Should Public schools switch to uniforms?

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Replies

  • judith3
    judith3 Posts: 296 Member
    On the one hand: yes. Makes life about 100 times easier, saves money, takes away that "you don't have the latest brand name" competition stuff.

    On the other hand: I wore uniforms from K-8th grade (Catholic school). Ok, we all had the same clothes on. Well, that just meant the kids in middle school had to find a different reason to pick on you or make fun of you. You don't have a cool backpack. You don't have the coolest shoes. Your parents don't drive a nice car. You don't live in the nicest neighborhood, etc. The uniforms did literally nothing to cut down on the have picking on the have nots...at least in my experience (I was considered a "have not" with the rich kids I went to school with. My mom was the principal so I got free tuition, and other kids could get scholarships...those kids got picked on for being "poor" too.)

    When I got to public high school (I chose to go public, I'd rather have killed myself than spend another 4 years with those snobby brats), I was SO INCREDIBLY HAPPY that I got to wear whatever I wanted (within dress code rules). I didn't realize how totally isolated from fashion and personal expression I had been my whole life! My family wasn't rich, we weren't poor, just comfortable, and although I didn't have all the latest brands or whatever (unless I had done a particularly good job at sweet talking my dad into something), I never got made fun of for my clothes in high school. I got made fun of for being in the show choir lol.

    This 100%
  • bikinibeliever
    bikinibeliever Posts: 832 Member
    Yes. My boys went to a school and had to wear uniforms. They have also gone to schools and didn't have to wear uniforms. I liked the uniforms.

    Lots of schools have a uniform exchanges also. My son's school did. You could buy any piece for $1.00 or bring X number of pieces and exchange it for the same number.

    The best part of the exchange was most people used that when their kids grew out of a size during the year. So they brought in all the grown out of uniforms and exchange them, and the cost was $ zero!
  • h_wst
    h_wst Posts: 9
    Personally I'm against it. I wore a uniform for elementary school (went to catholic school) but then was allowed to wear what ever I wanted (well not whatever but you know what I mean). Lets be honest. Uniforms are freaking expensive and then you still have to buy clothes for the weekends & summer.

    A lot of you are saying that uniforms will cut down on bullying but I disagree. Kids will always find something to bully about. Wether its shoes or hairstyle or weight or backpack or whatever. Uniforms are not going to make things magically better and all the kids will hold hands. What it will do is supress childrens sense of individualism!!!!

    What will happen to those children that identify themselves as a different gender (i.e. girl who identifies herself as a boy or vice versa)? How will uniforms affect them? Lets be honest, kids are creative and they only have their childhood to express their indivulaism. When they grow up and go into the workforce they are going to have "uniforms" (men=dress pants & tie, women=pant suit or pencil skirt & button down blouse) so let them have fun as kids!

    And the biggest thing.... if we make them wear uniforms then they will have no idea how to put together an outfit when they are adults! Its the same as having your mom lay out your clothes for you every day..... your going to have no idea how to dress yourself!!!!
  • veganbaum
    veganbaum Posts: 1,865 Member
    I was made fun of for what I wore, generic clothes. I couldn't afford $50 Guess? jeans. I came from a poor, single parent family.

    Who is going to pay for the uniforms? Currently, public schools in my area are sending home lists of school supplies with kids, and they show up with whatever is on their list, then the teacher throws everything in a pile and rations out all the supplies for the class.

    personally, I don't think that is fair, Why should one parent who is barely making it pay for another child's supplies because their parent knows they don't have to buy supplies? Not that I believe most people are like this, I just happened to work with a lady that did just that, she only bought enough supplies for one child and expected her other child to be provided for.

    Uniforms are great for keeping distractions/teasing down, but somebody is going to bear the brunt of the cost. "Forgive my uniform loan!"
    You'd still by school clothes if they wore regular clothes. The uniforms are usually subsidized for people who make less income.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
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    I had a friend in private school, and saw her uniform catalog. Those prices were NOT comparable to Kmart prices. My single parent owned the house we lived in, so we didn't fall into the qualifications for free/reduced school lunches. I would have to believe we wouldn't have qualified for subsidized uniforms.

    I know I wasn't the only family like that.

    Yep! My son was in uniforms for a couple months (tried a private school, he HATED it) and it was expensive. I can see over the long run it saving money, but I had to pay for his uniforms, which were way more expensive than the clothes I buy him at Old Navy, AND had to make sure he has weekend clothes, shoes, etc. Uniforms can save money over time, I'd imagine, but going out and buying 5 uniform shirts and 5 pairs of uniform shorts so I wasn't doing laundry every day, that cost me twice as much as buying the same amount of clothing for non-school days.

    I just have to say that it's hardly necessary that they have one uniform for every day. They're in school, not doing manual labor. Two pairs of pants would be fine. Shirts may be different, they get dirtier a little easier with BO and stuff. The need to have a completely different outfit every day is a very modern, and first world, idea. Used to be kids had school clothes, a set of very nice clothes, and play/work clothes.

    And as for many people talking about the cost, many of the public schools where I live have "uniforms," but it's really a standardized dress code. We're not talking prep-school uniforms - just plain khaki or blue pants, a few choices of colors for polos, and no logos allowed. You can buy those anywhere and many, many companies now specifically market these types of close near the start of the year as school "uniforms." Additionally, many schools will ask parents to donate clothing when their child grows out of it so they can maintain a clothing bank, unless there's a younger sibling. Since all the clothes look the same, no one would know if a kid bought it new or not.

    I understand wanting to express yourself, but students are distracted enough in school, and generally don't take it very seriously. There are many ways of demonstrating personality, individuality, uniqueness, whatever you want to call it. No one's identity should be tied to their clothing choices so much that they feel a loss of it if they have to go to school (or work) wearing clothing that they wouldn't wear at home or out on the town.
  • camila_scl
    camila_scl Posts: 238 Member
    In my country (Chile) we have to use uniforms in almost every single school, privates and public. Though this is very good to avoid children picking on each other because of the clothes they wear (you know, if you don't have much money or you have way too much it shows in the clothes) our world has made this uniform thing which supposed to be to avoid discrimination into a business.
    So the uniforms for public schools used to be the ones you could get at any store, now they' are "specific" uniforms for each school, and each school sells it and some of them way expensive.

    The uniform of my cousin (he was at a public school) was more expensive then mine (I was at a private school), and that's just nonsense.
  • eellis2000
    eellis2000 Posts: 465 Member
    The parents opposed the measure because they wanted their kids to be able to "express" their individuality. Not through art or music or anything stupid like that! Oh no, through a pair of $120 Miss Me jeans that all of the other bratty little girls have, too. It's ridiculous. The parents use the kids to flash their money and the kids who don't have that money get made fun of.

    This is the reason that I am glad my children are out of school. Some people just should not be teachers.

    I don't think it is about individuality as much as requiring children to think and make decisions for themselves from an early age.
    Also, my children were active and clothes did not get worn twice. Body odor stays with the clothes and gives kids something to tease you about.
  • skylark94
    skylark94 Posts: 2,036 Member
    My kids are in elementary school and I would love to have them in uniforms. Old Navy stores sells uniform clothing at great prices, so it would not be a burden.
  • nerdyandilikeit
    nerdyandilikeit Posts: 2,185 Member
    I never got teased for not having brand name something or other. I wore 90% hand me downs and I made the stuff I was given look cute. My brother got made fun of for wearing a belt in his overalls, but that's not really about brands, now is it?
  • cabaray
    cabaray Posts: 971 Member
    Never looked into uniforms before, so I'm curious, do they come in plus/husky sizes? Given the rate of chilhood obesity, I wonder if that's a problem.
  • r1ghtpath
    r1ghtpath Posts: 701 Member
    around here, there are uniforms sold everywhere!!! and they are far less expensive than name brand if you choose khols or target.

    i would LOVE for my kids' school district to go to uniforms! life would be so easy :-)

    i already stick to khaki pants, shorts, skirts for my girls and then a bunch of shirts in different colors. i get the pants in the uniform section of khols and target. they are much less expensive than going to gap!

    and even if you do buy at a place like the gap or gymboree, the uniform clothes are still less expensive than the newest line of their clothes!
    I was made fun of for what I wore, generic clothes. I couldn't afford $50 Guess? jeans. I came from a poor, single parent family.

    Who is going to pay for the uniforms? Currently, public schools in my area are sending home lists of school supplies with kids, and they show up with whatever is on their list, then the teacher throws everything in a pile and rations out all the supplies for the class.

    personally, I don't think that is fair, Why should one parent who is barely making it pay for another child's supplies because their parent knows they don't have to buy supplies? Not that I believe most people are like this, I just happened to work with a lady that did just that, she only bought enough supplies for one child and expected her other child to be provided for.

    Uniforms are great for keeping distractions/teasing down, but somebody is going to bear the brunt of the cost. "Forgive my uniform loan!"
  • 1Timothy4v8
    1Timothy4v8 Posts: 503 Member
    I don't think there should be public schools!
  • Marper8521
    Marper8521 Posts: 158 Member
    Public Schools should be closed period!!!! Give me my damn tax money back. Look at L.A. Unified, 72% drop out rate; and Chicago ? You got to be kidding me and all I hear is "give us more money from those damn unions" GTF off my paycheck and teach someone to count!!!! All schools should switch to either Charter or Private!!! I had to "fight" for my kids right to get educated in this thing they call "public school"
  • eellis2000
    eellis2000 Posts: 465 Member
    I don't think there should be public schools!

    I think school should end at 9th grade :)
  • poustotah
    poustotah Posts: 1,121 Member
    My kids used to go to a charter school where they had to wear uniforms. Now that we've moved they're in regular clothes and man what a pain in the ba-hookey. I have to buy tons more clothes it feels like. And my 11 year old daughter came home after her first week here and told me, "mom, this girl in my class dresses like a hoochey."
  • 1Timothy4v8
    1Timothy4v8 Posts: 503 Member
    I don't think there should be public schools!

    I think school should end at 9th grade :)
    Silly! I think school should NEVER EVER END!
  • rrhennen
    rrhennen Posts: 60 Member
    On the one hand: yes. Makes life about 100 times easier, saves money, takes away that "you don't have the latest brand name" competition stuff.

    On the other hand: I wore uniforms from K-8th grade (Catholic school). Ok, we all had the same clothes on. Well, that just meant the kids in middle school had to find a different reason to pick on you or make fun of you. You don't have a cool backpack. You don't have the coolest shoes. Your parents don't drive a nice car. You don't live in the nicest neighborhood, etc. The uniforms did literally nothing to cut down on the have picking on the have nots...at least in my experience (I was considered a "have not" with the rich kids I went to school with. My mom was the principal so I got free tuition, and other kids could get scholarships...those kids got picked on for being "poor" too.)

    When I got to public high school (I chose to go public, I'd rather have killed myself than spend another 4 years with those snobby brats), I was SO INCREDIBLY HAPPY that I got to wear whatever I wanted (within dress code rules). I didn't realize how totally isolated from fashion and personal expression I had been my whole life! My family wasn't rich, we weren't poor, just comfortable, and although I didn't have all the latest brands or whatever (unless I had done a particularly good job at sweet talking my dad into something), I never got made fun of for my clothes in high school. I got made fun of for being in the show choir lol.

    This!! I went to Catholic school through 8th grade. Elementary was a different style then middle school. I was picked on throughout both of them. Middle school was simple as black pants/jeans and white blouse or polo. When I transitioned to public school, I still wasn't a cool kid, but wasn't singled out nearly as much and found a larger group of friends to identify with (ie: accepted me for ME).
  • 1Timothy4v8
    1Timothy4v8 Posts: 503 Member
    No, hell no. Do you know how much school uniforms cost? We had tons of parents vote NO when they made the elementary schools in my school district switch to uniforms. Somehow the vote was passed and we ended up having to wear uniforms the next year. It was the worst year of my life. They were nice enough to give us a "jeans" day on Friday, but in protest the students wore whatever we wanted (within code of course).

    I would hate to send my son to high school in uniform. Especially the one I graduated from. I went to an Arts and Science Magnet school. I was in Dance, Band, participated in spring musicals, marching contests, dance shows, etc. They would have to have public locker rooms in the halls so students could change clothes in between classes just to keep up with all the classes.

    By the way, uniforms won't stop kids from picking on each other. Sure it's one less thing, but you cover up one problem and two more grow in it's place. It's like when a man loses his sight and his other senses become greater to compensate.

    But maybe that's just in my little lonely school district.

    /shrug

    Great point! also think about the family's that can't afford uniforms that means more government spending, and we cant afford that!
  • pudadough
    pudadough Posts: 1,271 Member
    The parents opposed the measure because they wanted their kids to be able to "express" their individuality. Not through art or music or anything stupid like that! Oh no, through a pair of $120 Miss Me jeans that all of the other bratty little girls have, too. It's ridiculous. The parents use the kids to flash their money and the kids who don't have that money get made fun of.

    This is the reason that I am glad my children are out of school. Some people just should not be teachers.

    I don't think it is about individuality as much as requiring children to think and make decisions for themselves from an early age.
    Also, my children were active and clothes did not get worn twice. Body odor stays with the clothes and gives kids something to tease you about.


    Wow...way to totally miss the point. And insult my character while you're at it! The point was the kids DON'T make the decisions. Their moms and dads do. There are absolutely other ways to encourage decision-making skills. Like in the classroom, about important subjects, for example. Out-dressing each other is an unnecessary skill. Period. The parents where I teach are nouveau riche soccer mom types who flash their money on their kids' backs. Unless you know of 12 year olds who go shopping by themselves for every piece of clothing they own I'm not sure how you can conclude that the parents aren't a major influence on the clothing choices.

    Also, body odor? I was an extremely active kid, sweated a lot and never had this issue. Because I washed my clothes each time I wore them. Problem solved. It would apply exactly the same way with standardized dress polos. And 5 generic uniform polos are A LOT cheaper than 5 off-the-rack name brand shirts.
  • AliciaBeth78
    AliciaBeth78 Posts: 437 Member
    And you don't think that kids are going to be kids and find something else to "argue" over? Let me just tell you, it doesn't matter what these kids wear (e.g. the new styles or their "gang colors"), if a kid wants to get into it with another kid, (s)he will find something to get into it with another kid about!

    I have seen too many instances where someone walks into someone on accident or is talking to someone who they aren't supposed to be talking to or god forbid someone just doesn't like someone else.... these kids have A TON of other things to fight about (in their minds!), than clothes!
  • cellokitty91
    cellokitty91 Posts: 127 Member
    Try taking away the individuality of adults and see what happens to society. :noway:
    Don't do it to our children either.

    I totally agree. I'm an ED major and I don't want to teach a bunch of clones. It also isn't cost effective at all. I remember being teased for not wearing the right things growing up but you just have to teach your kids to be individuals and to never buy into the latest fad.
  • mcjmommy
    mcjmommy Posts: 148 Member
    I think that uniforms help teach kids how to dress. They are used to dressing in what would be considered appropriate for a job instead of being dressed for a field trip.
    I went to a school that had a stricter dress code and when I graduated I had clothes in my closet that I could wear for a job.
  • pudadough
    pudadough Posts: 1,271 Member
    I think that uniforms help teach kids how to dress. They are used to dressing in what would be considered appropriate for a job instead of being dressed for a field trip.
    I went to a school that had a stricter dress code and when I graduated I had clothes in my closet that I could wear for a job.

    Excellent point. Most people, not all but most, have to wear a "uniform" of sorts to work when they are adults. We get to express ourselves through dress on the weekends and every day that's not a work day. So why is this not a valuable skill to teach kids in order to prepare them for the real world? Yeah, not being able to wear my sweats to work every day is a bummer, but it's also real life for most of us.
  • laughingdani
    laughingdani Posts: 2,275 Member
    Our public schools switched to uniforms when I was in 9th grade. I hated it then and as a mother I hate it now. My daughter is in kindergarten and it is soooo hard to find navy or khaki uniform pants in sizes 4/5 for girls. Most of her clothes are boys clothes. The schools don't provide a catalog to order uniforms from (like some private schools do). It is the sole responsibility of the parent. Additionally, they have begun to reward the kids for good behavior and good grades by giving them "out of uniform passes" which they can cash in on any given day and wear whatever they want. Of course the kids enjoy this, but it takes away from the actual purpose of the uniforms if only half of the kids are actually in uniform most days. It's just not worth the trouble, in my opinion.
  • seal57
    seal57 Posts: 1,259 Member
    Here in Aussie all schools have uniforms.....When kids leave school and get a job, most places have uniforms.......Do you think that workers shouldn't have uniforms?????
  • LovingLisa2012
    LovingLisa2012 Posts: 775 Member
    out here, kids are required to wear uniforms in public school ..
    it was optional when i was a kid but when my niece ( now 19) started it was mandatory
  • cannonsky
    cannonsky Posts: 850 Member
    hellz no
  • AABru
    AABru Posts: 610 Member
    I teach in a inner city public high school, and our kids have dress code: collared blue or white shirt and blue, black or khaki pants. Girls can wear skirts the same color as pants and dresses of solid colors. Kids can wear cardigans or pullovers in solid colors (perferably blue or white, but we are flexible). Shorts must be knee length. Pants with belt...
    I wear dress code at least three days a week (it's so easy), and most of our kids get vouchers to buy clothes. The ones that don't have dress code and can't get it, we often help out. I can't tell you how many uniform shirts I have bought out of pocket for students. It cuts down on teasing a bit, but for us it was more about getting rid of gang colors than bullying. No one can say I'm bloods, MS 13, Krips, Latin King...or whatever else if they can't display their colors. (Yes, they still try). Of course, we can't cover up the neck tattoos, but we're trying...
  • DMZ_1
    DMZ_1 Posts: 2,889 Member
    Absolutely not. Children need to develop a sense of individualism. But there should be some form of dress code. Dress codes are going to be a part of life in a lot of jobs, so it is preparation for the future.

    It does not cut down on bullying either. Do you know what cuts down on bullying? Actual disciplinary standards. Most schools (public or private) are way too light on the discipline. I think there should be more suspensions. And if these suspensions cause kids to fail classes and they have to stay back, so be it. That'll teach them not to be a-holes.
  • PapaverSomniferum
    PapaverSomniferum Posts: 2,670 Member
    I loved wearing uniforms in Catholic school. It was one less way for me to stand out and get picked on.

    Some kids flourish with their individuality. I've always despised mine.
  • ProjectTae
    ProjectTae Posts: 434 Member
    HEEEEEEEEEEELLLLLLLLLLLLLLL NO! Or not until I graduate, I used to go to private school we had to wear uniforms Monday-Thursday, but got to wear our clothes on casual Friday, I just feel like it stifles individuality, and lets face it they're often a terribly bland color and way too formal (girls had to wear heels Mon-Thur and tie our hair up every day), I love choosing my outfit everyday, It's an awesome part of being a girl (or stylish guy o.o).
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