Just about every student in the U.S. has rehearsed what to do if a shooter enters their school. As school shootings — and hoax reports of active shooters — have grown more frequent, so too have active shooter drills, becoming routine in 95 percent of American schools and often mandated by state law.
Proponents say the drills teach situational awareness and can save lives. But research is still far from clear on whether these drills actually make students safer in a real emergency.
What experts do seem to mostly agree on is that drills have the potential to traumatize students rather than empower them — especially when schools use realistic simulations, fake gunfire, or deception. And, as The Trace reported, active shooter drills can be especially difficult for students, teachers, and staff who have experienced violence at home.
Despite concerns about the mental health effects, these drills are almost certainly going to remain a fact of life for American students. Take New York, for example: It’s taken steps to make drills less traumatic while still requiring them four times a year. It’s one of at least 40 states that mandate school-based active shooter drills, according to a 2022 Trace analysis of state laws and policies.
Perhaps surprisingly, students seem to agree with that approach. Sarah Stilwell, a researcher at the University of Michigan who has surveyed roughly 2,000 K-12 students about their experiences with active shooter drills, found that most students think schools should continue conducting them.
Read the full articlehttps://www.thetrace.org/2025/10/school-shooter-drills-trauma-safety/