Schuyler wanted red hair.
Schuyler got red hair. Holy crap.
This week we received a letter from her school, informing us that there is a proposal to go to school uniforms next year. The letter included a ballot for every household to vote and return to the school. Our problem is that we are not in agreement on the issue. Julie thinks it's a good idea; I am completely unconvinced.
Any thoughts?
52 comments:
Theoretically, it can be a good idea if you're in an area where some people have lots o' money and others don't - so that way the kids who can't wear designer jeans don't feel left out. Practically, though, I suspect the rich kids wear nice new uniforms and the others get hand-me-downs, and of course kids always know who has money and who doesn't. So from that perspective, I can't say it would work.
It might build a sense of school unity, but on the other hand it might provide a sense of becoming a unit no different than any other unit. (Except for the red hair, which is cool.)
So really I have no helpful suggestions, except to ask whether there's a plan in place for parents who really can't afford that extra outlay (a plan that doesn't make them feel as though they're accepting the charity barrels in a pioneer Christmas story).
Pros: You don't get any of the "My clothes are cooler than yours!!" arguments. Also, no "NO, I don't WANT to wear that today!" as the kids have no choice, it's uniforms or nothing!
Cons: lack of individuality. I'm guessing here, but for a girl like Schuyler, expressing herself in non-verbal ways - clothes, etc - would be more important. Also, uniforms are not cheap.
But I'm not a parent. So. Have a saltshaker to go with my comment.
Everyone wears uniforms here in Australia, kindergarten to secondary school. I've never seen anyone complain about it, and I kind of wish it had been that way for us. It probably would have made cutting school more difficult, but I'd have a different attitude than I do now about skirts and trousers, you know?
James, who grew up here, points out that uniforms tell people where your kid goes to school. Good news if she's not where she's supposed to be, he says, but it would also give creepy people a conversation opener. One other thing he's pointed out to me is that it doesn't fix fashion rivalry unless the school requires a certain brand of clothing or sells the uniform itself. Otherwise you can have two kids wearing two white shirts, one from Kmart and one from Banana Republic.
I have to admit I was originally against the whole "uniform thing" when it was introduced in my own local schools. I thought it stifled individuality and creativity and all those other Big Words we use when talking about expressing ourselves.
But now... eh. For one thing, uniforms make choosing what you're going to wear - you know - a snap. It makes laundry easier, it makes the division between social classes less noticeable (which I think is a Good Thing because nothing is more retarded then feeling bad about yourself because your family can't afford $80 shoes. Like this is some reflection on you as a person).
Also, from a practicality stand point, it actually makes a child's wardrobe last longer. If she's only wearing her clothes clothes half the time, and her school uniform the other, you get more milage.
Nothing says she can't come home from school and throw on her 'You Talk Too Much' tee shirts. It takes nothing away from her own spunky personality. In fact, you could argue without the trappings of The Gap, all that's *left* is spunky personality. And bright, bright red hair.
But obviously, your milage will vary. ; )
School uniforms generally restrict hair colors to natural ones, for what it's worth. And Schuyler looks pretty sassy with that red hair. :)
My personal opinion, as a former public school teacher, is that school uniforms are a waste of time. A lot of districts have jumped on that bandwagon over the past decade, but I don't think its the key to solving any discipline issues at school, which is usually the reason cited for making the change. I've never been one to want to be like everyone else, so uniforms go against my grain anyway...
Love the red hair, BTW. Are you a redhead now too?
I went to school with both uniforms and not. I loved the uniforms.
Julie is in favor of uniforms, both for the convenience and for the diminishing of social status indicators. I can see the advantages, and I'm only a little concerned about the loss of an outlet for expression of her individuality. I think it's extremely important for her and for the other kids in her box class to develop a strong sense of individual self, but I'm not convinced it'll be by virtue of their clothes.
I guess my biggest negative reaction to school uniforms is that it has always struck me as one more thing, like standardized testing and teacher competency testing and year round classes, that people latch onto as a way to fix the schools without doing the one thing that I think will do the trick.
Want better schools? Pay the teachers more, much much more. Attract better teachers and keep them for longer.
I say that, but honestly, the teachers in the Plano school district are probably among the best paid teachers in Texas, so I'm not sure my argument will hold much water here.
As for my hair, she didn't mention it when I was doing hers last night, so I thought i dodged a bullet until just now. I told her how pretty her hair looks, and she started pointing to my hair and signing "red".
Not sure the Ronald McDonald look would impress too many people at work.
Uniforms suppress the childs vein to express themselves. I get that it's needed (or perceived to be needed) in some areas for certain reasons but I think it takes the child out of the child. We want them to express themselves and learn to grow through that....
There are excellent points to be made for pros and cons and many if not all have been made already this morning. Let me ask you this, as a mother of two (three really--and knowing my answer already), would you want to take the 'red hair' out of Schuyler? I wouldn't. I think it rocks that she wants to express herself that way. My six year old son wanted to have red hair on Dr. Suess day and I let him. I went right out and bought the stuff and the next day his normally very dark brown hair was bright red. I went with him as he walked in school that day. All the kids (who had other wacky hair) were grinning wildly at him. Giving him tons of positive feedback. Watching him, I think he thought he was king of the world. --- I would never take that expression of individuality out of him. Ever.
So there ya go. My take on uniform/no uniform. Hows that for a politician's answer...
:)Jenn
Well, so far the proposed policy doesn't mentioned hair color, but I'm still distrustful of uniformity policies. I am particularly unimpressed with the whole "we don't want unusual hair color or dress because it will distract the other students" argument I've heard from other school district policies.
Really? "Teacher, I can't do my essay because I keep looking at Schuyler's hair."
I think a little girl with a robot voice is pretty distracting, regardless of her hair color. Deal with it.
I've taught in schools (jr and sr high) with and without uniforms. My vote is FOR. The uniforms don't stifle individuality - the students are very much individuals! But in that age group, the "tugging skirts down, shirts up, rolling this, tying that so it's tighter" don't happen nearly as much. School has moved away from "school" and to a place of "express yourself" "give self esteem" (which you can't GIVE but that's a discussion for another day). Uniforms help the students focus on the education at hand. Maybe not much -- maybe a small amount -- but anything is good. Rob and Julie don't -- from the photos I've seen -- dress Schuyler as a little streetwalker, but I've seen little girls dressed so provocatively leaving our local elementary school that I'm amazed.
From the school's perspective, and the legal climate these days, the school wouldn't have to defend itself against "you let Susie wear x and wouldn't let Sally wear y". Sigh. A dress code will not fix the schools, any more than the standardized testing or more money will. Involved and supportive parents (like Rob and Julie) will fix schools much faster. Unfortunately they are rare.
My vote: uniforms at school, wildly individual at home.
I wore school uniforms all the way from 1st to 12th grade. Believe me, they did not stifle individuality. Actually, I think they almost encouraged it in a different way- you needed to consider more how to best express yourself. It forced us to be more creative about it than I think we would have been otherwise. We found wild socks (our uniform code in high school expressly allowed us to wear whatever socks we wanted) and had cool backpacks and notebooks and other accessories.
And I really do think there's something to the notion that uniforms affect behavior. We were always considerably wilder and more chatty on uniform pass days when we could wear whatever we wanted. Things were on a much more even keel on normal days, and more productive. Plus, it does make getting ready in the morning a whole lot easier.
So does your experience at The Summer Camp influence your opinion at all? Having known both you and Julie whilst in various shades of blue, I'm wondering if you have negative memories and how those might impact how you feel about uniforms now. I always felt like the kids at The Summer Camp expressed their individuality in spite of the uniform.
I used to be totally against them, as I saw it as one more tool to indoctrinate children to be as homogenous as possible, but having taught in a school where there was a strict dress code (and we had a separate code against artificial hair coloring), it's very unlikely to have much effect on individuality.
If it helps kids focus on what they're there for (and don't get me wrong, socialization is part of what school is all about, especially at the middle school level), why not? It's not a hardship for the parents, who suddenly have far fewer arguments over what's to be worn (though do be prepared to stay up on your laundry!), and I didn't see much in the way of stifling going on.
Except for one of my juniors (it was a K12 school) who was out of class for a week while she and her mother battled futilely against the system when the girl got an eyebrow piercing. I don't suspect any of her teachers had a problem with it, but the discipline staff lost their minds, and it became a huge issue.
So instead of getting visible piercings, these kids drew their own temporary tattoos on themselves and got piercings in locations they weren't at liberty to discuss. You can't keep creativity down.
I personally wouldn't be in favor of uniforms. One thing that hasn't been mentioned is that instead of diminishing social status indicators uniforms just tend to switch the targets. In my experience, the importance of shoes, accessories, etc. becomes hightened. Tiffany necklaces, extremely expensive shoes...things that can still fit within code become the official mark of status.
Uniforms are good because there's none of the keeping up with the "Joneses" for clothes and style. You all wear the same thing. You don't have to think about what you are wearing you all just wear it. I can tell you that uniforms do build a sense of unity within the class and school. There's no distinction between social classes, even the rich little bratty kids have to wear a uniform. Levels the playing field. As far a creativity and individuality, between the three of you, you can make sure your daughter remains very much an individual and creative:) That would be the least of my worries:)
LOVE the hair.
I can go either way on uniforms. I have to say that some mornings when I'm getting up to go to work, a uniform sounds very appealing...
My son's school requires uniforms and I like them because they are easy for kids to match, cheaper than regular clothes, and there is no discussion in the mornings about what to wear. I believe it takes the focus away from social class also, which is the primary reason I am pro-uniform.
I had 12 years of uniforms when I was growing up, and all those years of NO uniforms when I was raising my kids. I would definitely vote for uniforms, for all the reasons previously mentioned. Kids are going to find ways to be individuals, especially someone as independent as Schuyler, but the daily fight about what to wear and the whole status thing is a pain in the butt and uniforms eliminate that entirely.
So does your experience at The Summer Camp influence your opinion at all? Having known both you and Julie whilst in various shades of blue, I'm wondering if you have negative memories and how those might impact how you feel about uniforms now. I always felt like the kids at The Summer Camp expressed their individuality in spite of the uniform.
I always felt like the kids at Interlochen spent a crazy amount of time and energy trying to find ways of taking the rules regarding the uniform and stretching them to the point of rendering the uniform irrelevent. I assume the same thing happens in schools with uniforms.
One thing that concerns me about Schuyler's school's proposed uniform policy is the same thing that bothered me about Interlochen. Ironically, I think the problem is that the uniform isn't restrictive enough. They list the uniform "look" (which at Interlochen was light blue shirts, dark blue shorts and dark blue cords for boys and dark blue knickers for girls for cooler weather), and then list stores where parents are likely to find what they need.
So you get kids who get their clothes at Target, and others who get theirs at Banana Republic, and the differences are still there. I might be more inclined to support a uniform if it was actually, you know, UNIFORM.
In the metro area in which I live, most public and charter schools have gone to uniforms in the past ten years. They all seem to favor a sort of business-casual look: khaki trousers and navy shirts, for example. From what I can tell, there don't appear to be any requirements other than the color-coding and general style.
The children I see on public transit or walking together definitely wear different labels -- and the nice thing is that the clothes are now incidental to their normal exuberance and self-expression. (I've seen some very interesting hair colors with those uniforms!)
I think that if a school is contemplating such a change, it should at the very least make it flexible enough to be affordable for all the families it serves.
Here's hoping that your school will allow the parents to have more input than a simple yes/no vote.
Sometimes, uniforms can be just as sexualizing as the clothes they are meant to replace (Catholic school skirts for girls, anyone?), so I'm surprised there hasn't been any mention of *what* the uniform entails, and whether any components of it are objectionable. My main question is whether girls get tp choose wearing skirts or pants, or is it one item only?
Also, I can't help but be reminded of the Simpsons episode where the kids are made to wear boring grey uniforms, and the grey dye accidentally washes off and turns tie-dyed in the rain.
Finally, thanks for changing the comment options so us WordPressers can comment!
My junior high school required uniforms, and I loved it. The argument that my individuality was being stifled was a moot point to me, because I was a really poor kid. I couldn't *afford* the clothes I wanted, anyway, so I never felt like my clothing was an expression of my personality.
Are we talking uniforms or uniform dress?
The Arlington schools that participate in the uniform policy have uniform dress as opposed to uniforms.
Khaki or navy slacks and shorts and skirts and skorts are worn with solid color shirts (generally red or navy or hunter)OR any school tee-shirt, sweatshirt or sweater. Between PTA, school, athletics and various clubs and organizations, my kids had dozens of school shirts.
The kids can be individuals but are still within the uniform dress policy. Hair color isn't addressed in the uniform dress policy so there is another area for self-expression.
We waste hours of time at our school policing dress code (what is the deal with the fact that they pay good money to buy jeans that are worn out and full of holes?). I wish we had uniform dress but I don't see it happening since I'm at the high school.
That's a good question. I called Julie at work to find out exactly, as I couldn't remember.
Sounds like it's uniform dress, not exactly uniforms, with a choice of red, white or blue tops and dark blue pants or a jumper for the kids who want to get beaten up and have their lunch money stolen. So it's not a uniform, exactly. Not sure if that makes it better or worse.
I don't know. For junior high and high school students, I guess it makes more sense, but for six year-olds? And six year-old special needs kids? Maybe I need to program words like Gucci and Jordache into the BBoW.
Schuyler goes to the YMCA after school, and she plays HARD. When we pick her up, she's dusty and scraped up and happy as she can be. She wears out jeans in a hurry. I can only imagine how hard she'd be on little Gap pants.
Still, I can see the reasoning. I'm just still hesitant to go there with elementary school kids. Maybe I'm in denial.
I totally disagree with everyone saying that uniforms supress individuality and creativity. If anything, they heighten it. Once everyone is wearing the same thing, you really see every one's style through their hair styles (or colors, as the case may be), jewlery, socks, and shoes. It especially boosters creativity because it's a challenge to think of ways to express yourself without breaking dress code.
I went to private school all my life and every day was spent in a uniform. We complained about them, but it was much in the same way as you complain about having history homework. In reality, I think we all secretly enjoyed them (Or at least I was the only nerd that did). Someone else mentioned that it's a way to bring the school together and a way to identify the schools. This is also true.
As far as hair color, my private religious school never cared. I could come in with red hair one day and blonde the next. If a Catholic high school didn't care, I doubt a public school would.
The bigger question is,....would they still let her dye her hair? Now that's one sense of fashion that shouldn't be squelched!!
When I grew up I dreamed of going to a school which required uniform. It was part of my romantic idea of going to a British boarding school, just like kids in my favourite books.
But as an adult, even if I can see the pros and the cons, there's something that makes me feel rather uncomfortable around uniforms both for kids and adults.
I immediately think of "1984", "The Wall", and more non-fictious fascist things. And at the same time I'm still a sucker for a handsome man in uniform. ;o)
I guess this wasn't so much help, more confused ramblings from my little corner of the world.
Move on, nothing to see here.
P.S. At least make sure that they don't stop Schuyler from having that cool red hair. Or blue. Or purple.
My daughter and son, elementary school age, are in uniforms. I like that I only have to bleach the heck out of white polos (they can also wear light blue)if they get stained by paints, spaghetti sauce, etc. and it's not like loosing a "nice" shirt when it gets stained. I usually buy uniform stuff on sale and stockpile the larger sizes for later. Ebay is also great for inexpensive uniforms. The other navy or khaki dresses and shorts that they have to wear clean easily and are very hard to "kill"....gotta love that polyester and stain release fabrics! The kids in my daughter's gifted class are some of the most creative thinkers and artists and are most definitely not stifled by the uniforms.
Well, I never wore a uniform as a child but I wore one for a four year period when I was employed in the airline industry. There were pros and cons. The main "pro" was the simplicity that it added to my life--I never expected to to like that, but I did. Every single day, I knew what I was wearing and the only concern was that it was clean and pressed. That definitely freed up time in the morning and on the weekends too since I did MUCH less clothing-shopping. It was also a moneysaver---after the initial outlay, the only big expense was shoes since I stood all day and had to have the best. The cons were: 1) boredom with wearing the same thing every day and 2) always feeling like I was wearing a costume that really wasn't me.
It's funny, but you do still have competition even when you have a uniform. Since we all dressed alike, the status items/points of competition for a lot of the women at my work were jewelry, perfume, and handbags and of course, how good your hair looked.
LOL....I'm working elsewhere now and have no more uniform. I can't believe it but I do miss it sometimes...
My son is in a Dual Immersion Bilingual Program, a Kindergartner. His school has a uniform - hunter green shirt, khaki pants. It's been great 'cause there are no arguments in the AM, we change his clothes when he gets home, and I have spent WAY less on clothes because he doesn't wear them out so fast. As an elementary school teacher )K-6), I also vote for them because it does make the day go "smoother" because you don't have to argue with kids about "appropriate" clothing...and in my district, it's been a benefit to the families, because they aren't spending money on "name clothing" because there is no one to compete with. Trust me...kids will be individual & creative no matter what clothes they are wearing! As long as the school is going to enforce it, and has the personnel to do so...otherwise, they shouldn't bother, because the discipline problems don't come from who's wearing what, it comes from who's saying what about who...and that you can't control with clothes.
so far my comment is oh my god i want that hair color.
as far as the uniforms... i didn't go to a rich school, i didn't go to a poor school, just your average public school, and they contemplated the uniform thing there. that was the day that we started showing up in pajamas in protest and ripping off our nametags.
as a student, the idea appalled me. i would have quit school right then and there. shoving me into one of those little skirts would have been a death sentence to anyone who said the word plaid.
i was incredibly uncomfortable at my school and felt like a terrible outsider among other things. being able to wear my favorite jeans and a comfy shirt on a bad day made it seem a little better.
just my $0.02
I went to a Catholic school in a small northeastern city from 2nd through 8th grades. We wore uniforms. The idea that uniforms end class distinctions signified by clothing is a joke.
My Catholic school years were 1984 through 1990. The last three years or so, I guess, we were old enough to really feel fashion-related peer pressure. The uniform code specified what color sweater we could wear over our nightmare-plaid jumpers, but it did nothing to stop comparisons of one girl's dowdy uniform-store navy pullover to another girl's trendily oversized cable-knit navy cardigan from Express. The uniform code permitted socks or tights in navy or white, but one girl's giant white slouch socks were indisputably cooler than another girl's thick woolen white tights. Shoes were a landmine, one that went off most often during gym class: one girl's faddy Tretorn tennis shoes vs. another girl's dollar-store aqua canvas hightops. The only way sneaker elitism at my Catholic school differed from that at my husband's public school was in the derisive names for those shoes that didn't pass muster, which would be thrown at the hapless wearer, often in song. Even one's backpack spoke volumes: everyone knew the difference between a little-kid-ish two-strap day-glo Kmart version and a single-strap multi-colored woven Guatemalan-style number from Benetton. Christ, even the bend-over-touch-your-toes scoliosis test made sure that every girl in the 6th grade got to see what kind of bra every other girl was wearing. Wanna know how it felt to be witnessed by all to be the only girl still wearing an undershirt that day? Let me put it this way, if the St. Margaret Mary's 8th Grade Class of 1990 had a reunion, I'd be there just so the world could get a (discreet but undeniable!) eyeful of my perky C-cups.
A-HEM. anyway. If it'll save you money, go for it. (Though those uniform stores know when they have a captive audience---one big provider which has a website somewhere that you should be able to check prices on is called "French Toast.") Or if it'll make getting Schuyler out the door in the mornings easier for you and/or her, go for it. But don't buy for a second any utopian crap about tearing down the walls of income disparity.
Not that I have strong feelings about this.
I went to Catholic School for 12 years, and for all but one year I had to wear a uniform. I thought it was great. You don't have to spend so much damn time trying to figure out what to wear or getting ridiculed because you don't wear the right thing, and no one really notices if you wear the same thing two days in a row. Of course, kids will still find things to ridicule others about, but the clothing at least streamlines one part.
Besides, then you can avoid seeing nine-year olds in low-riders, which is always nice.
Jordache! Oh, Rob, you're revealing your olditude. :)
Schuyler's hair absolutely rocks.
Having no direct experience with uniforms, I will withold comment except to say that I have noticed that the kids still seem to find a way to individualize.
I grew up very non-wealthy in a very wealthy part of town, and my embarassment at not being able to afford the "right" brands and styles coupled with my own insecurities about appearance made school a miserable place for me. In small ways I suspect I am still not over years of feeling that a. appearance equals worth and accepability and b. I could never measure up. I often wished we had uniforms. But Schuyler has a much stronger sense of self that I had at her age, so what may have helped me might hinder her. Or possibly better yet, she may be so self-confident and secure in her pied piper coolness she doesn't even care what she wears.
What does Schuyler think?
Well, I didn't see anyone else mention this so...
I don't know the situation in Plano, but here in San Jose, I believe some of the schools have gone to uniforms due to gang color issues. You might not be affiliated with Nortenos or Surenos, but wear the wrong color by mistake at some schools and at best you'll get the crap beat out of you and at worst you won't live the day out. Stupid, stupid, stupid situation. I fully support uniforms in this case.
Oh yeah, all the other reasons listed make sense too :-)
I went to a Catholic grade school and junior high that had no uniforms and a pretty lax dress code (tuck in your shirt, no rude sayings on your t-shirts, etc). Then my high school had a dress code. Solid color collared shirts, solid colored pants, no jeans. Which essentially ended up meaning polos and khaki's for everyone. This was in the days before polos were little and cute and popular. I really liked the dress code. Everything in my closet matched, and I didn't have to worry when I last wore something because no one would remember.
I really realized the importance of it my senior year though. I discovered that one of my closest friends only owned 2 pairs of school pants and 5 shirts. His family didn't have the money for more. And no one noticed. And I wouldn't have noticed had we not gotten into a deep conversation about it.
I see the importance of individuality. We just expressed it in different ways. Cute socks. Hair clips. Backpack accessories. Whatever. And in what you did as well.
For us, I think it was the equalizer. It didn't matter what you had or how well you dressed. It was more about you and who you were.
I wanted to remark that over Spring Break my daughters actually tried out the red pulse and the plum pretty and for us, it does wash out in the prescribed washes. My girls' hair is a bit darker than Schuyler's though.
And as far as uniforms go - I am all for it. One reason I can add to the others already expressed is - I believe to a certain extent, it does mimic real life in that when you grow up and go to work, you do have to dress in a certain way and it does have an effect on your attitude. When you have your work clothes it adds to the idea that it is time to work. Why not begin that idea early in school? There is a time to play and a time to work and clothing that adds to that message isn't necessarily bad.
Plus - the laundry. Good God to simplify the laundry alone would make me so happy.
And to loosely connect with this idea, don't we all eventually adopt a uniform of our own of sorts? I know mine is black boots, jeans, and a black turtleneck in the winter and khakis and white tshirt in the spring. My brother had about a zillion blue shirts. And I've noticed this uniform theory of mine in other adults.
My daughters went to Catholic school for grades 7-9 (part of a long quest to find a "good enough" school in our geographic area. Grades 7-8 were great, Grade 9 was awful, but that's neither here nor there. Our daughter LOVED the uniform. At Schuyler's age, I can't imagine it matters much, but by grade 7, to be spared the worries of wearing the "right" clothes, was an enormous burden off of our daughter. What's more, it did seem to save some of the superficial appearnce-based first impressions kids have of each other--that sometimes can't be overcome.
A lot of schools expect uniforms to make a big difference in the quality of education. I don't see that happen. But the uniform saved our daughter a whole lotta grief!
Don't mean to be anonymous, just don't want to make a blogger account for the sole purpose of commenting.
--Shelly
I wore a uniform and actually loved it. It keeps things simple. My daughter is now nine and has had to wear a uniform for school since K5. She also likes wearing one.
I find that is more affordable and easier to care for when there is a uniform.
I am in favor of uniforms, but then I'm a stodgy old fart of a dad. Surprisingly, my nonconformist 16 year-old daughter is in favor of them too.
I went to a girl's school in Dallas and I am very glad that uniforms were required. On the surface, one could not tell the haves from the havenots, which I think in Dallas, can only be a good thing. It made getting dressed in the morning a breeze. Admittedly, the headmaster did frown upon my duct tapped saddle shoes the last few months of my senior year, but I was not about to spend the money on shoes which would go into the trash as soon as I graduated. Which might make it sound as if I didn't like my uniform, but really, I did.
I teach at a uniform school, and I can tell you this: on the playground, even at great distance, I know each child. I know how they stand and play and how they move. The uniforms make you pay attention to the individual details, without even meaning to. They emphasize the unique characteristics. On free dress days, all the kids look alike. All the staff knows this!
I wore a uniform for my first ten years of (Catholic) school, and didn't for my last two years of (public) school. I preferred the uniforms. It was just so much easier... get up in the morning, get dressed. Done. I had a skirt or a jumper, a few blouses, and two sweaters. We could choose our own shoes, and of course we girls chose our own barrettes, hairstyles, jewelry... there was still room for individuality. But there was a whole lot less judging based on clothing.
Now, legislating hair color, that I don't agree with...
I chose my high school in part based on the fact that we weren't required to wear uniforms. In hindsight, I would have wasted a lot less time and energy worrying about what I looked like if my outfits had been chosen for me.
A lot of schools around here have a "dress code"- white shirts, black or blue pants- that's meant to prevent the kids from wearing gang colors. However, the kids still manage to do things like wear a certain color hair band or bracelet. I guess if the kids want to express something through their clothes, it's going to happen no matter what, unless the uniform is so rigid as to be army-like. I've also heard the argument that conformity in clothing forces the kids to find other ways to express themselves, and thus they become more creative.
uniforms require children to differentiate themselves by personality. they also even the playing field between the haves, the may haves, and the have nots. there's nothing to be frightened of; kids will still be kids regardless of what they're wearing.
I have two children who go to a public school. In Australia, and particularly our school, the uniform is compulsory. I love it simply because the children always have something to wear, they all look the same and there is no me vs you and finally, it gives them a sense of school identity and pride. Oh and there is the added bonus of being able to find the little blighters on a school excusion LOL!
As a child I found it extremely painful to wear many common kinds of kid clothing. For instance, I couldn't wear jeans or shirts with tags, or anything made of certain types of cloth.
Uniforms are not designed with comfort or individual differences in clothing tolerance in mind. If I'd had to wear one it would have probably been painful and distracting.
Children with sensory problems that affect clothing may be in the minority, but there will be some in any school, and no school is going to take that problem seriously. There's no way for parents to *prove* to the school that the clothing is hurting their child, and even anyone believes them, they're not going to violate school policy for something that will seem trivial to them.
No child should have to be in pain when it's avoidable, and imposing uniforms on everyone means that some children will be. (Even if it's 'just' a restrictive dress code like "everyone must wear jeans and a blue tshirt", there will be children for whom there are no clothes that are both allowed and tolerable.)
My 8-year-old son attends public school; while we don't have uniforms per se, we do have a dress code: a dress code so complicated and restrictive that it takes 1-1/2 pages of 6-point type to explain it all.
I have no problem with dress codes in the abstract - hell, I can't just wear whatever I want to work, right? But the total conformity of it all bothers me. We seem to be more interested in getting our kids to look and behave like everyone else than we are in teaching them critical thinking skills. But I digress.
I think if the dress code/uniform is simple, then go for it. But if it's like ours is - paragraph upon paragraph of ridiculous restrictions - then give it a pass.
Just my $.02.
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