The Bus Driver
15 Years Experience
South, ..
Female, 37
I have been a bus driver since late 2006. I know the inside story, the scoop, the down low dirt of what it takes to be a bus driver, how to handle kids and adults, and how to survive on the "streets" so to speak. I used to have a blog, feel free to browse it or ask me a question here.
First off, is this a school sanctioned thing? For example, is the bus driver recording students in order to put together a "school bus safety" video for the district. If so, then notices should have been sent around to all parents of the children involved. As it is the only LEGAL camera on the bus is the one that is hooked up to the bus monitoring system. Occasionally, I might take photographs of certain kids, but that's because I know their parents and will text them a goofy picture of their kid. Usually it is co-workers children. At any rate, I would seriously question why this driver is videotaping your child getting on and off the bus, or if maybe there was a miscommunication and the driver was referring to the overhead cameras in a bus lecture which are pointed at the students getting on and off the bus and sitting in the seats.
Share Answer: 
Let them choose their seats, if there is a problem with them, then assign specific ones seats closer to the front where you can manage them. You'll find that several of the kids will sit with the same people every day and that they will usually have a preferred area of the bus. I have elementary, middle, and highschool on my bus so I separate the bus by sections. It gives the kids autonomy of choice when deciding where to sit. Alternately you could ask them to decide amongst themselves where they are going to sit, or at the very least whom they would like to sit near/next to. In that case, I would hand out index cards and then once names are written on each card, hand one student tape to put the name cards above the seats. At any rate, highschoolers like the autonomy of choice, so unless they give you a reason to assign them a seat, let them sort it out.
Share Answer: 
Far as I can tell the notifications are left up to individual bus companies. I would assume it is based on severity of accident. If the bus was involved in a minor fender bender where no children are hurt, it is likely they will be either transferred to another bus and then delivered home or to school, or the bus is undamaged so it is able to deliver a student to and from school. You should review your individual school system policies to see what their protocol is on notifying parents of bus accidents.
Share Answer: 
I would check to see what your district policy is on electronics on school property. In my district, electronics such as cellphones or music players or the like are not allowed primarily in school or on school property which includes the school bus. As for me, I allow these things unless they start to cause a nuisance between the kids, in which case I usually will warn the child with the offending device and warn of the consequences (confiscation and a parental phone call) Most of the time the kids will tone it down and behave. Have you tried warning this child of the consequences for his behavior? Finally, you can get the back up of your supervisor in order to help manage this.
Share Answer: 
Dry Cleaner
Why don't more dry cleaners stay open late?
School Bus Driver
Why don't school buses have seat belts?
Football Official
Do you think it's ok for NFL refs to play fantasy football?
If the driver backed into the arbor, knocked it down, and broke something then it should be up to the bus company to pay for a reasonable replacement of items broken or damaged. Accidents happen, and things should be fixed. I once backed into a yard and over a low fence (fence was largely decorative and only outlined parts of the driveway). I didn't think I had damaged anything but my boss got a call from the homeowners. Though I took responsibility, my boss just went and got the items needed to simply repair the damage (a post and one small piece of fence) It took all of 10 minutes to make the repair as it was a simple accident and not malicious in any way.
Share Answer: 
The pre-trip inspections vary from state to state and bus shop to bus shop, but overall, they aren't all that hard to follow. In my district, our pre-trip inspections are basically ensuring all the lights work, the horn works, the stop arm and the stop sign come out, emergency buzzers are active and working as well as the door functional. Any mechanical issue is usually discovered either in the fuel line or when the bus stops working for some reason. Since we don't fuel our own buses, the mechanics do it, they check the fluids and all under the hood for us.
As far as going to bed and waking up, that will depend on your individual route and district. For mine, I don't have a set bedtime or anything like that, but my route starts at 6:35 am every morning so I have to plan to be up and out the door by 6:10-6:15 every morning. I usually wake up at 5:45 ish (start to wake up/alarm goes off at 5:30), in the shower by 5:50, and out the door by 6:20. It only takes me a few minutes to drive to work, so I'm on the bus yard by 6:25 and on my bus and enroute by 6:30 to my first stop.
Share Answer: 
I don't know if there is a law or not. Most, if not all, school buses come equipped with heaters. Not every bus has an air conditioner, but a heater is fairly standard. Occasionally, as with other mechanical items on a bus, the heater may break down. This is usually unexpected and not preventable. It makes for a very cold bus ride in the mornings during the winter months if a heater breaks. Most of the time its fixable or if it needs further service, the bus companies will often swap buses out for a fully functioning bus. Also, as I told the kids who got on my bus in short sleeves and shivering this morning while holding their jacket in their arms... a jacket works better when its ON!
Share Answer: 
-OR-
Login with Facebook (max 20 characters - letters, numbers, and underscores only. Note that your username is private, and you have the option to choose an alias when asking questions or hosting a Q&A.)
(A valid e-mail address is required. Your e-mail will not be shared with anyone.)
(min 5 characters)
By checking this box, you acknowledge that you have read and agree to Jobstr.com’s Terms and Privacy Policy.
-OR-
Register with Facebook(Don't worry: you'll be able to choose an alias when asking questions or hosting a Q&A.)
Browse Jobs
Host a Q&A
Search
Submit Your Question
Host a Q&A
Last 7
