Recently, I conducted a survey of teachers, asking them about their attitudes toward guns at school--specifically teachers carrying guns. Herewith, the press release I sent, along with the results.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Survey of Washington Teachers Finds Disinterest in Guns at School
A survey of Washington K-12 teachers has found a general disinterest in having guns in school.
Following on the recent tragedy in Newtown, Washington State Representative Liz Pike indicated her intention to offer legislation allowing adults to carry licensed firearms at school. Steilacoom teacher Andrew Milton surveyed teachers and staff across Washington to gain insight into the perceptions and preferences of the adults who work in schools.
The 7-question survey went out to over 400 randomly selected staff in more than 50 districts—big and small, urban and rural—across the state. The 181 respondents came from over 40 districts.
73 % of respondents indicated that they do not own a gun, personally, while 27 % said they do. Not surprisingly, the two groups responded differently to the idea of guns in school. Both groups essentially agreed that they feel safe in school (Gun owners, 73 % ; non-owners, 82 %), but gun owners thought adults with guns would make schools safer (53 %) while non-owners significantly disagreed (only 9 % thought guns would make schools safer).
Both gun owners and non-owners agreed that they would want to know if their colleagues were carrying guns at school. Rep. Pike’s proposal is to keep such information with the district superintendent only.
All Respondents
(181)
|
Respondents who don’t own guns
(130/178—73%)
|
Respondents who own guns
(48/178—27%)
|
|
1 I worry about gun violence in my school.
|
Strongly Agree-11.4%
Somewhat Agree-18.2
50/50-22.2
Somewhat Disagree-27.8
Strongly Disagree—20.5
|
Strongly Agree-8.7%
Somewhat Agree-18.1
50/50-19.7
Somewhat Disagree-29.9
Strongly Disagree—23.6
|
Strongly Agree- 18.8%
Somewhat Agree-16.7
50/50-29.2
Somewhat Disagree-22.9
Strongly Disagree—12.5
|
2 I feel safe at my school.
|
Strongly Agree-40.9%
Somewhat Agree-38.1
50/50-11.4
Somewhat Disagree-5.7
Strongly Disagree—4.0
|
Strongly Agree-44.1%
Somewhat Agree-37.8
50/50-11.0
Somewhat Disagree-4.7
Strongly Disagree—2.4
|
Strongly Agree-33.3%
Somewhat Agree-39.6
50/50-12.5
Somewhat Disagree-8.3
Strongly Disagree—6.3
|
3 Knowing that some adults were carrying guns at my school would cause me to feel safer.
|
Strongly Agree-8.0%
Somewhat Agree-12.6
50/50-6.3
Somewhat Disagree-14.9
Strongly Disagree—58.3
|
Strongly Agree-1.6%
Somewhat Agree-6.3
50/50-5.6
Somewhat Disagree-15.9
Strongly Disagree—70.6
|
Strongly Agree-22.9%
Somewhat Agree-29.2
50/50-8.3
Somewhat Disagree-12.5
Strongly Disagree—27.1
|
4 If adults could carry guns at school, schools would be safer.
|
Strongly Agree-9.1%
Somewhat Agree-12.0
50/50-4.0
Somewhat Disagree-16.0
Strongly Disagree—58.9
|
Strongly Agree-3.2%
Somewhat Agree-5.6
50/50-2.4
Somewhat Disagree-17.5
Strongly Disagree—71.4
|
Strongly Agree-22.9%
Somewhat Agree-29.2
50/50-8.3
Somewhat Disagree-12.5
Strongly Disagree—27.1
|
5 I would carry a gun at school if it were allowed.
|
Strongly Agree-8.6%
Somewhat Agree-8.0
50/50-4.0
Somewhat Disagree-5.1
Strongly Disagree—74.3
|
Strongly Agree-0.8%
Somewhat Agree-3.2
50/50-1.6
Somewhat Disagree-5.6
Strongly Disagree—88.9
|
Strongly Agree-27.1%
Somewhat Agree-20.8
50/50-10.4
Somewhat Disagree-4.2
Strongly Disagree—37.5
|
6 I would want to know if my colleagues were carrying guns at school.
|
Strongly Agree-79.0%
Somewhat Agree-9.1
50/50-8.0
Somewhat Disagree-2.8
Strongly Disagree—1.1
|
Strongly Agree-86.6%
Somewhat Agree-5.5
50/50-4.7
Somewhat Disagree-1.6
Strongly Disagree—1.6
|
Strongly Agree-58.3%
Somewhat Agree-18.8
50/50-16.7
Somewhat Disagree-6.3
Strongly Disagree—0.0
|
7 I am confident that my school leadership could create effective policies and procedures regarding gun safety and incident response.
|
Strongly Agree-27.0%
Somewhat Agree-26.4
50/50-22.4
Somewhat Disagree-8.6
Strongly Disagree—15.5
|
Strongly Agree-24.8%
Somewhat Agree-28.0
50/50-19.2
Somewhat Disagree-10.4
Strongly Disagree—17.6
|
Strongly Agree-33.3%
Somewhat Agree-20.8
50/50-31.3
Somewhat Disagree-4.2
Strongly Disagree—10.4
|
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