Diesel Exhaust Pollution Can Impact Academic Performance. Electric Schools Buses Provide an Alternative.

This article originally appeared in ACT News.

Many different factors of a student’s life can impact academic achievement – ranging from physical activity habits to parents’ income level. And various aspects of a child’s school environment play a role in their overall attendance and how well they’re able to perform and focus in class. 

One factor that may not always be top of mind is a student's ride to and from school. This can be a significant part of their day and students with the longest commutes (greater than 15 miles) are most likely to use the school bus as their mode of travel. 

If that ride involves a diesel-burning bus, students are exposed to harmful diesel exhaust pollution that can threaten their academic achievement. In contrast, electric school buses provide a cleaner, healthier transportation option. The zero-tailpipe-emissions ride of an electric school bus means healthier lungs, higher attendance and less asthma rates, all of which lead to improved student performance. 

Diesel exhaust emissions can lead to health issues like asthma or respiratory illnesses that keep kids out of school. 

In fact, diesel exhaust pollution has such an impact on student attendance that research shows that replacing all the oldest diesel-burning buses in the country with cleaner alternatives could result in 1.3 million fewer daily absences per year, according to a study from the University of Michigan. The study found that even short rides on the bus can expose students to a level of diesel exhaust pollution and that “exposure can exacerbate respiratory illnesses and other conditions and lead to missed school days.” 

Asthma – which can be caused or exacerbated by diesel exhaust pollution – is one of the leading causes of absenteeism from school. Black children, Hispanic children, Native American children and children from some Asian American communities are all more likely to suffer from asthma than other children. That’s in part because of increased exposure to vehicle-based air pollution due to racist lending, transit, housing and zoning policies. A nationwide study found that communities of color have pediatric asthma rates 7.5 times higher than mostly white communities, due to pollutants. 

Riding a diesel-burning bus to school can make breathing even more difficult for a child struggling with asthma. But missing class has serious long-term impacts. Absenteeism is a major indicator of student outcomes; students who attend school regularly see higher academic achievement rates than those who do not. 

Attendance is also highly correlated with high school graduation, as students who miss more school are more likely to drop out of high school. Earning a diploma is associated with increased employment prospects and earning potential, as well as lower rates of incarceration and premature death. 

Black students, low-income students and students with disabilities rely on diesel-burning school buses more than others; the latter have a high school dropout rate nearly twice that of students without disabilities, and high school dropout rates are highest among the lowest-income families in the country. Native students have the highest dropout rates in the country when measured by race/ethnicity and nearly double the asthma rates of non-Native children. 

Cleaner transportation can minimize health issues from polluting school buses and boost attendance rates, and therefore long-term student success, especially for communities most impacted by air pollution.

The effects of diesel exhaust pollution carry into the classroom. Research has also shown that diesel exhaust pollution can impact test scores via short-term disruptions in attention and cognitive performance, attendance fluctuations due to pollution-related illnesses and long-term exposure impacts on brain development. One study found that the achievement differential in English test scores between districts with retrofitted diesel-burning school buses – meaning that they reduced levels diesel exhaust pollution, but didn’t completely eliminate it – versus non-retrofitted diesel-burning buses was “slightly larger than that observed between students of a rookie teacher and those of a teacher with five years of experience.”

A ride to school on a diesel-burning school bus means that students are not only breathing in fumes before they get into the classroom, they’re also starting their days with the loud hum of a diesel engine, which can affect their ability to focus. 

A national survey from Highland Electric Fleets found that two-thirds of U.S. parents surveyed believed that “reducing stressors like diesel fumes and noise during the school commute can help support their child's emotional and academic success” and were four times as likely to choose electric school buses vs. diesel-burning buses when considering student mental health. They were even more likely to opt for electric when accounting for students who are neurodivergent or have sensory issues, because of the “quieter, smoother ride” offered by electric school bus options and the benefit to their child’s mental health.

Another example, cited in the 2025 WRI Needs Assessment for Equitable School Bus Electrification in U.S. School Districts, featured an anecdote from a teacher of disabled students who found that a student “who had often struggled after bus rides was no longer agitated getting off the bus once they started riding electric.”

One school district in central West Virginia saw the benefit of quieter rides, finding that “the quiet ride of the all-electric bus helps reduce behavioral problems, especially when transporting students with special needs.”
When it comes to eliminating health-harming air pollution, electric school buses are the right choice. But they’re also the smartest alternative when considering student academic achievement and outcomes; the quieter, cleaner ride allows students to arrive to the classroom with a healthier body and mind, ready to learn.