Public School Uniforms Should be Enforced Enforcing school uniforms has been a debating subject for the past decade. Both parents and students either love or hate the ideal of enforcing such a policy. Per an article by Marian Wilde in 2007, there have been many cases that has appeared in court due to violence because of what was worn such as: an anti-Bush T-shirt in Vermont or an anti-gay T-shirt in San Diego (2016). These are only a few examples that prove that in most cases uniforms are great for students. Reducing bullying or violence, enhancing school pride and unity, and improving attendance and discipline are all valid reasons why uniforms should be enforced in public schools.
Bullying and Violence First, enforcing school uniforms has been said to reduce bullying and violence. When a child has the freedom to wear what he or she wants, it can cause an uproar, depending on gang affiliation or different politics. After the many cases around violence being in the courts, President Clinton provided supported uniforms when he said in his 1996 State of Union Speech, “If it means
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Per a journal entry, a Long Beach Unified school was one of the first and largest districts in the United States to mandate uniforms in 1994, and after one year the district reported improvements in students’ behavior and attendance (Sanchez, Yoximer, & Hill, 2012). Another great fact, a 2006 Youngstown State University study of secondary schools in Ohio’s eight largest school districts found that school uniform policies improve rates of attendance, graduation, and suspension (School Uniforms, 2016). When the children only have one option to select for clothing to attend school, it makes it much easier for them to get up, get ready and be in attendance for school. Children has less time to focus on what another person is wearing and more on the schoolwork: therefore, discipline
Ever wonder what it would look like to have all students wearing the same white polo shirt, black pants, and a district sweater walking in the hallway? Nowadays, public school and many districts are discussing the possibilities of enforcing the uniform policy. In most places, many private schools already require students to have their mandatory uniforms; however, there are only a few public schools adopting this mandatory school-uniform polices as one of their enrollment requirements. The reason why not all public schools participated was because people believe that they are violating the freedom of choice when enforcing this mandatory uniform policy; yet problems such as bullying and segregation, emerged in these schools. Some people still think uniforms have no benefits at all. However, all public school students should be required to wear uniforms because it would improve the academic performance, reduce the violent behaviors based on appearance judgment, and provide less stress for both parents and students.
In Long Beach California, they were the first to prove that school uniforms actually do reduce the amount of violence. With a 51 percent drop of physical fights, 34 percent drop in assaults, 50 percent drop in weapon offences, and 32 percent drop with suspensions. They introduced school uniforms in 1996 and ever since have been reducing the amount of violence in school. School uniforms should be used to stop the violence because nobody should have to get beat up because their outfit looks bad, or because it is easier to start gangs, students should not have to protect themselves by bringing a gun to school, students should be able to come to school safe, and without violence. A total of 85 students died violently in U.S schools, 75 percent incidents involving firearms. A couple of students at schools have had the option of deciding whether or not they wanted to wear uniforms, and less than 1 percent of students chose not to. Students would rather wear sometimes hideous uniforms than to risk their life. Wearing a school uniform is obviously a no brainer compared to being fire armed, but in some cases, some students, such as the 1 percent who chose not to, would rather risk their life. Wearing school uniforms could save students’ lives, and make schools a less violent place and make it a safe place
Mark Twain once said, “Clothes make the man”. This quote applies to the issue on school uniforms. Are they making the students of America’s public schools more responsible and orderly? The statistics seem to say yes. There is no doubt that schools across the nation are seeing the improvements are adopting the policy themselves. The benefits of school uniforms include decreasing violence, helping students reduce peer pressure, greater concentration on schoolwork, and school officials are able to recognize intruders. What a student wears may sound trivial however it is worth the investigation because it is changing the American public education system.
Many opposing views feel that uniforms are a “Band-Aid Approach” to more serious problems throughout the school community says Bárbara C. Cruz. (43) These are problems like violence, bullying and poor academic behavior. Said by a high school junior “Uniforms would not transform anyone into a good student, just dress up a bad one”. (Cruz 44) It is true that uniforms are not the solution to all educational problems, but they are a good place to start. Although, when schools begin to enforce a uniform policy it shows that the community is acknowledging there are problems to be solved and working together to try something new. Quoting two school safety experts, “Instituting a dress code alone will not solve the problem of violence in the schoo...
This is why so many schools are now having their students wear uniforms, in 1996 only 3% of public schools in the country wore them, by 2000 it has quadrupled to 12%, and by 2010 19% of all public schools in the country wore uniforms. Uniforms also lowers victimization, decreasing gang activity and fights, and it also helps with differentiating strangers in the school from the students in the school building. Uniforms lower suspension rates and they also decrease substance abuse among the schools. Beth Asaff found the U.S. Department of Education says that the mandatory use of uniforms or dress codes reduces violence in schools. This is a major point because violence in schools has gone up tremendously and President Clinton saw that when he took office.
It is extremely apparent to me, and should be apparent to others, on how much of a significant difference there is in the academic environment when dress codes and uniforms are enforced in public schools. By enforcing these policies, it neither makes students feel physically, mentally, or socially uncomfortable, nor takes away any freedoms that are stated in the First Amendment of the Constitution. Besides eliminating opportunities for the ridicule of less fortunate students based on their attire, helping prevent gang violence and in schools, and generating overall academic excellence and discipline in the educational community, there are numerous other reasons to support the principles of having dress codes or uniform policies established in every public school across the nation.
Until President Clinton called attention to the issue in his State of the Union address, mandatory public school uniform policies were sporadic local occurences. A few school districts had been quietly experimenting with uniforms for years, but the issue caught President Clinton's eye after the Long Beach, California school district released some numbers suggesting that after only one year, its mandatory uniform policy had not only brought about significant decreases in vandalism and fighting, but had also led to higher test scores. Now that the President's endorsement has elevated school uniforms into the realm of federal education policy, a question needs to be answered: Are uniforms a good idea?
It is a great idea for schools to implement a policy on school uniforms because statistics show that students who wear uniforms make better grades, the male students are not going to be distracted by what the female students are (or aren't) wearing, and students feel a sense of fairness with one another as they are all wearing the same things and when students are at one with one another their confidence soars, which leads to doing better at school. Student uniforms helps with reducing the amount of bullying therefore the students who would normally be bullied now have a much better disposition while at school, which will lead to a healthier safer learning environment. When students feel less threatened at school, they can concentrate better which leads to better grades. The schools which have an enforced uniform policy have properly dressed students. When teenage girls, want to impress teenage boys dress inappropriately it causes a lot of distractions and trouble. The girls are also envious of on one another so unrest is caused in the classroom throughout the day, not only with the boys who are looking at the girls, but also at the girls who are jealous of the ones getting the attention.
The Murderous South: The Difference in Violence From the Pre to Post-Civil War Era in “An Odor of Verbena” In William Faulkner’s “An Odor of Verbena,” the death of Bayard’s father leads him to a moral conflict regarding the actions he should take against his father’s killer, Redmond. This clash of different mentalities illustrates the rift between the new focus on education of the post-Civil War South versus the cruelty and social expectations of the Antebellum South, which is prevalent throughout the narrative.
Uniforms in our Public Schools. School Uniforms are a logical choice for the public school venue. Uniforms prevent students from a lower income background from being singled out for poorly made or cheap clothing, prevents use of gang colors, allows for certain safety measures, and allows teachers to form impressions of students based on actions and work rather than dress code choices. Since the 1990s schools have reported amazing results by mandating a school uniform policy. Konheim-Kalkstein, Y. L (2006): “School uniforms, proponents have said, can lead to improved discipline and classroom behavior, increased school attendance, respect for teachers, better school performance, higher student self-esteem and confidence, lower clothing costs, promotion of group spirit, reduction in social stratification, and lower rates of violence and crime.
In society today, school-age children are under tremendous pressure to fit in with their peers and still perform well academically. I believe that school uniforms at pre-K through high school levels are an excellent way to help children succeed not only in school, but to prepare them for college and the “real world.” Three reasons why I believe school uniforms should be used in all schools is first, they are economic, next, they reduce distractions and finally, they help with social equality. To begin, school uniforms are economic. When schools have a uniform policy, it makes it easier on the children and parents.
At the beginning of the 20th century almost no parent or faculty had any concerns with how students dressed to attend school. Nowadays, though, this is a giant concern among students, parents, and school board officials. Many arguments have been made over the matter saying uniforms should be required and enforced in schools. But, uniforms should not be required as they ultimately eliminate freedom of expression, promote conformity over individuality, may have a detrimental effect on students self image, emphasize the socioeconomic divisions they are supposed to eliminate, and lastly, school uniforms in public schools undermine the promise of a free education by adding an extra expense for families.
(“Quotes about Uniform Policy” 1). Theodore R. Mitchell, UCLA School of Education says, "I think its great news for all of us who have advocated school uniforms as a way of building community.” A pressing issue, bullying has become a big problem in many school, and to eliminate this problem, school policies should require students to wear uniforms. Many people believe that school uniforms build the community into a safer, more positive environment. School uniforms improve school academics, prevent gang violence, and assist families, who can not afford expensive clothing.
School uniforms in public schools are becoming increasingly popular across the nation. The public school system would benefit greatly if this policy were to be adopted. Opposition is always a factor when trying to make changes. Taking all things into consideration, the positive effects would be far greater than the negative effects. School uniforms should be required in public schools because their use would lead to higher education, less violence, and lower cost to parents.
Bill Clinton once said, “People will learn to evaluate themselves by what they are on the inside to evaluate themselves by what they are on the inside, instead of what they’re wearing on the outside, then our public schools should be able to require students to wear school uniforms.” Public schools across America are searching to improve safety, school belonging and also help parents save money & students save time getting ready. One way to improve these issues would be to implement a uniform policy. The adoption of school uniforms policies will reach what public schools across America are searching for.