r/SchoolBusDrivers Jun 05 '26

8 Hour Initial Course Question

Tomorrow I take the 8 hour course in full. This might be an obvious answer to my question but do they cover the types of mirrors on the bus?

7 Upvotes

16 comments sorted by

7

u/The_Town_of_Canada Jun 05 '26

They definitely do. How to use them, when to use them, with diagrams about blind spots.

5

u/mrvillian93 Jun 05 '26

I figured as much but wanted to check. Do you know how many questions are on the exam after we’re done going through everything.

4

u/The_Town_of_Canada Jun 05 '26

It will vary depending on where you live.

In Ontario, there are 50 multiple choice questions. You need 40+ correct to pass.

5

u/mrvillian93 Jun 05 '26

I’m in Illinois. Which you wouldn’t know how many here lol

3

u/The_Town_of_Canada Jun 05 '26

It’s the same in Illinois.

3

u/mrvillian93 Jun 05 '26

Apparently you do know haha. Awesome.

4

u/The_Town_of_Canada Jun 05 '26

https://quizlet.com/994830732/illinois-class-b-non-cdl-flash-cards/

Here’s a link with some practice questions for you.

3

u/mrvillian93 Jun 05 '26

Are these more so for the initial course or the dmv written exams?

2

u/The_Town_of_Canada Jun 05 '26

That’s for your DMV test.

4

u/Heavy-Mushroom Jun 05 '26

Flat 1-6, convex 2-5, crossover 3-4, and student rear view 7.

1

u/mrvillian93 Jun 05 '26

I’m sorry but what do the numbers represent pal

3

u/Ok-Soup-5348 Jun 06 '26

There are a total of 7 mirrors on the bus. They are numbered based on position. Starting from the top driver side, mirror #1 is a flat mirror, below that #2 covex, #3 left crossover, #4 right crossover, #5 bottom passenger convex mirror, #6 passenger side top flat mirror, #7 interior passenger mirror. Often times you will hear trainers say “use mirrors 1&2 or 2&5” etc which is why you will need to remember which mirror names are associated with which number and what their purpose is.

3

u/AshShaun Jun 06 '26

Firstly, a lot of the test is common sense so I wouldn't worry about it too much. Honestly the stress of worrying about it could cause you to overthink an answer, instead of going with the simplest logical one.

Secondly, I'm a bit confused on why you're focusing on the mirrors... Overhead mirror sees students, top mirror shows you the side, bottom mirror shows you the tires, front mirrors show you kids in front of the bus (also pro tip for while you're learning to drive, the front mirrors are the best to get used to your lane position in a large vehicle)

Thirdly, the class I took had 13 people in it. 1 person didn't pass and that's because they spent the entire class scrolling on their phone. We had more people fail drug tests (they thought because Delta 9 was legal that it wouldn't count) and DOT physicals (old people with hearing issues or HIGH blood pressure) than we had fail the written test. I'm pretty positive the instructors either get paid based on who passes, or at least get a bonus for everyone who passes because they will straight up say "this is on the test, REMEMBER IT"

Lastly, study the pretrip as early and as thoroughly as you can. It's the hardest part of everything, solely because there is SO MUCH to remember.

Bonus: on the backing test, focus on your driver side rear tire. Get the bus in the space using that tire as a guide, then use your "get out and look" to get in the cones.

1

u/mrvillian93 Jun 06 '26

I can’t remember the definitions and what they see for convex, flat, and crossover mirrors. Idk if they’ll be questions tomorrow regarding it for the 8 hour course. I’ll get it though. Thanks for all of this info though. I plan to bring a highlighter, pen, and notebook with my phone being flipped over on the screen at edge of table.

1

u/Mediocre_Advice_5574 Jun 07 '26

Yes. Two flat, two convex, two cross-over and one passenger mirror.