Not being one that normally swims down stream with the normal flow of things, I have found myself these past few years swimming up stream, against the current (with sharks and piranhas). I have been trying to make a dent in the armor that surrounds special education law and school policy by reminding people in these areas that Student Transportation is indeed a related service-, and as such, must be addressed in a meaningful, positive way that relates best to the students. By the way...in the process of delivering this service, those of us in Student Transportation have to be able to provide this service in a way that won't "break the bank".

Often what is presented at this conference bears only a slight resemblance to what we do in Student Transportation. However, this year I noticed that the Pre-Institute Symposium was entitled "Educating Students with Behavioral and Emotional Disorders". -This-, I thought, would be something that we could all relate to in our daily routine. Just days earlier in Chicago, I had been to a meeting of school bus driver training instructors where one of the main topics of concern was student discipline (or the lack of it) on the bus.

As I waited for the symposium to begin, I briefly read through the handouts and wrote down three questions that I wanted answered at some time during the meeting. The first was "How can we prepare school bus drivers for the tasks and responsibilities of transporting the diverse population of children that ride to school each day?" Kids today aren't what they used to be, even when I went to school. The second was: "Where is the timeout room on the school bus?" And the third question was: "what is the alternative to taking away driving to school privileges for high school students"? I hope it's not assigning them back on the school bus?

The first of two speakers for the morning session was Melinda Maloney, Esq., a special education school attorney from Knoxville, Tennessee. Her presentation focused on the status of Inclusion, court-created standards for determining least restrictive environment, supplemental aids and services required to serve disruptive students in less restrictive settings and court decisions regarding inclusion of behaviorally or emotionally disturbed students.

Ms. Maloney began her presentation by noting that the Inclusion Movement is gradually swinging back to the middle. Anyone that has been in education long enough knows that trends in education swing back and forth with a good deal of regularity. She credited this swing back toward neutral to the dangerous and disruptive issues related to inclusion which have come from the parents of (would you believe) nondisabled students.

Maloney emphasized how, without properly trained staff, students with disabilities are placed in inclusive programs with their nondisabled peers and often become isolated, exposed and frustrated. -We all know how easily this can happen on the school bus.

How often have you heard a bus driver say: "This person doesn't belong on my bus." No one likes him/her, everyone makes fun of him/her, all he/she does is get into fights on the bus." Sounds an awful like ISOLATED, EXPOSED, and FRUSTRATED.

It was at this point that I began to get the answer to my first question: "How can we better prepare our school bus drivers for the behaviors of some students on their bus?" The answer...schools need to include school bus drivers, along with the other supplemental staff, when preparing behavior management plans for students. We need to insist that the school bus driver, in some way, be part of the training program for supplemental school staff.

Maloney concluded her presentation by citing a number of recent court decisions regarding disruptive students in the educational setting and pointing out that schools need to do a better job of training regular education staff to work with all students. -Isn't this what some of us have been saying for a number of years?

The second speaker presented an excellent presentation on -Effective Behavior Management Techniques-. Beverly Johns, Program Supervisor at the Garrison Alternative School in Jacksonville, Illinois, a twenty-five year veteran in the area of teaching students with severe behavioral problems, has written and spoken on the topic of alternatives to suspension, and managing students with emotional and behavior disorders. Her message is simple: "The problem is not that schools are not what they used to be, but that schools are what they used to be. The needs and attitudes of children have changed. There are positive alternatives to disciplinary suspension, but schools (and school transportation) must change. Schools must create a new and different and more positive environment for students than what we were used to in the past. And as long as we're talking about schools and school transportation, lets make the same recommendations for the bus, the driver and all else that relates to it.

Ms. Johns raised a number of important questions and made several recommendations that will help you create that positive environment which is so critical to an effective behavior management program. [My comments follow hers.]

Do students know the rules/expectations, with rewards and consequences? · Are rules posted? · Are rules distributed to students and parents? · Are rules fully explained? [Are rules on the bus posted somewhere as well as distributed to parents and students? Does the driver talk to his student-passengers and explain what he/she expects from them?]

Is there a routine and is it clearly understood? [Does the driver assign seats at the beginning of the year or at least make it clear what the rules are for seating? Is the driver on time each day for pickup/dropoff?]

Do the students know that the rules, rewards, and consequences are applied consistently? [Can the students feel secure in knowing that rules, etc. will be applied equally to all passengers on the bus?]

Is the school (school bus) orderly and attractive in appearance? [Everyone knows that a clean bus is a happy bus. Does each driver take steps to insure that the bus is clean and in good condition, both inside and out?]

THIS NEXT ONE IS CRITICAL... Do students believe that the staff really care about them? · Are students greeted positively when they enter the school? · Are at least 70% of the comments made to students each day positive comments? · Are there high and positive expectations for all students? [Does every school bus driver think enough of his/her students to take the time to say "Hello" or "Good Morning" to each? Is the driver constantly yelling, screaming, or nagging at someone (or everyone) on the bus? Do drivers expect the BEST from each student?

Are there opportunities for students to participate in activities--fostering a sense of belonging? [Does each driver get his/her passengers involved in making THEIR bus the BEST bus at that school? Does each driver make students feel that they are needed by giving them responsibilities on the bus and outside the bus? Is there a spirit of cooperation on the bus?]

Do staff model appropriate behavior for students? [Does each driver dress in a professional manner? Does he/she take the time to speak to each student with respect, even when that student shows disrespect? Do we show them how to behave appropriately?]

Do you provide students with choices? [This is something my mother taught me a long time ago..."its much easier to lead from the front than push from behind". Does each driver give his/her student- passengers an opportunity to "follow -the leader"-?]

Is there adequate supervision (and training)? [Does each driver understand why some students (especially students with behavior/emotional problems) behave as they do? If a driver needs help or support on the bus, does he/she get it?]

Do we teach students the logical consequences for their behavior (both good behavior and bad behavior)? [When a student misbehaves on the bus, do we simply say... "off the bus"? Or do we communicate in an effective manner what is expected of him/her while riding the bus?]

Johns went on to further stress the importance of -Responsibility-Based Discipline- through effective communication with students.

After a student has engaged in inappropriate behavior, discuss: · What happened? · What did you do? · What do YOU need to do if it happens again? [Does the driver, at a time when its convenient, take the time to talk to a student about inappropriate behavior? Do students always know what they have done (right or wrong)?]

Use Behavior-specific Dialogue · Use "I" statements · Make only two requests · Wait 5 seconds after making a request · Remind the student of the consequence · Reinforce for compliance [THIS IS WHERE THINGS GET DIFFICULT FOR THE SCHOOL BUS DRIVER--A driver doesn't always have the time or opportunity to be precise in his/her requests. Often other factors are involved at the time of the infraction, but driver needs to take the time at some point in his route to speak to the student. He/she needs to EXPLAIN to the student the precise REASON for the request- -safety is usually the best reason.]

Remind students of the rules [This can be done from time to time as needed.]

Provide requests in a calm, non-emotional, yet firm voice [If we thought using behavior-specific dialogue was difficult, now try using it in a calm, non-emotional voice. I don't know if I ever met a school bus driver that was -non-emotional-. But if you're going to get someone's attention, and defuse a highly -charged emotional situation, you have to practice what you're going to say.]

Use Respect, Proximity Control and eye contact [We should all respect another person's space. No one likes to have a finger shoved in their face, or to go nose to nose with someone that doesn't agree with us.]

Provide positive and descriptive requests and reinforce the student for complying with requests and making good decisions [How often do we get into the rut of saying "Don't do this or don't do that? We can foster a healthier environment on the bus if we make positive requests, i.e. "Billy...Please sit down, and when he does it on the first or second request, a "thank you" would help insure a quicker response or better behavior in the future. Yes.I know what you're thinking. He should be sitting down, and you shouldn't have to thank him for what he should do, but what a positive example.]

I didn't just "fall off the turnip truck", so I realize not all these techniques are going to work on all children or in every situation. Many children arrive at the bus stop each morning carrying excess baggage that isn't in their book bag. Children don't really learn abusive, and confrontational behavior watching Saturday morning cartoons - they learn it from adults in their life.

As a safety valve, develop an emergency response plan (team) that can go into action in extremely violent situations. Develop a code to call the team and a plan to cover their responsibilities if necessary. A driver needs to know that he/she isn't out there alone.

Last month I wrote about the newly revised Recommended Discipline and Suspension Procedures for the Chicago Public Schools. Discipline...always; suspension...only as a last resort. Positive communication and a healthy environment will provide us with ..."a form of instructional discipline that is respectful, puts responsibility on the student, and assures that students face their problems".

Finally, every school district should provide inservice training and support for their school bus drivers. Drivers too need to know that their hard work and good efforts are recognized and appreciated. Oh...by the way. I never did find out where the timeout room is on the school bus. And the other question I had about assigning high school students who lose their driving to school privileges back to the school bus...I'll leave that one for you to answer.

Source: The author is a transportation manager with the Chicao Public Schools, Bureau of Student Transportation. He can be reached at 773/553-2860, or by e-mail at: pgrandolfo@csc.cps.k12.il.us.