safer.
A report issued jointly by the American Federation of Teachers, the National Education Association and the gun control advocacy group Everytown for Gun Safety recommended significant modifications to existing drills — informing parents ahead of time, avoiding realistic elements such as the sound of gunfire — and emphasized they should never be the only shooting preparedness plan a school or district has.