Poll: "Uniforms" in public school

[Haydyn]

Dress codes are asinine. I'm okay with private schools having uniforms as long as the ladies have skirts, but for a public school to demand people to dress a certain way goes against the constitution etc.

My last high school to have colors (graduated from a skill center) had maroon and gold. Stereotypical colors for sure. When they tried to institute a similar dress code, almost everyone was against it. We shouldn't have to wear the same ridiculous looking color combination as everyone else. That school was mind bogglingly insane to begin with. Not to get off topic, but the skill center I went to where a good 25% of the students went off campus to smoke weed, a school known for taking in students who didn't do well in traditional schools, that school was tame compared to my old school. From blasting violent rap with too much swearing even for my liking on my first day, to repeatedly charging students for the same courses over and over again, to the mass columbine hysteria, where they treat everyone who gets picked on like a murderer, going to a school full of pot heads and dropouts was a breeze.

But even that school wouldn't enforce a dress code, so I can only imagine what kind of school would You have my condolences.

 

[SextusMaximus]

I've had this in my Catholic school for life. It's not strict, it never was strict, it IS a uniform. Deal with it.

EDIT: By the way, that's my statement on the fairness of it - I'm not sure about legality in America as to public schools, or honestly what a public school is compared to a Catholic school, because my school is in no way a private school, it just takes the majority of Catholics from the local area - but allows in non-Catholics as well.

 

[Kasper Gundersen]

Love not having to think about dresscode

 

[TheLaofKazi]

Yeah, I know. It was meant to lighten the mood in here a little.

*juggles kittens*

Awww, no epic reply to my epic post? I mean, the kitten juggling was cool and all, but still.

Yeah, a part of me knew that you were joking with that, but my annoying politically and socially minded part kind of covered that. That happens sometimes. Like riiiigggghhhhttt.... NOW!

It doesn't destroy individuality.

What destroys individuality is making kids think being different even matters when they're only reduced to a test score and a name on a college application. And you can still be an individual. That's where your personality comes in. You don't have to look cool, edgy and unique to actually be all of those things.

Tell it to the self-conscious, Gossip-girl, Gleek-freak wannabe who wants to fit into those size 0's, starves herself and pukes into the toilet after meals, that her clothes don't matter.

You don't want to be sexist? Then consider these things. Things like bulimia are growing more prevalent in teenage boys. The need and urge to fit in is just as intense as with females. Men care about their appearance just as much as women do.

Also, looks are a big part of first impressions. If one kid is a genuinely good goat and has shitty clothes, nobody is going to bat an eyelash at him in the hallway. Because he doesn't look like a genuinely good goat, he looks like a genuinely, utterly poor goat. Give him a uniform, which all the other kids are wearing, and you've only got your personality to speak for you. The good goat now looks like an average goat but his personality sets him apart from the other mutzes in the flock. Is this not your precious individuality?

True, school uniforms won't destroy individuality, but they do remove one of the ways people like to express themselves. People like to express themselves by putting things on their bodies, just as they like to do with verbal speech, with music, with body language, with writing, ect. What I'll never understand is this attitude that those other forms of self-expression are somehow more important or legitimate then using your clothing and body to express yourself.

And yes, people feel the pressure to fit in, and in many cases, will do something contrary to themselves that is unhealthy or harmful to fit in. But school uniforms won't remove the social pressure to conform. It will only remove one of the ways that pressure manifests itself as. The problem will still be there, but will just come up in another form. If we really want to get rid of these types of problems, we want to create an atmosphere that accepts and embraces people's differences, not one that looks at them as potentially dangerous.

I understand that you want to remove the pressure for kids to conform to certain groups and cliches, I want the same thing. But you're using conformity to fight conformity. That's hypocritical and sends a pretty mixed message, don't you think? In fact, school uniforms might even perpetuate the problem, but in a different way. Instead of the pressure to conform to your peers, there will be the pressure to conform to the school's and authority's demands. Is that really any better?

And once again, forcing everybody to wear the same thing is not going to get rid of unfair first impressions, because the unfair assumptions and biases will still be there. People will still be judged unfairly based on their hair, skin and eye color, weight, height, accent, mannerisms, beliefs, family background, and many other irrelevant factors. School uniforms, teaching people to wear "appropriate clothes," ect. will only mask the problem, not solve it. Individuality isn't the problem it's people's bigotry and bias toward harmless types of it that is, and raising a generation of kids that grew up having to wear the same clothes isn't going to help this problem.

I do highly agree with you though, that reducing students to test scores and other numbers is a much bigger issue, and I wish more people would recognize how harmful this increasing focus on testing is.

 

[Vykrel]

Their school, their rules. You may not like having to wear a work uniform but it is part of life and you really have no say in it other than go somewhere else.

there stomping all over the students' individuality and making them look like preppy clones. theres really no great reason to make kids wear uniforms in school.

 

[TheLaofKazi]

School uniforms are great because they make everybody wear the same clothes. If everybody is wearing the same clothes, nobody will be made fun of for their choice of clothing.

That's why I support mandatory skin bleaching. Just imagine it, everybody with white, pale skin. Everyone's the same, nobody get's made fun of.

 

[bpm195]

Remember the recent case of a several students being sent home from school because they wore shirts with American Flags on Cinco De Mayo? Couldn't happen with a stringent dress code in place.

I favor dress codes because they serve as a simple set of rules to defend yourself with when somebody takes issue with your dress or hair. For example, I generally have an afro which through out high school irritated quite a few adults, but it was so nice that one day the vice principal pointed out to a group of parents that I was in uniform while most of their children weren't.

If you want to protest the dress code, get a mohawk. If they try to make you change your hair, don't back down. If they don't, awesome, you have a mohawk.

 

[razor343]

So...Yeah ok, the school is trying to help families that are less well off...by making them buy even more expensive clothes?

Yeah...

Sure, I'll let that thought sit with you for a while.

 

[Brainsaw]

This is were growing up in a area that's basically a modern town surrounded by farms and woods is an actual advantage: The local schools don't give a rat's ass about your clothes. Basic run down of dress code as follows.

-pants or shorts: Khaki or jeans are fine. Shorts are fine all year round whereas pants are only practical during the winter as forcing students to wear long pants in our hot and humid summers is just cruel. Even the local private schools know this.

-shirts. All range of shirts are fine, just none with gang symbols or have something depicting sex or drug abuse.

-for girls any skirts worn must be within 2 inches of knees in length.

Pretty lax and lets the students wear what they want.

Personally I think strict dress codes in public school is complete bullshit. Bad enough going to school is mandatory and takes up pretty much the entirety of the formative years of your life, even worse is to have something as superficial as clothing dictated to you under the BS reason of: It gets you ready for the workforce where you may have uniforms. They're uniforms, you just stick them on and you're good to go. I don't care how bleak people's outlooks on others is, this is a very simple concept there's no reason to crush a medium of expression for that. Plus if they're in a gang, clothing is the least of your worries and can be countered by other means than taking away a freedom from everyone else.

 

[mjc0961]

I think that's a bit too far. If they want to have uniforms that are provided for the school so people don't have to go out and buy clothes just to keep their kids from being in trouble, then fine. But those rules are quite too strict if you're expecting everyone to pay for them out of pocket. Clothes aren't cheap and the might be defining their students entire wardrobe now: I've seen a few mentions of just being able to change into something else when you get home, but if you can't afford anything else to change into that's a bit shit.

The haircut thing is also quite stupid, especially for a public school. For a private school I can see, it but for a public school? The administration needs to get over itself.

I don't like the "it gets you ready for work uniforms" and "it will stop people from being picked on" things either. You don't need to be prepared for work uniforms. You wear one specific outfit usually provided by the employer while you are on the job, and then you can go home and change into something that is you because the employer didn't decide they need to dictate your entire wardrobe. As for people being picked on, well people are dickheads. So what if they can't pick on you because they have the same clothes as you, there are still plenty of other things they can find to pick on others about and they will.

 

[Fuselage]

My school in Australia has been doing this since I was in Kindergarten. Most Aussie schools do this.

 

[Addendum_Forthcoming]

Your uniform is shite <.<

A uniform should be cute and pretty That being said I'm out of Highschool now so I couldn't really give a toss what you young'uns have to wear ;P

Tha being said I can empathise for my memories of a poorly designed school-endorsed outfit ;_;

That being said, school uniforms are actually a good equalizer. Whilst people (students) may think them draconian they do allow students to see themselves in terms beyond poor and rich. Whilst it's not the perfect system for imposing egalitarianism, it's still fairly effective.

School uniforms are good for poorer families actually, because usually school uniforms are stocked by retailers in the local county for mass consumption.

Not only this, but because whether you are rich or poor it's not likely to be advertised as much so due to your uniform.

So uniforms in public schools also help against truancy. When I say 'help' I really mean reduce the ability for students to easily shirk their education.

Arguable a debate, but regardless still a point in the defence of uniforms.

That being said it's still no excuse for a poorly designed outfit <.< But that argument is born from a dislike of my school's old uniform policies.

 

[thejboy88]

I went through ten years of having ot wear a school uniform at three separate schools. Counld'nt stand them. Much prefer my own clothes. I don't like being made to wear someone else's colours. I don't think kids in this day and age should have to wear them, they're a relic.

 

[superbatranger]

Well, I've never had to wear a uniform. But, I can see why it would be disliked as much as it is. It practically kills individuality and the ability to express one's self. To be honest, I don't think I ever saw anyone get bullied over the clothes they wore.

 

[Addendum_Forthcoming]

I don't understand how this is such a big issue. It's a uniform. Now go learn something.

Whilst a very small-time supporter of uniforms, I have to say that self-expression is directly linked to cultural development and attaining ever higher levels of civility and social mobility. In essence, you learn by setting yourself apart in self-expression.

It's a fundamental skill to indulge in means to deliver extrospective expression in artistic and aesthetic pursuits at a young age as it is a key stone skill in developing a healthier level of social expression later in life.

There's nothing quintessentially wrong with uniforms, but they should allow a greater degree of autonomy. Not saying go crazy with it, but there should be a balance between the need for social cohesion and artistic expression.

 

[Kevonovitch]

eh, i never cared myself, i just thought they would suck, uncomfortable, looks bland, no fun....yeah that would suck :/

 

[Lem0nade Inlay]

Who cares? It's just clothes.

I'm just thankful my school has awesome colours.

 

[Ithera]

School has always been an venue where people can flaunt their material wealth and practice discrimination against those with less. School uniforms eliminates part of this problem and makes this institution a better place for everybody.

Of course, there are those who would argue otherwise. But i fancy those have never really experienced the social downsides that come from a strained budget. One can perhaps deduce that my years of public school were not very happy? you would be correct. I blame some of these shortcomings on dress codes.

 

[smithy_2045]

There is absolutely nothing wrong with school uniforms.

 

[Kraiiit]

Fine, have a school dress code that people can take off when they get home or whatever, but don't make them keep a specific hair-cut. That's just fucking stupid and unfair.

Heh, come visit Singapore sometime. Rigid dress codes, specific hair cuts, and the fucking control freaks even regulate the hairbands and contact lens color tints.

Shit's fucked up till you get out of secondary (high) school, but Polytechnics are more enlightened, fortunately.