ORLANDO, Fla. (NewsNation) — A Florida high school psychology teacher was terminated last Tuesday after he assigned students to write their own obituaries ahead of an active shooter drill on the school’s campus, according to multiple reports.

Jeffrey Keene, 63, told NBC News that he believed he was terminated from Dr. Phillips High School after he wanted students to reflect on their lives and teach them about the world they live in with regard to gun safety and active shooters.

“It wasn’t to scare them or make them feel like they were going to die, but just to help them understand what’s important in their lives and how they want to move forward with their lives and how they want to pursue things in their journey,” Keene told NBC News.

He even wrote at the bottom of the assignment that it wasn’t intended to upset any students, but to inform them.

“There are mass shootings everywhere, unfortunately,” Keene told The Washington Post. “So being the psychology teacher, I said, ‘I can tie this into a lesson plan.’”

The assignment was given during his first-period class, and, by the seventh period later that afternoon, he says he was terminated.

Keene maintained that he did nothing wrong in the situation, and expressed he used proper judgment in assigning the prompt.

Orange County Public Schools Media Relations manager Michael Ollendorff released a statement to NewsNation, saying:

“While the district does not comment on employee matters, Dr. Phillips High School families were informed that a teacher gave an inappropriate assignment about school violence. Administration immediately investigated and the probationary employee has been terminated.”

The statement also included an excerpt from the 2022 Florida Statutes (section 110.217), explaining the probationary status for state employees.

The Washington Post reported that Keene was a new hire, first employed with the school in January, but before he was hired at the high school, The New York Post reported that Keene had been an educator for 15 years.

Keene told NBC News that he hopes he will find another teaching job, and said he wouldn’t change the way he teaches.

“I don’t think I did anything incorrectly. I know hindsight is 20/20 but I honestly didn’t think a 16-, 17-, or 18-year-old would be offended or upset by talking about something we’re already talking about,” he told NBC News.