It is argued that transporting children to school should be the parents’ responsibility, while others think the government should be held accountable for doing so. Although both views have merits, I agree with the former viewpoint.
On the one hand, investing in the school transportation system can reduce environmental issues. To be more specific, if the government provides more school buses, parents will not need to drive their children to school as buses will do the job. In this way, daily use of private vehicles may decline, thereby reducing toxic fumes emitted by vehicles and eventually improving the air quality. To exemplify, the USA has implemented such a project by providing schools with buses to pick up students at their homes. As a result, the USA has witnessed a decline in air pollution levels due to the lower daily usage of private cars. Another benefit is that the government can ensure every student can study at schools. In other words, for students from financially challenged backgrounds, they may struggle to go to school due to unaffordable transportation costs. Only by allocating funding to build school bus stations can the government help every child to go to school, resulting in a fair educational environment and eventually increasing public satisfaction.
On the other hand, despite the ideal of this implementation, I believe that children can be exposed to dangers due to their limitations. Specifically, children are not fully developed in terms of physical and mental development, meaning that they cannot protect themselves when facing potential risks. Even with the supervision of teachers, they may not manage to watch all the children on the bus. As a result, some children may experience undesired situations such as conflicts between friends, or eating unidentified objects. Therefore, parents accompanying children may prevent such problems. Also, parents can strengthen family bonds during travel to school. This is because parents can engage in conversations with their children as they have private space and time, thereby deepening parents’ understanding of their children. If this continues in the long run, a supportive family environment may be formed.
In conclusion, if the government is held accountable for taking children to school, it can mitigate air pollution and create opportunities for children to go to school regardless of distance. However, I am convinced that it should be the parents’ job to transport their children to ensure their safety and build a close relationship between them.