How I learned to stop worrying and love the bomb
Class was cancelled today--a bomb threat resulted in several buildings being closed down. I may regret writing this, but my bet is on some student getting out of a test or just enjoying a power trip. It's obviously quite immature--people can get seriously rattled by this kind of thing, and it has a real cost both academically and economically.
While I was student teaching, about eight years ago, on one of the days my teacher took off, I can remember being pulled out of a classtime. The message: "Someone's called in a bomb threat, but we don't want students to know. Look around your classroom to see if there's any suspicious or new packages lying around." I walked back in and tried to act normal, all the while awaiting the explosion that would tear everything apart. This was the same time as Columbine, so fear was in the air, just like today.
I've gotten more perspective since then. The fact that this threat targeted primarily administration buildings is a telltale sign of a prankster to me--it's that power trip thing. Still, my heart did beat a little faster as I and the other building refugees clustered on a grassy slope while news helicopters buzzed above us.