[Dave25985]

I've always noticed that "slow" children take a shorter version of a yellow bus when they travel to and from school. Even if they're mainstreamed and attending the same school as other children, the "normal" kids take a regular bus, while the "special" children are segregated and made to ride a short bus. Why can't slow children ride the same bus as all the other kids?

User Detail :  

Name : Dave25985, City : Fort Collins, State : CO Country : United States, 

[Dan27275]

Many of these children would become confused and disoriented if they were made to walk to the big bus stop and follow all the rules and mingle with the other kids. If a small bus comes up to their door as their mothers walk them to it's door, it is far easier for them to get a good start in their day. The drivers of the small buses many times are accustomed to dealing with the needs of these children, whereas the drivers of the big bus only know how to yell, threaten, and write tickets. Also, kids are cruel. If you had a disabled child, would you want him/her to spend 45 minutes of the morning and afternoon being spit on, slapped in the head, having their stuff stolen or smashed up, and taunted and teased? The bus tends to be quite a bit worse than the yard.

User Detail :  

Name : Dan27275, Gender : M, Disability : PDD, Race : Hispanic/Latino (may be any race), Religion : Pentecostal Christian, Age : 21, City : L.A. area, State : CA Country : United States, Occupation : student/dishwasher, Social class : Lower middle class, 

[Trust no manager]

I don't know what the official reason is for 'slow' children taking the short bus is. But I think the most likely reason is that kids with an intellectual handicap would be very likely to be ridiculed and/or physically bullied by the 'normal' kids because of their difference. I imagine most intellectually handicapped kids would be less able to cope with bullying than other kids. A bus would also be a very vulnerable place for them to be, the bus driver is busy driving the bus and wouldn't be able to keep a close eye on what's going on.

User Detail :  

Name : Trust no manager, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Agnostic, Age : 35, City : Wellington, State : NA Country : New Zealand, Occupation : Librarian, Education level : Technical School, Social class : Lower middle class, 

[Dan27388]

If the disabled kids took the big bus with the normal kids, they would be harassed and taunted the entire time. They get it bad enough on the school yard... and on the bus they only have a driver who is too busy driving the bus to fend for them. And at the bus stops, there are usually no adults until the bus actually comes. Also, some kids might get confused, panicked, or disoriented having to walk a whole block to the bus stop and waiting around with a bunch of their rowdy schoolmates for the big noisy bus to come. It is a much better alternative to have a smaller, more comfortable bus pull up in front of their driveway.

User Detail :  

Name : Dan27388, Gender : M, Race : Hispanic/Latino (may be any race), Religion : Pentecostal Christian, Age : 21, City : L.A. area, State : CA Country : United States, Occupation : student/dishwasher, Social class : Lower middle class, 

[Jeff Cobner]

I believe its a state reqirement that disabled people ride a different bus or the front seat or a normal bus. Ive seen large wheelchair busses as well as small, guess its for the smaller population of disabled people at most schools?

User Detail :  

Name : Jeff Cobner, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Disability : Blind and wheelchair, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 25, City : Richmond, State : VA Country : United States, Occupation : College Student, Education level : Technical School, Social class : Lower class, 

[Lindsay22719]

several reasons i can think of: (a) they generally need aides on the bus as well, because the bus driver can't very well handle all that alone; (b) fewer kids need these services, and it is more expensive to have seat belts and what not, so it makes sense to cut a bus in half if you don't need the room; (c) they have wheelchair accessibility, which some regular busses don't, and ensuring that all kids that needed a lift were all getting wheelchair-capable busses would be crazy to coordinate; and (d) there's probably some law that requires anyone claiming a disability within the public school system to ride the designated bus, to avoid lawsuits.

User Detail :  

Name : Lindsay22719, Gender : F, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 20, City : Atlanta, State : GA Country : United States, Occupation : Student, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Upper middle class, 

[Deborah]

Before I lost my jobs due to my own disabilities for over 10 yrs I worked driving school busses both large and the little ones. I have had children whom were as you stated 'slow' who rode on large busses and others whom rode small ones. I also had children not only with physical disabilities but also behavioral problems assigned to busses based apon their needs. Driving a buss is a lot of responsibility and safety of all children is paramount. In casses that the child's disabilities require greater abbility for the driver to be aware of the individual child and actions while at same time driving then it is best that child be on a smaller buss to reduce the number of children to deal with at the same time the driver is dealing with roads, drivers, etc.

User Detail :  

Name : Deborah, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Disability : Bi-Polar/ ADD/Degenerative bone desease/others, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 45, City : Knoxville, State : TN Country : United States, Occupation : Disabled/Artist, Education level : 2 Years of College, 

[Author]

Posts