The Pros And Cons Of School Uniforms

In 1987, a public school in Baltimore, Maryland became the first to instill a school uniform policy in the United States. This idea of all students dressing alike spread throughout the country, and by 1994 a school district in Long Beach, CA became the first to require a whole school district to wear school uniforms (Background of the Issue - School Uniforms - ProCon.org). Today, an average of 23% of public and private schools enforce a school uniform system (School Uniform Statistics). But this change in dress code policy did not come about without controversy. Although some will argue uniforms promote safety, focus, and an even playing field in schools, school uniform policies oppress student’s freedom of expression, advocate for conformity, and cause more problems than they fix.

One of the biggest controversies in the United States is whether or not public school students

The argument I am looking to convey to the audience is that requiring high school students to wear uniforms should be overturned allowing students to wear what they want. The reasoning behind this argument is lack of proof that it lessens the chances of getting bullied, strips young adolescents of their individuality, and creates a competitive market for parents to have to in essence spend more money than save. There was the desired goal of creating the school uniform policy to put an end to bullying. However, that vision has yet to come to fruition with the reality being the policy is adding more negatives than visible positives. These aspects highlight why grade schools K-12 should cease with the requirement for students to have to wear uniforms.

Schools uniforms takes away students freedom to express them self and individuality. In the article “Free to be me,” it stated that many people were concerned that wearing a uniform would take away students freedom to express them self. The reason is that many students wants to show that they are different than each other, so it doesn’t make them feel that they are just like everyone else. So many students and parents felt so strongly about that that they

In high school and middle school, however, most of the learning comes from inside the classroom. Adolescents often find out a lot about who they are in their school environments. “Ten states currently allow states to mandate school uniforms” (Boutelle, Marsha. "UNIFORMS: Are They a Good Fit?." Education Digest, vol. 73, no. 6, Feb. 2008, pp. 34-37. EBSCOhost). The advocates of school uniforms believe that they will reduce violence in schools and promote a better learning environment for students.

uniforms will not end all confrontation between the student, it will only change the reason for it.

For quite some time now there has been an ongoing discussion about students wearing school uniforms in public schools. Is students in the public-school system play a major role on them academically? Is making the students wear uniforms unfair or does it show equality? What image does it set for the schools that do have a uniform policy? Over the last few decades, the schools, parents, and students have had a debatable issue over the uniform matter.

In the article “Do uniforms make schools better”, Marian Wilde states that in the past decade, school, parents and students had clashed over the issue of regulating student attire. In the 1980s, public schools were often compared to Catholic schools for no reason. So some of the public school decided to adopt the school uniform policy. In 1996, President Clinton provided momentum to the school uniform movement in his 1996 State of the Union Speech. President Clinton said “ If it means teenagers will stop killing each other over designer jackets, then our public schools should be able to require their students to wear school uniforms.” There is some pros and cons for having school uniforms. Some pros for school uniforms would be to help identify intruders easily, prevent gangs from forming on campus, and increase a sense of belonging and school pride. Some cons for school uniforms would be violating a student’s right to freedom of expression, making a student a target for bullies from other school, and it’s an unfair additional expense for parents. School uniforms shouldn’t be required at schools, especially at Kailua High School.

The idea of uniforms being required for public school students has been a widely controversial topic in the recent past. In the 2003-2004 school year, only one in eight public schools required students to wear uniforms (ProConorg Headlines). In the 2013-2014 school year, one in five public schools required students to wear uniforms (ProConorg Headlines). This essay will discuss the reasons that uniforms restrict the individuality of students, burdens families that cannot afford two sets of clothes for each of their children (Farrell), and serve little to none purpose in benefitting the education of students. Uniforms are meant for the workforce, not school children.

In 1994, the school district of Long Beach California was one of the first to enforce school uniforms in the grades Kindergarten through 8th, and crime rates in the district dropped 22% soon after. School attendance also improved after the uniforms were introduced. Although this one statistic shows there are positive outcomes from school uniforms, there is one question that remains: Do school uniforms help or harm the students and environment at school? The controversy among this topic is that some people believe that uniforms improve the way kids act in class, however, others believe that school uniforms make their behavior worse. Another thing that certain people don’t like about uniforms is that they are very costly. A woman in Indianapolis was interviewed and said that she has five kids that all need uniforms, and with all the costs combined she had to pay almost $700. She found it was an outrage because she has a son who was a senior at the time and she had to pay for his uniforms as well. Even though she believed that uniforms are not an advantage, other people have the belief that uniforms have a positive outcome. In fact, some people think that the students’ behavior becomes subsequently better in the classroom setting; this is proven in the Long Beach study. There is also proof that school uniforms save people lots of money. This is because parents in one

School uniforms and dress codes are becoming a popular trend among schools. Most Students and some parents don’t agree with the enforcement with school uniforms, saying that uniforms are taking away self-expression in schools. But, school uniforms are not a negative thing to have. Yes, uniforms and some very strict dress codes limit what the students have to choose to wear to school every day, but it doesn’t limit them from learning which is the main reason they are in school. Some students treat school as a fashion show, so eliminating the size of wardrobe shifts the attention toward their school work. Although requiring students to wear school uniforms may violate their self-expression in some ways, a uniform is supposed to be looked

When students wear uniforms, students do not improve in any way. Student’s academic scores do not go higher when they wear a uniform. Researcher Virginia Draa found that “implementing a uniform policy in schools did not have any impact on academic performance”. If schools are hoping for their student’s academic scores to go higher by implementing uniforms, they would be better off without uniforms. Wearing uniforms don’t help a student’s attitude. A 2010 study in a large urban school district in the Southwest found that asking students to wear uniforms did not result in any change in the number of suspensions for elementary school students. Student’s behavior won’t change, if schools wanted to implement uniform. Uniforms don’t have any positive impact on students,

School uniforms help maintain a sense of equality amongst the students. They help rid any socioeconomic barriers that may be causing certain students, or groups of students, to be alienated from the rest of the student body (Wilde). In other words, the financial status of a student’s parents no longer matters. Parents “are no longer pressured to buy the latest fashions, and they spend less on their children's clothing” (Isaacson). They no longer feel obligated to keep their children up to date with the latest fashion trends. Due to this, students are less prone to form cliques, which only lead to the alienation of students ("School Uniforms.") At the same time, students no longer feel inferior or superior to other students. No longer do students respect each other on the basis of how stylish they look. Their clothes do not gauge how popular they are in the school. Instead, uniforms force people to look at each

School Uniforms are being pushed more and more in schools, but what is commonly thought of when the words “school uniform” is said? For most people the picture of children in the same colored uniforms gathered in front of a Catholic Church or a private school is displayed in their mind. This picture is one of the many problems with school uniforms. Instead of being seen as an individual, students are seen as just another kid in a uniform attending a fancy private school. The students cannot develop the self-expression that is crucial to their development at this age. Uniforms are thought to create a more protected campus and learning environment, however, if someone wants to bully someone else, clothes are not going to stop them. The cost, which is usually seen as a pro, can actually be more than people anticipate. As one can see, in the best interest of any student, school uniforms should not be made part of the dress code.

“I hate my uniform!” is what every child who is required to wear a uniform would say. What students don’t realize is that there are more pros than cons when it comes to uniforms. Uniforms discipline students to be more respectful as well as obedient. I believe that uniforms provide students with a sense of pride, security and focus.