Should Schools Lock Their Doors

You never know when a possible crime could take place inside your home i e theft or robbery which is why it is better to be always prepared.

Should schools lock their doors.

There s a myth out there that schools should be on lockdown to prevent an intruder from holding the kiddies hostage and or murdering them in the hallways with some sort of automatic weapon. In the end there are much worse things your teen could do then lock their door. The vast majority of school doors can remain locked from the outside while still having a handle release on the inside mainly due to building or fire codes. Miami dade public schools began requiring teachers to lock classroom doors after the parkland shooting but main entrances remain unlocked.

If you teach your kids to lock the door while they are inside their respective bedrooms you are also teaching them to protect themselves. Many schools whose doors have the above capability but do not have. A nationwide evaluation of the policy has now turned to evacuation as a better solution in some circumstances than a lockdown thomas said. See figure a in response to school shooting concerns a new function was designed called a classroom security function door locks with this function can change their locked or unlocked status on both the outside or inside of the classroom but still only through the use of a key.

Yes they can lock doors but the problem is that most of the public doors lock from the outside. First you comply with title 8 cal osha on emergency egress single action exits meaning you cannot be required to put a key in the lock to unlock the door to escape during a fire. In the past a school would automatically go into lockdown if there was a perceived threat. They never lock or unlock without a key and since the inside has no keyway key holders must lock the door from the hallway.

There s no other explanation that i can find for why school districts are locking their doors during school hours. The short answer is yes you can lock your classroom doors as long as the following regulations are met. Students would be kept in classrooms away from doors and windows. However if a school has doors that have deadbolts or similar locks there are situations where a locked door can for example prevent egress in an emergency.

Public doors are designed based on the national fire protection association nfpa codes and standards set by the americans with disabilities act ada. A public door must be accessible at all times.