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CDL · Student Management

A student on the bus is having a serious medical emergency (seizure). The bus is moving at 40 mph on a highway. What should the driver do?

Reviewed by Jordan Morley, Editorial Lead at 247SimpleTests. Written by the 247SimpleTests Editorial Team from the official source material cited on every question.

Correct answer

Pull safely to the highway shoulder as quickly as safely possible; call 911 with exact location; do not leave the driver's seat until safely stopped; assign a responsible student to stay with the affected student; follow emergency response protocol for the specific situation

  1. A Stop the bus immediately in the traffic lane
  2. B Pull safely to the highway shoulder as quickly as safely possible; call 911 with exact location; do not leave the driver's seat until safely stopped; assign a responsible student to stay with the affected student; follow emergency response protocol for the specific situation
  3. C Ask other students to handle it
  4. D Continue to the school — it is closer than a hospital

Why this is the answer

STUDENT MEDICAL EMERGENCY — on a moving highway bus:

Priority: Vehicle safety first — stop in a safe location before any other action; a moving bus crash would injure all students including the one with the emergency.

Safe stop: Move to the shoulder as quickly as safely possible — this may be different from 'immediately' if doing so would cause a crash.

Call 911: Provide exact highway location (mile marker, highway number, direction of travel).

Basic emergency measures: Remain calm; if trained in first aid for the specific emergency (seizure: do not restrain, protect from injury, time the episode, position recovery if breathing is an issue); STAY IN CONTACT WITH DISPATCH.

Student management: Keep other students calm and in their seats — panic compounds the emergency. NEVER leave the driver's seat while the bus is moving to assist a student — this causes the second emergency.

Source: FMCSA CDL Manual, Chapter 12, School Buses, Medical Emergency Response

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About this topic: Student Management

Student management questions cover setting and enforcing rules, handling misbehaviour without compromising driving, and the limits of a driver's authority. The safe option is to stop the bus before dealing with a serious problem. This is one of 9 School Bus questions on student management, each with a full explanation on a single study page.

New to this exam? Our CDL exam guide explains the format, scoring, and how to prepare.

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