School Uniforms : Unformity And Individuality

Society is made up of different body types and uniforms are just that, uniform. Wearing something that does not fit right is extremely uncomfortable and distracting. If a student sitting in the classroom is trying to pay attention to a lesson, but has to constantly adjust their clothing in a worthless attempt to get comfortable, this can be extremely disruptive to the class as a whole because the teacher has to periodically remind the student to stop fidgeting and pay attention. The drawing of this attention to the student and their clothing can be detrimental to their self-confidence, and make them a target for other students to make fun of them. “The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) opposes uniforms on the grounds that they violate students’ rights to freedom of expression as guaranteed by the First Amendment to the Constitution.” (“School Uniforms”). How a student dresses will not directly improve their grades, and making them wear a uniform will curb their expression of individuality. Having to alter a uniform to fit body type can get extremely expensive.

School uniforms are also a financial burden for the families who earn very little money. School violence may still happen if they had school uniforms or not, students may be discouraged to, but if they have strong enough feelings they will not adhere to the rules anyway. Students do not all feel like they belong just because of the school uniforms, they feel like they belong because of the people and community around them, not the things they wear. If you had a uniform, you would be missing out on a valuable life skill, dressing. You need the ability to dress because you will use it a lot when you are finally out of

Uniforms violate our first amendment. It doesn’t let students be themselves in the way they want to dress. There are pros about having uniform, but there are more cons because clothes don’t break rules. Students should not be required to wear school uniform.

First of all, mandatory school uniforms deny students rights, stated in the U.S constitution. In the first Amendment, it states, “congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech. Recently, a student at Riverside Middle School, wore a pink shirt with a message on it that stated, “ #TeamTanya” He was spreading awareness for his mother, who had breast cancer. With school uniforms, this student would not be able to spread awareness for his mother. Not only it would be against what the U.S.A. stands for, it would be uncivilized and send a bad message to other countries around the world.

Furthermore, school uniforms have the potential to make schools a whole lot safer. Think of it like this – if you were to see a student walk in wearing an ugly polo shirt and sweat pants, (s)he would probably be picked on just because of what (s)he is wearing. We as humans naturally judge on what we see first, and it’s usually their face / clothing. If school uniforms were implemented in many places, then it would eradicate school violence and students wouldn’t be indignant with each other based on what they wear. Also, since everyone on school grounds is wearing their uniform, it would be easy to pinpoint unwanted visitors and be one step ahead. Not to mention it would help kids with less money evade the bullying and teasing that they would usually receive, which brings me to my next point.

School uniforms also serve little to no purpose in benefiting the education of children around America. A uniform does not help a student learn things that they need to know. A uniform does not help a student study, take notes, or make flash cards. They bring no educational value to the table of learning. According to many educators and experts, “Uniforms do not improve academics, behavioral and social outcomes, or reduce discrimination or crime” (Farrell). So if a uniform cannot help a student increase their knowledge or grow as a person, why make students wear them?

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.

In summary, schools should not have uniforms. They do not allow students to express themselves. Also, they teach conformity over individuality. In addition to being useless in schools, they do not improve attendance, academic preparedness, or test results. Really, they do not improve anything. If you were a principal, would you enforce a uniform

Uniforms have been around for centuries, from back in the day when women had to wear dresses or skirts and men had to wear pants. To now where students and employees have to wear certain pieces of clothing. People dress to express themselves, schools tell their students to be who they are and to be proud; however, when the student tries to do so they are sent home or held in the office which not only takes away their rights to express themselves, but takes them out of class. According to Friedrichs, “A shocking number of students are actually sent home or suspended for breaking dress code, which means even more time out of class.” A school's job is to prepare children for their futures, that can be quite hard when the student is not there to learn. Dress codes can be overwhelming to maintain. A student's wardrobe isn’t going to be full of polos and khakis because they most likely do not wear polos and khakis outside of school. Dress code should not be as strict, hoodies should be allowed, tank tops should be

First, school uniforms take away the students freedom of expression. The First Amendment of the US Constitution guarantees that all individuals have the right to express themselves freely. This points out, that by making everyone wear the same clothes, it takes away expressing who they are. Your clothes say a lot about who you are as a person and what personality you have and when you take that away, you take away the chance to express yourself.

Why do we need uniforms? Most student have their own style, but a common argument against school uniforms is that they take away the students right to show their sense of style, creativity and culture. Yes, school uniforms may limit what the students have to wear, but he/she can still have their own ways of self-expression in many forms. Students can still express their style of choice by what shoes they pick, color of the shoe laces, how he or she styles their hair, what accessories they add, jacket they wear or socks; there are many ways. Uniforms are still versatile where they will not be breaking the dress code policy the school has set. Just because a student can’t wear the most latest Polo ,Lacrosse , or Hollister shirt or jeans to school doesn’t mean that his/her rights are taken away. School should be a place where Children come to learn, not to scope out the latest fashion trend. Outside of school, kids can wear and show off their unique sense of style.

Wearing uniform can add problems into a student’s life. Students would be more often picked on and bullied. A study conducted by experts from Texas Southern University showed that bullying incidents increased by as much as 12%, after the implementation of mandatory uniform wearing. Bullying mostly occurs because of what you wear, but now bullies find out other ways to show that they are better. Schools would think that if they implement uniforms, bullying would stop, but instead, it doesn’t stop, and it increases bullying. Uniforms could make the student have negative thoughts about themselves. Professor Dave Anderson stated “Students have different weights, body types, and heights. Whenever one looks at himself in the mirror, he depreciates his self-image because he feels like he doesn’t look his best” If the student doesn’t like their appearance, their attitude could reflect off it, for example if they are overweight, they might not like their appearance, so then, that causes them to think negatively about themselves, which wouldn’t be good for their health. These problems could disrupt the students learning process, and it could also have negative impacts on the student.

Uniforms may represent unity in a school, however we are told to be different and be ourselves. There are several supreme court cases that have proved that the First Amendment, freedom of expression, the Supreme Court stated in one case in particular “it can hardly be argued that either students and teachers shed their constitutional rights to freedom of speech or expression at the schoolhouse gate." With uniforms we are losing the main way we express ourselves.

The first major reason for not wearing school uniforms is, it forces a student to conceal his or her individuality. To many people, it appears that the school system is trying to strip away this individuality on purpose, but now is the time that the school should be embracing it and helping the student become the person they are meant to become. “According to opponents of uniforms, even preschoolers should have input into their wardrobe, and the need to encourage personality, confidence, and independence grows more important as the student becomes older” (Chen). Because of this lack of self-expression, students feel their first amendment is being violated and most people would agree, which causes the school to look bad. Another way of looking at it is they are forcing students to become on mold, or one certain way of being. However, the problem with making them one is, no matter how they look they will still have their own individual personality traits that will come out in the end. If forced to wear the uniforms, many students would express these traits by adding things to their uniform such as brightly colored gems for girls and different

The school uniform policy has been an issue in the school systems for years, and there seem to be no straightforward answer to the problems that schools are facing, such as violence, gang activities, and bullying. Many public schools have adopted the uniform policy, while others have not. School uniforms are a great benefit for students and faculty that would provide a sense of security for students and staff. Some administrators believe that uniforms create a safer learning environment, improve discipline, and raise academic achievement. Although, opponents of