Students are taught to hide in closets and under tables if there is a school shooting – but does practicing for this possibility keep kids safe?
- Written by James Densley, Professor of Criminal Justice, Metropolitan State University
Most schools do lockdown drills, but there is not any federal guidance on the best approach to this practice. TW Farlow/iStock/Getty Images Plus There have been 63 school shootings – meaning any time there is gunfire on a school campus – so far in 2026.
They happen so often that preparing for one has become normal. Students as young as...

