Do School Uniforms Keep Students Safe?

With gang activity, strict dress codes, and bullying becoming more relevant, the idea of school uniforms crosses the mind of many school districts across the country. Even though it may stop students from expressing themselves it would make it easier for staff members to enforce these strict dress codes, reduce the amount of bullying, and overall make schools easier. Which is why schools should have uniforms.

School uniforms are beneficial to students at all grade levels and can be a contributing factor in improving test scores, attendance and the graduation rate, while decreasing school violence and behavior issues. Research has proven significant connections between school uniforms and the success of public schools. In 1996 approximately three percent of all schools in the United States had a school uniform policy (Gentile & Imberman, 2009) . In 2015 23% of schools reported a uniform policy (Statistic Brain Research Institute , 2015). Inner city schools are more likely than suburban, town, and rural areas to have a school uniform policy, because urban schools often struggle with violence, failing school districts, and attendance policies (U.S Department of Education Institute of Education Sciences) and uniform policies have been proven to benefit such schools.

Reports from The Journal of Educational Research reflect the belief that school uniforms have no direct effect on substance use, behavioral problems or attendance issues after analyzing data from the National Educational Longitudinal study of 1988. (Brunsma & Rockquemore, 2001, p 92) The authors of the article go on to make a bold claim that contrary to current discourse there may be a negative effect of school uniforms on student academic achievement. This research revelation was considered breaking news in its day of discovery.

Inappropriately dressing can be distracting and interpret useful class time. School uniforms help our school system in many ways. School uniforms eliminate these issues. It helps eliminate bullying because everyone will be wearing the same. School uniforms also help students score higher on test. It helps teachers not have as many issues from students. Students feel more comfortable when they all look the same so it helps be more welcoming. School uniforms improve students’ education.

Around the world, several schools require their students to wear school uniforms. Many students do not adore this idea, but do they truly know how it benefits them. Some wonder if these uniforms actually improve their learning and experiences in school. Numerous questions have arisen when schools consider this idea. The debate today is growing, as schools try to figure out how they can enhance their school. There are various improvements in school systems when they reach a consensus to add school uniforms. Youngstown State University found that school uniform policies promote the rate of attendance, graduation, suspension (Occupy Theory Staff). These uniform not only help student’s education, they also help

District 230 should not mandate a school uniform policy because of the following: school uniforms go against our rights, raise questions of equality, and they rely on anti-democratic principles. (MP1)To start, school uniforms go against rights in the first amendment like: freedom of religion, and freedom of speech. (EV)Robson states in his Viewpoint, ¨Symbols or words on clothes are most likely to clear the speech hurdle; they will then be evaluated against the “disruption” standard articulated by the Supreme Court in the watershed case Tinker vs. Des Moines Independent Community School District. Tinker involved students wearing black armbands to protest the war in Vietnam. Borrowing from civil rights cases, the court decided for the protesters:

“If it means that teenagers will stop killing each other over designer jackets, then our public schools should be able to require their students to wear uniforms” This statement from Bill Clinton was what started a movement toward using uniforms in-state school in the United States in 1996. Since then school uniforms have become a common thing in the school system in the United States. There is no doubt that school uniforms can lead to loss of students’ rights to express themselves and that school uniforms will not generally stop bullying even though they might increase student’s safety.

School uniforms are taking away students freedom of speech. First of all, school uniforms are restricting students right to express themselves. Experts believe, “American civil liberties union (ACLU), have argued that mandatory uniform policies violate student's right to free speech, which is protected under the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution” Students should have the right to free speech. According to the author, Tamar Lewin, he conveys that ”The Supreme Court's Tinker decision firmly established that students have a constitutional right to express when they are at school so long as the speech is not disruptive and does not interfere with the rights

The article states that “ Many students claim that requiring them to wear particular clothing deprives them of the ability to freely express themselves through their choice of dress”. (What are the constitutional objections to mandatory dress codes and uniform policies). This shows how much school uniforms should be exterminated, they harm not help. As shown above the uniform limit’s their individuality and may harm their personality. In the article by Lee Rowland she states that “school setting does not offer many opportunities for self-expression” she also states “that students cannot freely post or distribute literature without school officials’ permission”( Rowley). This proves that all school’s that have uniform’s they take their school freedom. This information is important because this info proves that most school’s that have uniform’s may affect their social and personal lives in the future. All uniform’s do violate their expression and harm them because of the uniform they express

The kid who have to wear uniforms for school does not effect the way ids learn in school. Uniforms are a distraction because the teachers spend time checking for a mistake a child made against the dress code. School uniforms are don’t help and should be taken away. National Studies on the effectivness of the school uniform policies say they don’t help(David L. Brunsma). Another national study went on sampling 10th graders and found that uniforms did not affect how kids learn, behavioral problems or substance use on campus. Brunsma also found that 8th graders,2nd graders

Should uniforms be allowed in schools? This is the heated debate that has no sign of stopping. There is a lot of evidence for each side with different points of views from the teachers to the kids to a developmental psychologist, but I’m going to talk about my side of this debate. This is my report on why uniforms should not be allowed in public schools. Uniforms should not be allowed in public schools because the cost of uniforms can cause serious financial problems, kids can’t express themselves, and it doesn’t affect their learning ability, growth, or their motivation toward school.

According to today.com, in the 2009 to 2010 school year, 19% of public school principals reported requiring uniforms. That was 5% more than a decade earlier. But are school uniforms really doing what they are intended for? Some people say that school uniforms are helping students, but a lot of people also say that uniforms either don’t help students or are harming their education. This essay will follow the latter opinion in trying to convince you that school uniforms should not be required by public schools.

School uniforms should definitely be used in school systems. Uniforms are both good for schools as well as for the students. Wearing uniforms will help build a sense of unity within the school. Instead of everyone as a separate team, everyone will be in the same team. Wearing uniforms will help free students of the stress of what to wear in the morning. Wearing school uniforms will help improve student individuality and improve their self-esteem.

“One widely cited study, on schools in Long Beach, California, showed a decrease in school crime after the introduction of uniforms, but the city had taken many other measures to reduce violence at the same time, so it’s hard to tease out how much uniforms mattered. Many studies show no change in school culture, and some even show negative results: in one 2007 study, the introduction of uniforms accompanied an increase in the average number of assaults in one district’s violent schools” (“The Downsides of School Uniforms”).

Jahn’s best source comes in the form of legal support of freedom of speech in past cases. However, the Supreme Court has not ruled on the issue of school uniforms. Instead, it lets the states decide if there is a need for uniforms or not. Jahn points