Research
After school shooter drills, there is a sharp increase in stress, anxiety, depression, and fears about death among high schoolers.
National Association of School Psychologists and National Association of School Resource Officers
NASPO collaborated on the following best practices brief. The Sandy Hook Initiative contributed, and it is endorsed as well by the National Associations of Elementary and Secondary Principals, the National Association of School Counselors, the National PTA, and the School Social Work Association of America. Note that on pages 1, 7, 8, and 21 in the brief they explicitly say that schools should obtain parental consent before conducting any drills with children. This is because drills are proven to harm students, and it is opening up districts to liability to force students to be involved without parental consent.
Everytown for Gun Safety
Here is the Everytown for Gun Safety in cooperation with NEA and AFT brief and best practice recommendations. Note that in the section on drills they say, "However, given the concerns raised by parents, students, and medical professionals about the impact that lockdown and active shooter drills can have on student development, including the risk for depression and anxiety and the risk for lasting symptoms, our organizations refrain from endorsing training for students..." This is a well-researched brief, and you can follow the footnotes in addition to reading their summaries and recommendations.
National Child Traumatic Stress Network
The National Child Traumatic Stress Network has published a resource titled “Creating School Active Shooter/Intruder Drills”, which “provides information to schools about how to create a trauma-informed active shooter/intruder drill.” Page 2 of this resource supports our recommendation of parent notification in advance of school security drills. It advises that parents should be informed of their school’s drill schedule at the beginning of the school year. This notification should include information regarding “the types of drills that will take place (e.g., fire, wind, active shooter, tornado) and the type of exercise (walkthrough, tabletop exercise, full-scale drill).”
Dr. Sara Wakefield
Dr. Sara Wakefield, a researcher at Rutgers University and community member, worked with SOMA Justice to compile a research brief for the South Orange-Maplewood School District Board of Education. Her comprehensive literature review shines a light on research showing that drills are shown to cause harm, do not make kids feel safer, and do not improve outcomes in emergencies.
Last year, our working group produced recommendations for revising school district policy 8420 for Emergency and Crisis Situations. A version of the policy containing many of our recommendations was approved by the South Orange-Maplewood.