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Holy smokes. I want to reply to this idiocy but where to begin. Teaching math without a calculator is how it should be done. Teaching gun safety without a gun is not doable. School districts have done nothing to be held in any but the highest contempt so there is no argument in that statement. That kids know how to shoot a gun from TV is a bunch of hogwash. TV is the source of most negligent shootings in this country. This is so scrambled.

That kids know how to shoot a gun from TV is a bunch of hogwash.

TV (and movies) makes things worse. Nobody seems to know what gunfire sounds like. I truly believe that needless deaths are caused by people hearing "pop, pop, like a firecracker" (that's usually how the survivors describe it) and not knowing to hit the ground after that first "pop".

Apparently "Pop, pop" isn't as "sexy" a sound as "ka-bloosh" to filmmakers.

I think this class really goes beyond "gun safety". After all, basic gun safety is as simple as, "Always treat a firearm as if it is loaded. Always point the muzzle in a safe direction. Do not place your finger on the trigger until your sights are aligned. And be aware of your target and beyond."

The intent of the class is really more what I call gun handling. In which you learn how to open and close actions, safe and unsafe, load and unload, how to carry, etc. Which, as you mention, really requires the students to bring their own firearms since there are way too many action types for the instructors to provide all the guns.
Of course, proper 'handling' leads to better safety, so they are related.

I just thought of something extremely sneeky. How about the class agrees to meet in a public parking lot 15 minutes prior to class. The students give the instructor all their firearms and the instructor carries them in. After class, they meet again and the firearms are returned.

VIOLA. Stupid rule foiled by a little ingenuity.

That kids know how to shoot a gun from TV is a bunch of hogwash. TV is the source of most negligent shootings in this country.

Peterson meant that simply shooting a gun doesn't require any knowledge of safety, which is why he stressed that the school was teaching the importance of safety.

He said,

"We're not teaching shooting. We're teaching safe handling of firearms."
...
"What is the district's responsibility?" he asked, the Star Tribune reported. "To provide meaningful education to the community. And this, I think, is a very useful and valuable part of providing education in the community."

I had the same problem this article is so rife with muddled thinking that I was left scratching my head, wondering just what the heck I had read, and wishing the article had a logical reset button.

As it is, I'll just shake my head, feel a sense of reinforcement in my belief that public schools are run by the absolutely least-qualified people society has to offer, say "hmm", and move on.

Things that make you go "Hmm" bump.