Activities styled on the television reality show “The Amazing Race” and a mock court trial got school bus drivers for J.O. Combs Unified School District #44 in San Tan Valley, Arizona, thinking about safety. Director of Transportation Shannon Weber shared their experiences in this story. See some more shots of their scenario-based exercises here.
PHOTOS: Back to school safety drill for bus drivers
The drill called "The Amazing Race" required groups of drivers to team up to complete day-to-day practice tasks, such as student drop-offs and pickups, and pre-trip inspections, as well as bus evacuation drills.
The judge watched for accuracy, thorough performance and safety. If there were missing elements to the process, the team had to return to the skills course and get back on track.
The groups were assigned to a bus and required to strategize on assigning different components of the requirements to those with the strongest skill in the area.
The district also held a mock court trial. A neighboring school district director served as the judge in a case where a driver was held responsible for the injury of a student based on their last-second decision to pull the student back into the bus due to a wrong-way passerby driving on the sidewalk.
The case was explained, and no one at the start could believe that a driver would be charged with doing the wrong thing when they were trying to protect their student.
As the case unfolded, it was quickly understood that things can change in a hurry and decisions behind the wheel have to be thoroughly thought out, and intentionally compliant with safety in mind.