Student Union
Latest School Shooting Sparks Calls for Gun Control, Again
![Austin Burden, 17, cries on the shoulder of a friend after a vigil at the Parkland Baptist Church, for the victims of the Wednesday shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, in Parkland, Fla., Feb. 15, 2018.](https://gdb.voanews.com/39e9d491-f4ab-4b35-91f7-d7f111944717_cx0_cy8_cw0_w250_r1_s.jpg)
Students, parents, educators and politicians were among the sad and angry voices Thursday calling for gun reform in the United States, where violent mass shootings are colliding with constitutional rights "to keep and bear arms."
The hashtag #GunReformNow remained the top trending topic on social media, where many called for a way to curb the sale and use of high-powered assault rifles that typically are used in mass shootings in the U.S.
The Valentine's Day shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Broward County, Florida, in which 17 people were killed and at least 15 were injured, was the 18th mass shooting of the new year, according to Everytown for Gun Safety, a nonprofit organization in the U.S.
Video footage showed high school students crouched and sprawled on a classroom floor, crying and screaming as the sound of gunshots are heard in the background. Students who had fled to safety Wednesday lauded teachers who shielded them as the gunman made his way through the school.
Arrested was Nikolas Cruz, 19, a former student. He was charged with 17 counts of premeditated murder.
Speaking on Capitol Hill, Democratic Senator Bill Nelson from Florida implored his colleagues to address the issue.
"Enough is enough," said Nelson, after a minute of silence to recognize the tragedy. "At some point as a society, we have got to come together and put a stop to this ... I have hunted all my life, I've had guns all my life, I still hunt with my son, but an AR-15 is not for hunting.
"It's for killing."
Nelson said he would "beg my colleagues to take commonsense actions that we all know will help protect our children and fellow citizens. … When is enough enough?" he concluded, shaking his head.
Others off- and online, pointed a finger at politicians who offer "thoughts and prayers" after shootings, but who accept large contributions from the powerful gun lobby, the National Rifle Association, or NRA. News outlets issued lists of lawmakers who have taken the most contributions from the NRA.
Republican Senators John McCain of Arizona, Marco Rubio of Florida and Roy Blunt of Missouri), among others, were cited.
Rubio tweeted that he and his wife "were devastated and saddened by today's inexplicable tragedy …We join millions of Americans in praying for the victims, their families and all the students and teachers impacted by today's events."
Some Twitter users questioned whether the NRA contributions dissuaded the lawmakers from confronting the gun violence problem.
The NRA declined to comment to VOA about the Florida shooting, but the homepage on its website states that recently, NRA Chief Executive Officer Wayne LaPierre "let [gun-control politicians] and their anti-gun minions know that the NRA will not tolerate their use of a tragedy in their war against the Second Amendment."
The amendment to the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights, written in 1791, says, "A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed."
Self-described conservative DrConsrvaMom argued on Twitter that guns should have more of a presence in schools for protection. On Twitter, she posted a graphic listing the places where guns are used for protection, from safety for the president to sporting events to banks.
"We defend our children with a sign that reads: This is a gun-free zone. And then call someone with a gun if there's an emergency," said DrConsrvaMom.
The teachers' union in the county where Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School is located released a statement.
"Our hearts are broken," Anna Fusco, president of the Broward Teachers Union, said in a statement Wednesday. "This is a day we will never forget, one on which we've lost precious lives in a senseless tragedy. It is impossible to make sense of the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School today, yet somehow we will come together."
See all News Updates of the Day
- By VOA News
International students have options to pay for grad school
![Children play outside Royce Hall at the University of California, Los Angeles, campus in Los Angeles, Aug. 15, 2024.](https://gdb.voanews.com/01000000-0aff-0242-c0a6-08dcc2504f9d_w250_r1_s.jpg)
U.S. News & World Report tackles the challenges of paying for grad school as an international student with this story giving tips on paying for school. Read the full story here. (August 2024)
- By Tracy Liu
Economics, tensions blamed for Chinese students shifting from US to Australia, Britain
![FILE - Chinese students wait outside the U.S. Embassy for their visa application interviews, May 2, 2012, in Beijing.](https://gdb.voanews.com/01000000-0aff-0242-4fea-08dc96d3d82c_cx0_cy5_cw0_w250_r1_s.jpg)
U.S. universities are welcoming international students as the academic year begins. But while the total number of foreign students is steadily growing, the top sending country, China, is showing signs of leveling out or shrinking.
Industry analysts say the negative trend is mainly due to higher costs amid China’s struggling economy, with a growing number of students going to less expensive countries like Australia and Britain, and tense ties between Washington and Beijing.
The number of foreign students studying in the U.S. in 2022-23 passed 1 million for the first time since the COVID pandemic, said Open Doors, an information resource on international students and scholars.
While the U.S. saw a nearly 12% total increase year-on-year for that period, the number of international students from China, its top source, fell by 0.2% to 289,526.
That’s 600 fewer students than the 2021-22 academic year, when their numbers dropped by nearly 9%. The COVID pandemic saw Chinese student numbers drop in 2020-21 by nearly 15%, in line with the world total drop.
While it’s not yet clear if the drop is a leveling out or a fluctuating decline, analysts say China’s struggling economy and the high cost of studying in the U.S. are the main reasons for the fall in student numbers.
Vincent Chen, a Chinese study abroad consultant based in Shanghai, said although most of his clients are still interested in studying in the U.S., there is a clear downward trend, while applicants for Anglophone universities in Australia and Britain have been increasing.
"If you just want to go abroad, a one-year master's degree in the U.K. is much cheaper,” Chen said. “Many people can't afford to study in the U.S., so they have to settle for the next best thing."
Data from the nonprofit U.S. group College Board Research shows that in the 2023-24 academic year, the average tuition and fees for a U.S. private college four-year education increased 4% to $41,540 compared with the previous academic year.
The British Council said three to four years of undergraduate tuition in Britain starts as low as $15,000.
The number of Chinese students in Britain was 154,260 in 2022-23, according to the U.K. Higher Education Statistics Agency, HESA, up from 121,145 in the 2018/19 academic year.
Australia’s Home Affairs office said in the 2023-24 program year, China was the top source foreign country for new student visa grants at 43,389, up slightly (1.5%) from the previous year.
Chen said Chinese state media's negative portrayal of the United States and concerns about discrimination have also contributed to the shift.
Bruce Zhang, a Chinese citizen who received his master's degree in Europe after studying in China, told VOA Mandarin he had such an incident occur to him after he was admitted to a U.S. university’s Ph.D. program.
When he entered Boston's Logan International Airport last year, Zhang said customs officers questioned him for more than an hour about his research, and if it had any links to the military, and took his computer and mobile phone for examination.
"Fortunately, I had heard that U.S. customs might be stringent in inspecting Chinese students, so I had relatively few study-related data and documents on my personal computer," he said.
Zhang was allowed to enter the U.S. for his studies in materials science, but the questioning left him so rattled that he has encouraged other Chinese to study elsewhere.
Cui Kai, a study abroad consultant in Massachusetts told VOA Mandarin that experiences like Zhang’s or worse happen for a reason.
"Students who were questioned or their visas were revoked at the customs are usually those who completed their undergraduate studies in China and come to the U.S. for a master's or doctoral degree in a sensitive major," said Cui.
Former President Donald Trump signed Proclamation 10043 in June 2020, prohibiting visas for any Chinese student who “has been employed by, studied at, or conducted research at or on behalf of, an entity in the PRC that implements or supports the PRC's “military-civil fusion strategy.”
The U.S. says China has been using students and scholars to gain access to key technology and, under Proclamation 10043, revoked more than 1,000 visas issued to Chinese nationals and has denied thousands more.
Critics say the policy is costly to the U.S. and is encouraging Chinese students to look to European and other universities.
Adrianna Zhang contributed to this report.
- By VOA News
Duolingo report details the reality of Gen Z international students
![FILE - A Dartmouth Athletics banner hangs outside Alumni Gymnasium on the Dartmouth University campus in Hanover, NH, March 5, 2024.](https://gdb.voanews.com/01000000-0aff-0242-e46b-08dcc24fe52c_cx0_cy9_cw0_w250_r1_s.jpg)
A report by Duolingo takes a look at the experiences of Gen Z international students studying in the U.S., Australia and the U.K, The Pie reports.
The report, the site says, debunks "characterizations of them as 'tech-obsessed, attention-deficit and self-centered'" and highlights "their emerging role in shaping global politics and economics."
Read the full story here. (August 2024)
- By VOA News
School with the lowest costs for international students
![FILE - A newly printed U.S. dollar bill is shown at the Bureau of Engraving and Printing's Western Currency Facility in Fort Worth, Texas, on Dec. 8, 2022.](https://gdb.voanews.com/01000000-0aff-0242-5bb0-08dba10bf4ed_w250_r1_s.jpg)
U.S. News & World Report crunched the numbers and came up with a list of 20 U.S. colleges and universities with annual total costs at or below $20,184. Check out these best bargains for international students here. (August 2024)
- By VOA News
How to make the most of schools' international student services
![FILE - Students walk down Jayhawk Boulevard, the main street through the main University of Kansas campus, in Lawrence, Kansas, April 12, 2024.](https://gdb.voanews.com/01000000-0aff-0242-b8af-08dca145cc99_w250_r1_s.jpg)
U.S. colleges and universities offer a variety of services for international students.
U.S. News & World Report takes a look at them and details how to best use them. Read the article here. (June 2024)