The argument over whether school uniforms should be mandatory in public schools has raged repeatedly over the last several years, and no agreement seems to be on the way. One side says it is bad for their social development, while the other side says that it puts everyone on equal ground. I say that the point is not social in nature at all. Rather, I would submit that the real issue is whether or not it improves learning at school. That is the point of school after all.
School uniforms could certainly have a number of benefits to the school. For one, it would increase income due to people having to buy those uniforms. With the budget restrictions that most public schools are under, the income would be a welcome addition. Then again, who is to say the money would go where it should?
The flip side of this, of course, is that many parents can not afford to purchase school uniforms for their kids every year. This argument seems to lose a bit of water when you think about the fact that “school clothes” would no longer be needed. Those parents that depended on hand me downs, however, would still suffer.
The uniforms themselves would be a point of contention as well. Who says what is acceptable and what is not in these school uniforms? Teachers? Principals? School Board Members? Parents? This question is one that would be quite difficult to agree on. Different social, economical, and religious backgrounds would see to that.
Everything still comes back to one question, however. Would we curb the teasing, and hassles that teens go through when they come to school in clothes that are perceived as inferior? We need to remember that teens are resilient if nothing else. They would find something to pick on someone for, regardless of clothing. In the world of teasing teens, clothing is one of the more benign issues that a teen could run into. If a teenager makes it through high school having only been teased over clothing, they would consider themselves lucky.
Adding school uniforms as a mandatory rule in public schools would do absolutely nothing to help our kids education. It would simply be yet another drag on the pockets of parents. We already deal with school pics, class rings, proms, field trips, school supplies, and so forth. If schools are so intent on making school uniforms mandatory, they had better be prepared to provide them for each and every student first.
Come to me with a real solution for our kids problems in schools. Talk to me about drugs, and literacy, and dealing with the rising rate of teen pregnancy. These are real problems and not mandatory school uniforms. Teachers need support in these areas, and not some faux solution of mandatory school uniforms.
Image Credited To Wikipedia User Robertvan1
