Trump advocates arming teachers

US President Donald Trump says arming teachers could help prevent massacres like last week's mass shooting at a Florida high school, voicing support for an idea backed by the National Rifle Association gun rights group.

Trump made the comment during an emotional hour-long White House meeting with students who survived the Florida shooting and a parent whose child did not.

The Republican president, who has championed gun rights and was endorsed by the NRA during the 2016 campaign, said he would move quickly to tighten background checks for gun buyers and would consider raising the age for buying certain types of guns.

He spoke at length about how armed teachers and security guards could frighten off potential school shooters and prevent student deaths.

"If you had a teacher ... who was adept at firearms, it could very well end the attack very quickly," said Trump.

Some of the participants at the meeting indicated support for Trump's idea of arming teachers. Others were opposed.

Mark Barden, whose son was killed in the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Connecticut, said his wife, Jackie, a teacher, "will tell you that school teachers have more than enough responsibilities right now than to have to have the awesome responsibility of lethal force to take a life.

"Nobody wants to see a shootout in a school," Barden said.

After the Sandy Hook shooting, a task force backed by the NRA recommended more armed guards and teachers in schools.