School Uniforms: Your Viewpoint

[diznygirl]

My view - it is just as easy to look bad in a school uniform as not. And schools already have dress codes that can be enforced. So why bother?

Uniforms also don't hold a secret key to preventing girls from looking sexy either......

 

[LiLIrishChick63]

Depends on the public school! We visited our PS and it was AWFUL!! DS begged to go private! In fact we were informed DS was socialized well (he was eschooled 4-6) because he refused to CUSS!!! Several really bad words were used on a frequent basis and teachers/staff didn't do anything about it. Since DS refused to stoop to that level he was labelled. Well he has done just fine at the private school! I went to public school growing up and it was very different back then.



I am guessing you are not an 11 year old girl either! If you want to wear that style go for it. I find it very inappropriate for young teens. I can't vouch for how the clothes I saw tonight would actually fit, but they were all nice and skimpy!! I was at Walmart

i went to a few public schools and never really had a problem. and i didn't really "Swear" a whole lot in school, either. i just never found reason to(.....things change when you grow up lol).

no, you're correct, i'm not an 11-year old girl. but what i was saying was that lately, in the juniors section(which is what.....sizes 1-15, correct?) i have found clothing that is actually covering more than anything. and for what you're talking about, young teens, i think it's great.

Target's better for shopping for young teens, by the way. cute clothes that cover a lot!

 

[LiLIrishChick63]

My view - it is just as easy to look bad in a school uniform as not. And schools already have dress codes that can be enforced. So why bother?

Uniforms also don't hold a secret key to preventing girls from looking sexy either......

agreed. i remember when i was in school, wearing uniforms, and somehow the "popular" girls ended up with the shortest/tightest outfits. although, i don't think that they have girls wear skirts, anymore. this WAS a while ago.

 

[aprilgail2]

I am totally against them. I would never have lasted in a school where everyone had to look alike, I was to unique for that! I recently went through this with the principal of my daughters school, they were asking who would be in favor of school uniforms and I said no way, my 7 year old daughter will not wear anything with buttons, snaps, zippers, ties, nothing tucked and no skirts of any type-and the material can't be hard or the shirts can't be long enough where they touch her wrists, so no way in heck would a uniform work for her...2 other people also said their children had sensory issues and would never go for school uniforms. So-no uniforms for us!
My daughter marches to her own drummer, she has her own ideas of the clothes she wants to wear and most are not what other kids wear so I am very happy she is not part of the herd just following along. I don't want her to be another face in the crowd of all the same clothing. It takes 2 minutes inthe morning to pick out what she wants to wear, no big deal in that.

 

[froglady]

I wish DS's school had initiated the uniform policy earlier, so that DD would have had to wear them. Getting her clothes for school that conformed to the dress code was a real struggle; it's been sooo much easier with DS, and cheaper, also. Too bad the upper school doesn't have them; just a strict dress code...with no shorts for anyone.

I actually find that I pay more attention to the individual students WITH the uniforms, as I have to really look at their faces, expressions, etc to tell them apart. Their actions and words speak louder than their clothing.

BTW, all of the girls wear skirts by choice.

 

[DaisyD]

who are the "younger posters" on this thread?? i'm curious.


here's my question to all of the parents who are for the uniforms.....did you have to wear them when you were in school?

I was wondering that myself. I'm 45 and this is the first time I have been called younger in a long while! Thanks! LOL!

 

[Ariel Mae]

As far as allowing them to express themselves, the majority of middle schoolers don't want to be individuals, they want to conform to their friends. Student aren't required to wear uniforms on picture day and I'll never forget seeing three boys walking side-by-side...with the exact same shoes, same pants, and same style of shirt (just each in a different color).

What on earth kind of middle school do you teach at??

During my middle school years, we wanted to do nothing but be ourselves, express ourselves, be different.

 

[LiLIrishChick63]

My daughter marches to her own drummer, she has her own ideas of the clothes she wants to wear and most are not what other kids wear so I am very happy she is not part of the herd just following along. I don't want her to be another face in the crowd of all the same clothing. It takes 2 minutes inthe morning to pick out what she wants to wear, no big deal in that.

that's how i was in school, and i loved it. however.......some of the teachers didn't like it. one thought i was a devil worshiper....and i was one of the most straight-edged kid i knew!!

 

[Ariel Mae]

I think that uniforms really level the playingfield. Nobody cares if the uniforms are't "Juicy" or "Izod" or any other ridiculously over-priced name brands.

Now I have to ask what kind of school are you guys attending? Where I went, a bully was a bully, no matter what you wore.

Yes, kids can always find ways to tease and pick on each other, but dress codes eliminate one of the easiest and most obvious ones.

I highly disagree. They then move from the obvious to the slightly obvious, and to the, "Oh my God, she's got pink buttons!"

You can't make someone feel bad if all she can afford is the JC Penney fox while you have the Polo horse if everyone has a "no logo on your shirt" rule.

"Oh my God, you shop at Walmart/The Dollar Store? You're cheap."

You can pick out a Dollar Store uniform from a Penny's uniform. They have a cute little fringe on them.

(It's happened to me, with a uniform. So, I guess it stems down to personal experience.)

 

[LiLIrishChick63]

What on earth kind of middle school do you teach at??

During my middle school years, we wanted to do nothing but be ourselves, express ourselves, be different.

yeah i NEVER wanted to be like anyone else. i purposely dressed in clothing that i KNEW no one would wear because i hated the fact that everyone else dressed alike. i'm glad i'm not the only one who expressed the "individuality" on this thread. and it has nothing to do with age, either.

 

[Buckalew11]

My dd goes to private school and they have a strict dress code. Not true uniforms though. SHe has to wear collared shirts, khakis or jeans (not certain brand of anything), if the pants have belt loops, a belt must be worn. Shirts must be tucked in. No flip-flops. Its easy, cheap and she looks great and put together every single day. We love our dress code!!!

 

[Ariel Mae]

Uniforms also don't hold a secret key to preventing girls from looking sexy either.....

Ditto.

Girls will still find a way to show their thongs, whereas, guys will still find a way to show their rear.

 

[LiLIrishChick63]

"Oh my God, you shop at Walmart/The Dollar Store? You're cheap."

(It's happened to me, with a uniform. So, I guess it stems down to personal experience.)

yeah in the years i went to a private school, the teachers were pretty much the ones who let it be known who had money and who didn't.

 

[Ariel Mae]

I should have put a poll....

 

[Miller1412]

Interesting timing on this thread...

I am a teacher and parent, and my public school just passed a dress code. I was in the "don't like it" category, but it passed by a two to one margin.
I was able to read parent responses to the suggested dress code and several were very vocal against the institution of a dress code.
One parent even threatened legal action should the dress code be put into effect.

I'm curious...would there be a case here? Children can't be denied a free public education, so if a parent refused to follow the code, could action be taken? Could anything really be done??

What do you thinK??

By the way...I teach kindergarten, and my own kids are kindergarten and second grade, so I still love to dress them (while I still can). I can understand the perspective from developing kids...

 

[Cool-Beans]

As a kid, I hated my uniform. Wished so badly we could wear "gym clothes" to school. No shoe polishing, more comfortable, didn't have to change when you got home, and nobody flipped your skirt up.

I also wanted very much to be able to eat in a cafeteria. It sounded so exotic to me...cafeteria. Plus, you could eat with your friends, didn't have to re-do your paper because the first one ripped after sticking to the spot where you dropped peach juice, and you got cheeseburgers in school!!!

I also thought it would be wicked cool to have a gymnasium and not have to do jumping jacks or play Simon Says down in the hot basement with the pipes and boilers and stuff.

And I found out from my friends that they didn't have to walk in single file lines everywhere they went. It sounded disorganized...but very enticing!

As a kid, I thought public school would be absolute heaven.

As an adult, I could not be more in favor of uniforms. But I'm glad the kids have a cafeteria and a gym.

 

[Ariel Mae]

every school has a dress code. so if they're not enforcing it, that's the school's problem, no one else's. that and......who's buying the sleezy clothes for these kids anyway!? i wasn't allowed to wear certain things until i was 18.

Yeah, something like that I don't believe is the school's fault...nor do I think it's up to the school to regulate it. Every school has a dress code...oh, wait, you already said what I was going to.

I can honestly tell you right now, that the elementary kids in my neighborhood hate the uniforms. Why? They hate wearing the belts, tucking in their shirts, cuffing their socks, popping their collar...they just want to wear clothes. A shirt and shorts, perhaps.

Really, I never found the dress codes unacceptable, nor unreasonable. I didn't have to have three pairs of clothes each week to wash, and I didn't have to buy knew clothes every year. I dressed reasonably and covered...it's not that hard.

 

[LiLIrishChick63]

Yeah, something like that I don't believe is the school's fault...nor do I think it's up to the school to regulate it. Every school has a dress code...oh, wait, you already said what I was going to.

I can honestly tell you right now, that the elementary kids in my neighborhood hate the uniforms. Why? They hate wearing the belts, tucking in their shirts, cuffing their socks, popping their collar...they just want to wear clothes. A shirt and shorts, perhaps.

Really, I never found the dress codes unacceptable, nor unreasonable. I didn't have to have three pairs of clothes each week to wash, and I didn't have to buy knew clothes every year. I dressed reasonably and covered...it's not that hard.

really, if people pay attention to what their kids are wearing in the morning, it wouldn't be a problem. and i agree, most kids just want to wear a t-shirt and jeans.

there were rules for dress codes when i was in school, too. no low-cut tops, not low-cut jeans(you know....like the guys who wear their jeans around their knees??), no flip-flops or open toed shoes.....nothing that really made me angry with it. it all seemed pretty resonable to me. i can't imagine it's changed much, since.

 

[Ariel Mae]

i can't imagine it's changed much, since.

Ours was pretty much, "If it's covered, you're good." (Chest area and butt for women, butt and crotch area for men)

Is it really that hard to follow a few dress code rules? I didn't find it that hard. I found it acceptable/reasonable. I understood the safety reasons behind the 'no flip flops/open toed shoes' rule.

The dress code, in my opinion, was far more easier to enforce, b/c it was a few rules, not a million like the uniform policy.

Wanna see our uniform policy?

 

[chager]

For example, back when I was in school, jeans were it. But not just any jeans would do, it had to be Jordache. No, levi's wouldn't do. They look the same, they may even fit the same, but it wasn't the name. It's not any different now.

If they'd just enforce the code that's already in effect this would not be neccessary.

I remember HAVING to have Jordache jeans!!! When I was in school it was ALL about the brand you wore!! It was also about how strange you could dress. I found a pic of me wearing this bright yellow/hot pink mini skirt outfit with hot pink tights and RED high tops! I also had my hair pulled into a side pony tail HOW I EVER left the house looking that way I will never know! I had to be a junior or senior in the pic. ( I know I was at school because I was standing in front of a water fountain next to the RR in the junior/senior wing ) I have a vague recollection of wearing that outfit too! I am trying to remember what the shoes were, I want to say NIKE but it have been Reebok, or both. (I KNOW the red high tops were Reeboks!) Honestly I would have preferred just wearing a uniform and not having to deal with the "have to have" stuff. I was lucky that I was able to get a couple "popular" brand items. For the most part we had to shop at 2nd hand stores. I was always excited to find deals on the popular brands there or on clearance racks. I also remember those that couldn't afford them and how they would be picked on. I went to what was called the "preppy school" in our district. (Now it is more the drughead school.
DS and I were just talking about clothes and even he agrees uniforms are better. Keep in mind though his school isn't strict about tucking in shirts or types of shoes. He has a good variety of items he could actually choose from, but he prefers the polo shirts and his pants. ( He could choose sweaters, vests, carnigans, or button downs ) In fact he is a very popluar person at his school and one of things he said was that if he were in a public school he may not have the same social status because we can't afford the "in" styles. Two of his friends are very well off, but in uniforms they judged each other first by "who" they are instead of "what" they wore. Chances are he would never have been given a chance if they knew he wasn't well off before hand. Instead he has formed a great ring of friends.