While many districts are implementing excellent anti-bullying policies, one area is sometimes overlooked: school buses. Buses can be a hotbed of bullying, and school bus drivers have ample opportunity to prevent it – but only if they’re properly trained and have the support of district administration.
Important Anti-Bullying Tactics for Your School Bus Drivers
1 – Host diversity awareness training
Diversity training is a great first step in anti-bullying because it can make your drivers more aware of the wide variety of children they’ll be transporting on buses. Diversity training offers other benefits as well.
2 - Be willing to stop the bus
If bullying is happening, yelling at the offending student from the driver’s seat may not do much to deter them. A driver should be willing to (safely) park the bus, walk back to the offender, and tell her or him to stop.
3 - Stay in touch with dispatch
If a bully continues to cause trouble, the administrative office should get involved. In many cases, threatening to report them can curtail the bad behavior.
4 - Report all incidents
Don’t let the little things slide. Bullying is a behavior that tends to snowball, and bullies who get away with minor assaults will generally continue to escalate their behavior.
5 - Have a clearly outlined anti-bullying policy with punishments
Drivers shouldn’t have to make up punishments on the fly. Every district should have well-defined policies regarding bullying, and the consequences for engaging in it. This gives drivers more ways to curtail bullying and may make it easier to deal with parents.
6 - Friendly and inspirational reminders to make friends not foes
Hang motivational anti-bully posters in the bus to encourage students to "Be a Buddy, Not a Bully". Reminders throughout every part of a child's day will keep reinforcing the need for everyone to look out to protect each other and prevent bullying before it starts.
7 - Encourage drivers to be involved in IEPs
School bus drivers interact with disabled or special-needs students on a daily basis, so they should be part of those children’s educational plans. Their participation should be encouraged, if not mandatory.
8 - Use cameras if necessary
Cameras on school buses can be controversial, but as part of an anti-bullying push, they’re hard to argue with. They can provide rock-solid evidence of bad behavior if the bully’s parents refuse to intervene.
9 - Put administrative weight behind the driver
Finally, always make your school bus drivers feel like they have administrative support. If they punish a bully or recommend a bully for punishment, that decision should always be supported as long as it’s made in good faith.
Does your district offer bus drivers anti-bullying training? Let’s discuss tactics below!