Spring is finally here! It is hard to tell with the weather playing with us, as it is. Another sign of spring is the change in people’s behavior, both students and drivers alike.
The students are starting to get “spring fever” and are acting up on the bus a bit more. On the other side of the coin with dispatch, student management, drivers and school personnel, patience is being put to the test.
That being said, I just wanted to remind all of us how important a good attitude and demeanor are, especially at this point in the school year. The students know us by now and know what pushes our buttons. It is harder to refrain from raising our voices and sounding angry, but we still have to act the way we have been trained. Putting a child down or embarrassing him or her in front of peers is still not the right thing to do.
We need to keep our tone of voice in check when we speak to our students. Telling a student to “shut up and sit down” is just not appropriate. We are adults and still need to act like it.
Student Management wants to back up the driver in any situation that comes up. When the driver follows the rules and guidelines they are taught to use during their Student Management training, backing them up is easy. When drivers let themselves get “spring fever” and start saying and doing things they should not, it is quite a challenge to back up the driver.
We always want to keep that in mind as we deal with daily situations on the bus. So let’s work hard at keeping a good attitude and things will roll much more smoothly for all of us.
Always remember our goal is to be known as an industry that provides a positive experience for students to start their day well and end their day well. We can achieve that by being conscientious, professional drivers, with a high priority placed on customer service and above all, student safety.
