Do School Uniforms Hinder of Help Students in Public Schools - Essay Example

There is a lengthy history of uniform use in schools, mostly from the private sector until expanding more so into the public arena relatively recently. All of these factors clearly demonstrate the benefits of uniforms. The majority of the public school uniform policies include relatively common restrictions, such as khaki or navy pants and solid colored shirts with collars with the school insignia patch only, no brand name or symbol allowed.

Despite the benefits of uniforms and somewhat relaxed standards of dress, there remains great opposition to uniform policies by parents who misguidedly insist that uniform policies somehow limit a child’s ability to express themselves. The proposition of requiring K-12 students to wear uniforms is not a new idea. It has been utilized for more than a century to help promote a sense of scholastic endeavors along with respect for oneself and others within the school setting. When President Clinton said “I believe we should give strong support to school districts that decide to require young students to wear school uniforms”, his opinion was based on a history of school uniforms conveying a calming effect on students (cited in Weitzel, 2004: 10).

Schools in England have employed school uniforms for years for two reasons, to keep the children of lower-class households from being distinguishable from upper-class children and as a badge of honor for academic achievement. “As can be seen in the history of the school uniform, such requirements of the standardized dress also include symbolic rhetoric of legitimate authority, a reservoir of institutional and organizational values of the school, and a method of social and cultural control over cohorts of students moving through the system.

Those without a uniform would feel left out” (Brunsma, 2004: 6). By including students in a particular social group as a member of a singular identifiable student body, uniforms help to build a sense of cooperation and community among children who may not otherwise get along. Students who outgrow their uniforms can donate them to students who can’t afford them. Uniforms reduce clothing costs for all parents and are especially helpful to families on a strict budget. Studies into self-expression and fashion have shown that a direct link exists between the kind of clothing we wear and the way we feel about ourselves.

“With fashion and dress adapting to represent the ever-changing self, fashion, therefore, serves as a vehicle for establishing identity and self-concept” (Weitzel, 2004: 12). Therefore, regardless of the kind of clothes we wear, we are making an announcement about how we wished to be perceived and what we want to be associated with. Parents often disagree with the idea of student uniforms because they think this requirement prevents students from expressing themselves. It must be acknowledged that there many types of occupations that also require a uniform.

“Police officers, firemen, airline employees, nurses, doctors, lawyers, and all branches of the military have some form of required dress. Most of our blue-collar workers are also required to wear a uniform in the performing of their jobs. It makes them a part of a team that performs a certain job in a certain manner and provides for a more cohesive work environment” (Messer, 2008: 2).  In the same manner, this practice works for adults, making them feel like part of a team and encouraging a proper work attitude, requiring uniforms in school works in this same way for students, encouraging them to alter their thoughts during school hours more toward academic matters, in keeping with the serious nature of their clothing. 

Making it public school policy to wear uniforms makes any individual not in uniform immediately identifiable by school staff, which makes it much easier for administrators and teachers to identify non-students on campus and question them until their intention is clear.  “Like other urban school uniform policies, Long Beach’s was intended to curb gang problems, and school officials not only credit it with having accomplished that goal but also say uniforms have brought about a substantial drop in school crime, a drop in-school suspensions, and disciplinary problems and improved student attendance rates and academics” (White, 2000). 

While there will perhaps always be parents who disagree with the implementation of a standardized uniform policy, the evidence cannot be denied.  Requiring students to wear uniforms is a good idea.  History has shown that school uniforms usage can be a source of student pride and a feeling of community involvement within the psyche of the students.  They perceive themselves as being part of a larger group which they can depend upon regardless of any unpleasant home life conditions.  This helps to convey a sense of importance and of purpose in the same manner that uniforms function in the working environment. Students are better able to concentrate on their studies and to maybe consider academic pursuits as more important than ‘hanging out’ at the mall.  Finally, school uniforms provide considerable security enhancements for the school.  Uniforms don’t give kids many hiding places for the assorted weapons baggy clothes provide and allow immediate recognition of non-students on campus. These benefits far overshadow the feeble criticism that somehow a school uniform prevents a student from expressing their individuality.