School Uniforms And Public Schools

As the years pass, many students have been bullied, a bully, or they just hate school and this was affecting their lives academically. School boards tried to find a way to improve the way students feel about themselves and about school, and they came up with the idea of school uniforms. School uniforms have been associated with just the Catholic school, but are now showing up in public schools across the country. According to the National Center for Education Statistics: Indicators of School Crime and Safety, 2011, twenty-one states require students to wear uniforms in the public school system (Pros and Cons of School Uniforms Statistics). This has seemed to work tremendously in the school system. In education, school uniforms assist with student success, academically, socially, and personally.

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.

Local school districts, the state, individual schools, and the state have mutual interest embedded into the decision of adopting a uniform policy. As a result, school uniforms can be mandatory in some schools while in others remain voluntary. The wearing of a school uniform implies that all students in the school are required to wear clothing that matches in color, length, and design. There have been arguments put across against the wearing of uniforms in schools. The primary argument against implementation of school uniforms policy is that it is an infringement of the first amendment Rights of the USA constitution (DeMitchell & Fossey, 2015).

On February 24 of 1996 when President Bill Clinton made a speech at the Jackie Robinson Academy in Long Beach California he stated “This remarkable progress that you have shown in your school as a result of your school uniform policy, making it safe, more disciplined and orderly, creates teachers who focus on teaching and students who focus on their job of learning” (Bily, 2014 p.5). The school dress code debate is not new and the belief that it makes schools safer and improves learning and test scores has been in the forefront as one of the many ways to improve and promote education in our country. The school classrooms in this country are nothing like they were in the past.

School uniforms are something that is very popular in other countries, but, when it comes to America, it just isn’t that simple. School uniforms have been a very controversial topic in public schools, many schools fight against them but some also are accepting them. A common argument against school uniforms is that it takes away the student's ability to express themselves and that it would be hard to enforce and cost a lot of money. While there are some potential problems with school uniforms they are still surprisingly beneficial. Public schools should require students to wear school uniforms to increase safety and decrease violence.

Lack of parents support is the most significant reason for schools failing to implement any sort of school uniform code. Parents, teachers, and students should support the need for school uniforms in public schools so that they may be able to achieve higher educational goals. This paper will discuss many of the pros to the debate on uniforms in public schools as well as touch on some of the cons on the subject. After weighing the two sides, it will demonstrate how the pros are a more sensible alternative and why schools should require mandatory uniforms for their students.

The idea of uniforms even reached the halls of Congress when then-President Clinton endorsed them in his 1996 State of the Union address. After this speech, the U.S. Department of Education disseminated the Manual of School Uniforms to all 16,000 school districts in the nation. The manual stated potential benefits, such as decreasing violence and theft, preventing students from wearing gang-related colors to school, instilling student discipline, helping to resist peer pressure, helping students concentrate on academics and aiding in recognition of intruders.It is estimated that almost 25 percent of the nation’s public schools are expected to have a dress code this year. In September, Philadelphia public school students started wearing uniforms for the first time. They joined districts like Long Beach, Clovis, Fresno, Huston and Dade County, Florida, in having a dress or uniform code. These codes were established because of the success demonstrated by districts with a dress code.A survey reported by the New York Police Department listed many positive results after a uniform policy was begun in 2000: overall crime was down 14.7 percent and there was an improved sense of belonging and tolerance.Other results of the research revealed that 68 percent of the parents believed the uniform policy improved overall academic performance. Eighty-eight percent of the parents

Uniforms are traditionally favored in private schools, but they are being introduced into more and more United States public schools everyday. During the 2013-2014 school year, one in five public schools in the United States required students to wear uniforms to school everyday. This went up from one in eight schools requiring them in the 2003-2004 school year. ("Background of the Issue," n.d., para. 1). The percentage of schools that require them has increased from thirteen percent during the 2003-2004 school year, to nineteen percent in the 2011-2012 school year ("Background of the Issue," n.d., para. 18). The process of having to discipline a student because they violated the dress code is a process that nobody, student, teacher, or parent, likes to go through. Multiple students cannot drive; so when they disregard the school 's dress code, their parents have to pause whatever

Do you want equality among students in your child's school? Do you want less violence within your child's school? Would you like your daughter to concentrate more on her schoolwork and less on what name brand jeans she is wearing? All this is possible with mandatory uniform policies in public school districts. School uniforms may seem outdated for some people, but in many cases they can improve school spirit, attendance and student behavior. According to The Humanist magazine, former President Bill Clinton's 1996 State of the Union Address called for all 16,000 school districts in the country to adopt a uniform policy. The President stated, "If it means that teenagers will stop killing each

Long Beach, a suburb of Los Angeles, intended to reduce crime through their uniform policy and at the conclusion of policies the first year they reported fighting incidents at the schools fell 51 percent, drug use declined by 69 percent, and crimes involving weapons dropped 52 percent (Time, 1995). Today, the Long Beach Unified School District has mandatory school uniform polices in place at seventy-seven schools serving roughly 70,000 students in grades K-12 (LB Schools, n.d.). The uniforms have also been attributed to better grades and higher achievement. Chris Eftychiou, spokesman for the Long Beach Unified School District, says that since uniforms were adopted 20 years ago, the district has also seen gains in other areas including student achievement, state test scores, and higher attendance (Nittle, 2014). Following Long Beach’s success with unifroms, other urban school districts have been making the transition to uniforms, which now make up approximately one fifth of all student dress attire nationwide (NCES, 2014). While the focus for school uniforms has been on reducing crime in urban areas, the data from urban districts highlight other unexpected but positive benefits that are equally applicable to suburban

Education in the United States from Kindergarten all the way to 12th grade is known for its free education system. That’s right, students all over the country are given the opportunity to retrieve a high school diploma for free. Education in this country is so important that schools around the country are pushing their board of education to propose the policy of school uniforms nationwide, as they believe school uniforms have a very beneficial and positive effect on a student’s learning abilities, behavior, and lifestyle. School uniforms are increasingly becoming more popular throughout the United States, therefore schools across the country are aware of how the uniforms help students make higher grades,

President Bill Clinton caught word of the new trend of school uniforms on January 23, 1996 prepared the State of the Union Address at the United States Capitol where he addressed the subject. In this speech he, “challenge all our schools to teach character education, to teach good values and good citizenship. And 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 school uniforms”. President Clinton called for the children of the nation to evaluate themselves on who they are and not what they look like on the exterior. He acknowledged Long Beach public schools for wearing uniforms and even visited the students. The New York Times reported on the President’s speech saying he is “putting discipline and learning back into our schools”. Interestingly enough, President Clinton was first introduced to the idea of mandatory school uniforms from the First Lady. The New York Times reported that this was in no way mandatory for all states to adopt and this

Uniforms in schools are a big debate around the world. Should we have uniforms in schools? The answer is yes because uniform help the schools. They bring to table a great deal of help because students are getting bullied, killed, and some may not have as much as other when shopping for clothes. Having uniforms bring safety to schools and what goes on after school.

Ever wonder what it would look like to have all students wearing the same white polo shirt, black pants, and a district sweater walking in the hallway? Nowadays, public school and many districts are discussing the possibilities of enforcing the uniform policy. In most places, many private schools already require students to have their mandatory uniforms; however, there are only a few public schools adopting this mandatory school-uniform polices as one of their enrollment requirements. The reason why not all public schools participated was because people believe that they are violating the freedom of choice when enforcing this mandatory uniform policy; yet problems

The issue of whether or not school uniforms are a necessity in today’s society has been a long standing debate. However, it did not come onto the national scene until 1996 when then President Bill Clinton spoke of the matter in his annual State of the Union Address. Citing the Long Beach city school district in California, Clinton spoke of the positive effects of uniform implementation, including: decreased drug cases, sex offenses, violent crimes and fights.