School Districts Explore Ways to Reduce Behavior Problems on School Buses

September 20, 2024

Deer Creek School District buses in Oklahoma caravan in this undated file photo. The school district is one of many nationwide dealing with student as well as parent behavior issues on its buses. (Photo courtesy of Deer Creek School District.)

School buses can be rough and tumble environments. Some students enjoy horseplay in the back of the bus, and sometimes a little roughhousing can escalate into a more serious fight. In some cases, parents can even become hostile toward school bus drivers.

Leaders in school transportation say the best approach is to handle the situation firmly with empathy. Students and parents need to know there will be consequences for misconduct.

Robert Feinberg, the transportation director for Deer Creek Schools in Oklahoma, said he has seen a wide variety of student behaviors on buses, from rough horseplay to significant brawls.

“It is important to set firm procedures and policies; parents must know and understand the rules. These rules must be posted so that everyone can see them,” said Feinberg, whose operation transports about 4,000 students one way, daily, on 53 routes.

Students and their parents should understand that even a minor conflict could lead to consequences. “Many of our physical fights start with horseplay that turns into fights. We tell our students this behavior is not acceptable,” said Feinberg. “We tell our students this is not the Antler (school mascot) way.”

Another critical tool for managing school bus behavior is a sound video system on each bus. “We can pull a video and tell who instigated the fight. We have a good camera system on our buses,” said Feinberg.

However, it’s important to note that while technology can be a useful tool, it should not replace the need for human intervention and understanding in managing student behavior.

Bret Brooks, chief operating officer for school safety and security consulting firm Gray Ram Tactical in Higginsville, Missouri, has extensive experience with school transportation issues. The company offers training programs and physical security assessments to bus companies and school districts.

He said some of the approaches to school transportation are less than desirable and believes some basic approaches should be used.

“The first thing is awareness. People should understand the dangers of being on a school bus and what is most likely to happen. Bus drivers should be trained to deal with potentially violent situations. And there must be community buy-in on the importance of safety measures. School district leaders must be invested in school bus safety,” said Brooks, also an active-duty law enforcement officer.

This community buy-in could involve regular safety meetings with parents, students and local law enforcement, as well as encouraging parents to reinforce the importance of good behavior on the bus at home.

Much of Gray Ram’s training shows school bus drivers and aides how to de-escalate situations. It is important that bus drivers have empathy so they can understand why a young person might react violently. Some young people might have different reactions, ranging from using a gun to fist fighting to taunting.

Brooks said he has found that children and teenagers in a tense situation will follow the possible reactions of others. They might start by name-calling and then some pushing and shoving. Eventually, they might use their fists or even a weapon.

“It is important to watch for the indicators among school bus passengers and then to react appropriately during that testing,” said Brooks. “If drivers fail to act appropriately, there is the potential for violence.”

Other adults can be in the classroom if a teacher can’t handle a situation. A school bus driver often does not have other adults on board to handle the situation, so training is essential.

Guy Grace, vice chairman of the Partner Alliance for Safer Schools and a retired security director from Colorado’s Littleton Public Schools, has 39 years of experience managing behavior on school buses. He said bad bus behavior needs to have consequences. He also recommends that school districts use surveillance systems on their buses because this allows administrators to see exactly what happened during an incident. It is also vital that administrators periodically review the bus surveillance system so they can pick up problems that a driver or aide may not have detected.

“Many times, a bus surveillance system is the only review we have when there is an incident,” said Grace. “We have identified problems the driver is unaware of, and we can leverage our technology. We need to talk with the bus drivers about potential problems.”

Another important element is being proactive by monitoring students who are misbehaving more than most. “There may be significant issues, or maybe they are just nuisances. We watch kids to really be aware of their full situation and safety,” said Grace.

It is also essential to pay attention to what parents are doing, especially amid several recent cases nationwide involving the assault of school bus drivers. Are they lingering in the background at bus stops? One can observe parents or individuals who are doing something before bus drivers know about it, and this awareness is crucial. The climate and culture of a bus situation make it essential to foster a secure and caring culture.

“It is important to have good training and to empower drivers. How does the driver interact with kids and listen to kids and parents?” said Grace.

Route supervisors must be proactive and look for ways to calm a situation when necessary. “One of the biggest missing pieces is the video, which shows what is really going on in the bus and how the driver is behaving and ascertaining behavior. Are they missing external threats?” cautioned Grace.

Meanwhile, Mike Dorn, the former chief of police for Bibb County Schools in Georgia and the executive director of global security analyst Safe Havens International, said he believes a firm and consistent approach to school bus discipline is critical to maintaining bus order and safety. He knows school buses can be rough and hard environments. While drivers and school administrators work to make the bus as safe as possible, some kids misbehave while others fight.

Dorn said he knows some parents who can cause serious safety problems. He believes a public code of conduct should be posted in each school.

Dorn and other professionals have seen a lack of understanding of how to handle difficult situations best. “Don’t just say calm down. There should be evidence-based verbal de-escalation techniques.,” he advised.

It is important that children, teenagers and parents understand that disorderly conduct and violent behavior will not be tolerated and that there will be consequences for poor behavior. The consequences need to be spelled out and enforced. He has found that with a proactive approach to school bus discipline, the level of incidents decreases considerably.

“We had middle school kids who got into a fight and were charged for fighting. When kids realized they would get in legal trouble, the number of fights decreased. If kids had a weapon in a fight, they would face legal charges, reducing the number of fights,” said Dorn.

A diversion problem was also set up for kids who got into legal trouble on buses. This got parents involved in reducing the problem of fighting. “We also used statutes like disrupting a public-school bus. If a student threw an object that hit a bus driver in traffic or an adult boarded a school bus and created a problem, we would charge them with disrupting a school bus, which was very effective,” said Dorn.

Herbert Byrd, the assistant director of student transportation for Chesapeake Public Schools in Virginia, said he believes in consistent discipline on school buses. He noted there should be videos on school buses documenting fights or other incidents. Byrd also said accountability is critical and that school administrators should support bus drivers.

“A school bus driver has about 50 kids on a bus and can’t see everything. The driver is usually alone and may not have the support that a teacher in a school would have,” said Byrd. “If a video camera is on a bus, we can see exactly what happened. Driving a school bus is demanding, and it is hard for districts to find qualified bus drivers who want to make it a career.’

Byrd also said school bus drivers should be better supported. If a student on a bus misbehaves, the school bus driver should know that the school administration will back him up, and the student will face consequences, he added.