Persuasive Speech On Dress Code

“Congress shall make no law... prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech...”. This is what our first amendment speaks about. The freedom of speech and expression. Schools have been violating this law in the place of school dress codes. There should not be a dress code in school because it violates the first amendment, they do not support creativity and they are expensive.

Dress codes in middle and high schools are a form of discrimination against teenage girls in today’s society. Parents and students all over the country argue that dress codes are directed mainly at girls and are a blatant example of gender inequality. The idea behind the strict enforcement of a dress code is that it will teach self-respect and raise moral standards for the students. However, when the reason for many dress code violations is questioned the rationale is often to prevent distracting the male students. Young women across the country are being shamed and punished for wearing what schools consider immodest and being a distraction to their male peers. This discrimination against female students results in their clothes being strictly regulated and dress coded more often than male students’ clothes are. The enforcement of these discriminatory dress codes has become a form of public humiliation for female students. Theoretically, a dress code makes sense and should be effective. In reality, it does not affect how students dress but causes a distraction and interruption of a girl’s education.

To some, arguing over student dress code seems trivial and useless. To others, it goes deeper than that. Dress code might seem like the typical “first world problem”, but to the average high school student, gaining the freedom ‘no dress code’ grants is incredible. The fact of the matter is, the rigid enforcement of student dress code has gone too far in today 's society and dehumanizes us as citizens. Although school dress code attempts to promote modesty and protection, it also reinforces gender inequality, smothers individualism, is unconstitutional, and should not be enforced in public schools.

Any girl that has ever attended public school knows about the struggle of a dress code. On those hot days as the school year approaches, girls pour over their closets trying to find an outfit they won’t get called out for or sweat to death in. All their dresses are too revealing, their shorts too short, and their shirts reveal way too much shoulder—or so the schools say. Girls have been attacked time and time again with dress codes. Policies are almost always directed strictly towards girls; some even specify for girls only. These dress codes are not only sexist towards women, but they limit female’s freedom of expression and their choice to feel comfortable, and they do not teach female’s to have self confidence.

Schools are slowly taking away people 's individuality, but only seems like they are focusing on girls not boys. “ The way boys and girls get in trouble for violating dress codes is different and girls are disproportionately targeted for disobeying it” (“Rosalind Classroom Conversation”). Rosalind agrees that girls are targeted for dress codes more than boys are. In a girls point of view it seems unfair that boys can wear anything they would like, for example muscle shirts, shirts with alcohol, shirts with naked women on them, but not even get dress coded or a warning (Bassett). Meanwhile, a student that was a girl gotten dress coded because her collarbone was showing and it was deemed that it was inappropriate, even after her mother brought her a scarf in that covered her collarbone (Alvarez). Another student which was also a girl got dress coded because her skirt was a few centimeters under her finger tip. They had to send her home, she had missed all her classes and what they were teaching that day because of what they thought it was inappropriate (Bassett). Analuiza states that “ The only reason I go to school is to get my education. When I get dressed in the morning, my intention is not to provoke or be sexualized. My intention is to feel comfortable in my own skin” (Bassett). As a girl I believe that Analuiza is correct with what she had stated, that girls should be able to feel comfortable, and not be sexualized or feel like they are

America, the “land of the free, and home of the brave.” Unfortunately, this doesn 't mean “land of the free to wear whatever one desires.” In fact, school dress codes are taking away American students’ self expression, infringing on their freedom of speech, and enforcing sexist discrimination all over the country. A recent case, that occurred at Tottenville High School in Staten Island, New York, blatantly displays the negative effects dress codes are having on students, especially females. In the first couple of days of the semester, this high school managed to give 200 detentions to students for violating the dress code. Ironically enough, 90 percent of these students were girls (Swafford). The discouraging part is that schools are easily able to get away with this kind of discrimination. This is made possible by state laws that give school boards the power to enforce whatever dress codes they think are necessary to promote a distraction free learning environment, maintain discipline, and to push students to dress similarly in order to create a uniformity in the schools (“School Dress Codes”). The purpose of dress codes may be to create a distraction free learning environment; in reality, however, they produce an environment where students feel discriminated against and aren 't free to express themselves.

Have you ever been excluded from learning because of what you wore to school? In most schools, dress codes are set in place to provide a better learning space for all students. Having a dress code can oppress students because students are given the impression that they should not express themselves. Not all families can afford the clothes that abide by the rules. For example, some students don 't have the means to pay for new clothes, so they have to use hand-me-down clothing. Enforcing a dress code can lead to more problems in the long run because of the exceptions made for students who are athletes and cheerleaders. Many school faculty members including teachers and administrators think that keeping a dress code will keep students looking appropriate while learning, but this idea is wrong because it keeps students from expressing themselves and, the dress code singles out women.

What if I told you that, you don’t have a choice in what you can wear to some schools. Mostly high school and that’s the time when all children should express themselves and grow as individuals. Many schools around the world has a dress code policy that the students must follow. In America dress code policy has been around for more than 100 years. The first school dress code law was established in 1969 by the U.S. Supreme Court. “The constitutionality of these codes was first challenged in a 1969 U.S. Supreme Court case called Tinker v. Des Moines, which involved students who were banned by their school district from wearing black armbands to school to protest the Vietnam War. The court ruled in favor of the students saying they had the right under the First Amendment to wear the armbands; this set the overall standard in place.” (-Kimberly Yates). Many school board believe that dress code rules for students within their district to promote a safe, disciplined school environment, prevent interference with schoolwork and discipline. Some of the dress code policies in school are to strict and stop students from expressing themselves. This is still going on to this day, in schools around the world dress code policies interfere with a students’ right to self-expression. I believe that dress codes should be banned from schools and to let the students wear what they want to wear. Dress codes should be banned because the students are not able to express themselves, the system is a

All anyone ever hears about these days is the way people dress and what’s appropriate and what’s not. It’s all a matter of opinion. At least that’s what they all say, until someone gets busted for dress code at school. Then all of the sudden it doesn’t matter what anyone 's opinion is. It 's the opinion of the person doing the dress code busting. So many schools across the country have established a dress code policy these days, some being mediocre and others taking it to the extreme. One outfit could be revealing to teacher A, and that same outfit could be considered perfectly fine to teacher B. After all it is a matter of opinion but the person who catches the dress code “violation” is the one in the end who gets to decide, so no one else’s opinions end up mattering. Dress code shouldn’t be becoming so important though and teachers and staff members shouldn’t need to make clothing more important than the education of students. It should not be this way and some things need to be changed.

People say you are what you wear. Well, uniforms are expensive and are a violation of human rights, even though it’s professional and sober clothing, they don’t allow students to express who they are, so how are they supposed to be what they wear? People say it prevents bullying, but bullying can happen without uniform. School uniform promotes conformity over individuality. They are difficult to enforce in public schools. It is more money to pay for uniforms and normal clothes outside of school. There really isn’t a uniform in real life like working if you work as a janitor at a school it doesn’t matter what you wear it matters that you get the job done.

It's that time of the year again, back to school. As much as I'll miss my 15 year old daughter, I am so glad that we are back in session, that is unless we're talking about the Dress Code Blues. It is the third day of school today. My daughter casually informed us that she has already seen ten students get "dress coded". Now, the paraprofessional in me knows that you have to start the school year off strong. You enforce the rules early, and can relax a little once they are established and being followed. That's how it works in so many places, from group homes to high schools.

The students ignored the rule for dress code, because they thought they were being sexist. “ High school boys wearing dresses strike a pose with big smiles on their faces. They know they’re breaking school rules, but they hope their gender-defying outfits will spark change”. A high school boy on a cheerleading team in Ohio was denied lunch in early February for wearing a bow in his hair. Boys at West High School in Columbus, Ohio, then wore bows in their hair to show their solidarity for him”. The students think that the school is telling the students what to wear even though they probably represent as a different gender. The world is changing so the students think that the school policies should too. “ With changing times, students are fighting to express their identity freely. Nineteen percent of the 7,800 students surveyed in middle and high school across the country said they were prevented from wearing clothing deemed, “inappropriate” based on their gender, according to the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network’s 2013 National School Climate Survey, Teens are asking their schools to update policies to reflect the changing norms in society”. With the changing world the policies and dress code rules need to be updated to this world society. Girls ignored the rules for the dress code, because it was focusing more on girls and not teaching the boys

Dress codes are worldwide and many people have problems dealing with them. Uniforms or dress codes are implemented at both jobs and school. Some dress codes make it to where people cannot express who they are or how they may feel. Dress codes should be implemented but not as strict. Uniforms help many people financially, but that does not keep the issues such as bullying away. They also limit people to who they are and that is not okay. Lighten up on dress codes.

Students struggle throughout high school and go through a great deal of stress. Whether it be making friends, or working hard to pass a difficult class. To make things more pressuring, they are not allowed to wear what they want. The administration made the decision that it is best to suspend a student for their choice in clothing. If they go against the rule of dress code, there will be serious consequences. What students wear should not affect their class work. If a student gets sent home for their outfit, it is affecting their grades and attendance. Punishment disrupts the students education more than what they are wearing. High school students should feel free to embrace their individuality without being pressured by dress codes; therefore, it should be eliminated from all schools indefinitely.

Have you ever had to wear a school uniform? Did you you love it, or hate it? I’m here today to explain my stance on school uniforms. I believe that having a school uniform would be a good thing for multiple reasons. The first being how it would completely and utterly eradicate the issue of dress code. The next reason is how it would be able to create a more focused learning environment by eliminating clothing distractions. The most important reason in my mind however, is how it could drastically increase student safety at school. Now I will go a bit more in depth as I explain these reasons…