Students are maturing too fast in light of school shootings

Sonya Pandya, Editor-in-Chief, Everett Baumann, Copy Editor, & Claire Wang, Staff Writer

How can students focus on learning when, in a matter of seconds, their lives could change completely? In light of recent school shootings impacting lives nationally, this is one of the many questions students find themselves plagued with.

As of Sept. 19, 2024, there have been at least 50 school shootings in 2024 alone. One of these shootings, at Apalachee High School, affected Northview students greatly as it was within 40 minutes of Northview High School. Students around the state felt unsafe in their schools, wondering if the same thing could happen to them. The next day, students woke up to new threats targeted at high schools in Ga., including Northview, causing heightened anxiety in the student body. 

“I was really scared when I woke up and [saw that] they said they were going to shoot up every school in Georgia,” senior Arina Lee said. “Like, [I knew] that [it] wasn’t reasonable, but it was scary to know about.”

This frightened everyone at Northview and schools across the state, leading many students to feel unsafe returning to school the following day. Many began worrying about knocks on the door, lights going out, or any individual who entered the school. At Northview, numerous students chose to stay home from school for the rest of the week, feeling unsettled in the event they did go to school.

“I think it affected our students tremendously, especially with [the shooting at Apalachee High School] happening so close to home,” Northview counselor Tiffany Heller said. “I fear that our students continuously worry about safety when school should be a safe place for them.”

Such concerns have become so prevalent in children nationwide that during the recent vice presidential debate, Minn. Gov. Tim Walz and Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance put aside their opposing views on several other topics and saw eye to eye on the issue of students not feeling unsafe in a school. They also agreed that the government should create a bipartisan solution to combat feelings of unease a student may experience while walking into a school building.

As a result of this rapid rise of school shootings each year, students are beginning to change their priorities and ask themselves different questions as the death tolls continue to grow: if they need a transparent bag, if their school will put metal detectors in place, or if they should take more off-campus classes. Northview’s social worker, Jasmine Jones, notes the drastic change from when she was a student.

“Every generation faces its own difficulties in terms of dealing with certain things, but I definitely think safety at school shouldn't have to be one of those things, and it's something that your generation has to deal with,” Jones said. “My generation didn't have to spend as much [time worrying about that,] [because] we had one or two [major events].”

But what is the driving force behind the rapid maturation of adolescents? While there are a variety of answers to this question, many believe the most prevalent issue is social media usage. An April 2023 study conducted by The Pew Research Center regarding the social media use of teens concluded that 60% of teens use Instagram and 59% use Snapchat respectively. One of Northview’s threats was sent through Snapchat, days after the Apalachee shooting, when an unknown user posted that they would “spin to Northview right after [another school,]” accompanied by a picture of a zipped up backpack. Many have made threats on several other forums such as Reddit and X, even including a Veteran’s Administration virtual chat.

“Somebody was on a chat with a Veteran’s Administration department, and they made a threat that they were going to blow up three high schools in Georgia, [including] us,” Neuhaus said.

Due to the nature of the internet, teenagers often find it difficult to simply ignore or stay away from such threats, as they can exist anywhere. Additionally, staying off social media can be difficult nowadays due to the built-in addictivity of modern technology. When we reach for our phones, our brains release a small amount of dopamine, which increases with each use of our phones. The more dopamine released, the more pleasurable it is to repeat that action. This makes it hard to stay off social media and ignore the threats posted, especially following an event such as the shooting at Apalachee. 

“[We need to] put our phones down and make sure that we have parameters on it. It's saying that I'm going to set that timer on my phone, and when it goes off, I'm actually going to listen to it,” Jones said.

Although social media does influence teenagers negatively, students at Northview have been advocating for victims of gun violence by using social media positively as a means to spread awareness through clubs and organizations such as Students Demand Action (SDA). SDA is a student-run club comprised of young leaders wanting to use their platform to enact change in the community, especially regarding gun violence. As a student herself, Reese Hoenig, SDA’s social media manager, understands firsthand the effects of these threats and shootings on younger students.

“[That] should never be on a fifth grader’s mind, [or] even a kindergartner. They should never think there's a possibility of someone [dangerous] coming in their school where they feel safe,” Hoenig said.

Following the shooting at Apalachee, SDA created links for trauma resources and dedicated posts on their social media pages to spread awareness as well as cards and gift bags for those affected.

“A lot of people don't realize how frequent gun violence is, not even just in schools,” Lee said. Even if they're not broadcasted on television, there's so many shootings that happen every single day.” 

Gun safety has become a key issue in our society. As it majorly impacts constituents, may political candidates choose to build their campaigns around it. If you are eligible, exercising your right to vote is a civic way that shows that you believe that a change is needed at the local, state, or federal level.

“I think the real advocacy is sign up to vote. When you’re thinking about voting, don't just think presidential elections, but think local elections,” Neuhaus said. “That's where the biggest differences are made. We all have that constitutional right in this country, and we all need to participate in that.”