Public school uniforms? Only for the inner city?

[CTyankee]

I was at the local United Way's Day of Caring today. We read to inner city kids at a local school in New Haven. All the kids were required to have uniforms. I was questioning in my mind as to why inner city kids had to have uniforms when suburban kids don't have the same requirement, even tho there is probably a little more diversity of income in some suburbs than in the inner city.

What is the rationale, except for income disparity, which in the case of this school could not have been much? I do know about gang colors and I understand that. This was, however, a K-5 school.

What's the deal? I'm not against them. I just wonder.

[rodeodance]

1. I do not know. I do recall even Clonton talking about them when he

was president but i do not recall what he said.

[muntrv]

2. Allegedly, inner-city kids wear hip-hop clothing and the school

administrators don't want hip-hop clothing in their schools. Never mind that suburban kids also wear FUBU and PHAT PHARM.

[roody]

3. I teach first grade public school in a small town of 20,000.

We switched 2 years ago, and I love it. I wear it every day too. It makes everyone's life easier!!!

[William769]

4. The County I live in Florida

Has it for all schools grades 1 thru 8.

[CTyankee]

9. Is your county affluent? My daughter's town is and there is no mention

of moving to a uniform requirement, so I wonder about whether it is just an inner city thing. Almost as if the inner city kids "need it" and the suburban kids don't, which seems pretty elitist to me.

[SharonAnn]

12. Many private schools require uniforms. And they're not low income.

[William769]

13. The average house is going for over 250 grand

Is that affluent?

[CTyankee]

14. It depends, of course, My daughter lives in an affluent suburb of Boston

which is an expensive housing market. $250,000 would not buy you much in her town. Her house has gone from being worth $400,000 to $1 million, but that is with an addition costing $250,000.

I know, the mind does boggle!

[waiting for hope]

5. In my area, the school board

tried to get all the public schools to adapt uniforms - they sent out a questionnaire to the parents to get consensus. From what I understood, they wanted the uniforms more for the middle and high schools because they girls were looking slutty and the guys were wearing the baggy clothes. The only school that adapted the uniforms was my son's, the only magnet school in the county. They also have the highest test scores as well. All I can say, all those little K-5 graders look so darn cute and I'm elated about my 19 month old, she will not be able to complain that her clothes are not as expensive as all the other girls when she gets to kindergarten.

[moc]

6. Our public school has optional uniforms; this is in a wealthy suburb.

in the Dallas/Ft. Worth metroplex. I'm not sure I understand the rationale for the optional part. I know that our elementary school and one other in the district are "experimental" schools with regards to uniforms.

I love them because it makes dressing in the morning no hassle. It also cuts down on expenses. I think it also reduces distractions and improves academic focus. Honestly, I wish our school would just make it mandatory. I think the optional thing is silly.

I have a sister who taught 3rd grade at another suburban district in the metroplex, and uniforms were required. Her kids went to that school, so she saw the issue of uniforms from both the perspective of the teacher as well as the parent. She confirmed my perceptions of the effect of uniforms.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

7. They're poor and minorities.

So politicians with phony solutions can abuse them. And there's not anything the community can do about it.

[demosincebirth]

19. Abuse them? Give me a break!

In what way do they mistreat them?

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

20. Yes.

Telling people what they can and can't wear is a form of abuse.

[demosincebirth]

25. I guess parents also abuse their children by telling them what to wear.

You better check out Websters to see what "abuse" is.

[proud2BlibKansan]

8. I teach in an urban school and our kids wear uniforms

I would imagine that suburban schools will be requiring them soon enough. That is usually how it goes.

In our district, we had a series of incidents where kids standing at the bus stop had their Starter coats stolen. So the district banned Starter coats. Shortly after that, they began requiring uniforms. There was really no other reason offered.

[Cleita]

10. I wore uniforms in school, parochial school, of course.

It was actually okay. I longed for uniforms at work when I entered the work force because I could spend my money on clothes I liked, not what my employer liked. But for kids, if you are poor you only need two or three uniforms a school year. Everyone wears the same thing so no one is lording it over the poorer kids with the latest fashion blurp. Since they are so unfashionable you can make fun of those clothes altogether instead of picking on each other.

[CTyankee]

11. Yes, I get that, but in this school all the kids were low income

so it wasn't a case of some kids wearing expensive clothes and others not. They were pretty much in the same boat economically.

I just wonder at the implications of such rules vis a vis suburban kids (in terms of creativity for instance). To me it's a question of "cultural capital."

[Cleita]

18. I think that the suburban kids should be subject to the same

rules as the urban kids in any given school district. Either they all wear uniforms or none of them do. They should have the same hard nosed attitude the nuns did too. Either your kid wears the damn uniform or you take him to another school. In the case of a school district it could work.

[rudeboy666]

15. Be careful

You imply many sinister intentions without first making at least some light research.

Inner City: gang violence (in terms of fights, violence, shootings, etc.) is a sad reality in many public schools.

If anything, the requirement of uniforms is a practical solution to a serious problem. Of course, this problem runs deeper than uniform solutions. But when parents and kids are afraid to go to school, what else can you do?

It's a sad commentary on society that certain segments of the population must resort to uniform measures.

[CTyankee]

16. Yes, but my question goes deeper than that.

What is the issue of violence in clothing? I get it about gang colors as I said, but really what can be the big differentiation in school clothes per se?

My sense is that it is a way of imposing a structure on the life of inner city kids and their parents because the school feels that this population "can't" control and properly parent their kids.

Just my sense about this, that's all. Sad, really...

[rudeboy666]

24. It's not a real solution

There is still violence.

However, uniform policies do appear to cut down on the violence.

But like I said, this is not a real solution. The problem runs deeper.

However, I do grant that our society does tend to more easily impose these restrictions on marginalized segments of the population.

[rudeboy666]

21. p.s.

I do not personally endorse uniform policies in schools. I wish that all kids were free to express their individuality (although most would actually end up following the latest trends).

But as someone who was raised and educated in the inner city (and worked in and around the educational system), I could see the rationale behind uniform requirements.

[Another Bill C.]

17. I'm for the uniforms

Years ago I was a single parent on an extremely limited income. After a couple of times hearing "Where'd you get your clothes? At Kmart?" my son wouldn't go to school. Actually his clothes did come from Kmart because it was the best I could afford.

All those little pinheads in their $60 jeans and $75 sneakers made my life absolutely miserable. Not only were the clothes expensive but wearing the same ones within a week was considered gauche.

Uniforms would have evened the field somewhat and may have encouraged the kids to spend more time on the actual mission.

[demosincebirth]

22. I agee, Uniforms should be required from K- 8, with a strict

dress code in High school

[knitter4democracy]

28. I'm for them, too.

I wasn't until I taught in Catholic schools (after being a public school kid with a public school teaching mom), though. When I saw that there's still enough choice and diversity in the uniform options and that the students expend a lot of energy on trying to get around the uniforms rather than other things, I changed my mind right quick.

My daughter's in Catholic school now (faith thing), and we love the uniform. I got a few more this year (last year, I had to wash everything after only one wearing with the playground the way it was) to make laundry easier, but I got them at Penney's on sale and spent far less than I would have on regular clothes.

On top of that, good luck trying to find decent clothes for young girls these days. At least the uniform skirts are longer and have shorts underneath attached to the skirt. I don't have to worry about finding something modest enough for my six year old.

[Thickasabrick]

23. Uniforms are great. I went to a private school - definitely not

low income and we had uniforms. When you take the clothes "competition" away, kids have much less stress to deal with.

[demosincebirth]

26. Agree.

We wore uniforms until High School and no parents ever complained. My parents said that it was easier on the pocket book, too.

Ahh, I still remember the corduroy pants with the starched white shirt.

[Alacrat]

27. The city schools require them, county schools do not.

I think they are a great idea, and most public feedback from parents has been great. Their clothing costs are reduced, they don't have to worry about buying or wearing, the "in style" cloths, which some can't afford, leading to ridicule, and embarrassment. The gang colors are gone, along with starter jackets, and air Jordan's, which were targets of theft. I know when I was a student I wouldn't have wanted anyone telling me I had to wear a uniform, but I was fortunate to have nice cloths, the kids that weren't as fortunate had to deal with being made fun of, I never took part in that, by the way. I think uniforms give students and parents one less thing, and a very important thing at that, to worry about, leaving the students to concentrate more on academics, than fashion. There are problems in suburban schools, related to gangs, and differences in income, which leads to the difference of clothing options, but it seems to be less of a problem than inner city schools. The suburban schools, even though they don't require uniforms, they do have a strict dress code, and enforce it.