Bill Clinton - 1996 State of the Union Address

What do you think about that??

Are mandatory school uniforms in public schools a violation of student rights or helpful in creating an effective, safe school climate??

"School uniforms?  Yuck!  If I wanted to wear a uniform, I'd go to a private school!"  

That may be the reaction from many school aged children when asked about their thoughts on school uniforms, but school officials have begun to wonder if the United States shouldn't be sending all their children off to school in matching jumpers and sweaters like so many other countries already do.

I have to begin this assignment by touching briefly on my own experiences with school uniforms.  After my freshman year in high school, I was in the market for a private school... but I had one condition.  I would not, under any circumstances, consider attending a school in which I had to wear a skirt every day (I was a bit of a jock after all...).   The best school in the world could have admitted me with a full scholarship, but I wouldn't have even looked at their brochure.   Looking back, I realize that clothing requirements may not have been the most valid reason for choosing a school, but as a 14 year old I sure thought it was important.

Nowadays, I'm on the other side of the coin.  I am teaching in a Boston Public School that has recently implemented a whole school mandatory uniform policy.  Children are required to wear white shirts with colors and long black pants.  Brand, style, and fabric aren't important, the rule is black and white... literally.   This past year was a struggle.  Some kids came to school day in and day out in perfect uniform.  Some of them had some off days ("No Asia... blue jeans are not black pants, that's why they're called blue jeans...").  And a handful of kids wore whatever they wanted every day of the year and the parents could have cared less.  But as an educator, what do you do?  If you send kids home, they miss class.  If you let them stay, five more kids show up out of uniform the next day.  And somehow giving them a white t shirt every day makes them look "cool" and "rebellious" to their peers.

Ideologies: 

This issue is clearly divided into two ideological schools of thought.  An ideology is a one or a group of beliefs that guides an individual, group, institution, or class.  Wikipedia calls it "an organized collection of ideas"

Ideology #1 - YES to mandatory uniform policies

Mandatory uniform policies in public schools have been increasing in popularity in the past few years.  Proponents of the policy (often parents, teachers, and administrators) believe in a few basic principles:

1. School uniforms will help decrease violence in schools by: 

• preventing children from wearing gang colors or symbols
  
• banning expensive clothing and shoes that could get stolen (sometimes violently) in school
  
• help adults recognize people who did not belong on campus
  
• instill a stronger sense of community

2. School uniforms will help children focus on academics by eliminating distractions regarding clothing and looks.

3.  School uniforms will alleviate some of the social barriers faced by children of a lower socio-economic status by eliminating the need to buy expensive clothes to fit in with peers.   The belief is that buying school uniforms is more cost-effective for parents than buying traditional school clothes.

Ideology #2 - NO to mandatory uniform policies

Some groups are very vocal about their opposition to school uniform policies.  This group (often made up of students, some parents, and liberal societies such as the ACLU) adhere to a few basic  beliefs:

1.  Students have a right to dress as they wish in a public environment.  Mandating a certain type of dress takes away students freedom to be an individual.  

2.  School uniform policies prohibits teenagers from expressing themselves, which is an important part of adolescent development.

3.  School uniforms aren't any cheaper than regular school clothes.  In fact, uniform policies are expensive because parents must buy two sets of clothing for their children - one for school and one for when their child is with their friends.

4. People in this ideological group don't generally believe that uniforms actually have the positive effects that are claimed (reducing violence, increasing academic focus, evening out economic barriers).   They point to lack of support for these claims in the research.

Boston Public Schools Consider Voluntary School Uniform Policy

This was a news article presented on WGBH. Please follow this link to access the video.

Prominent arguments

• Successful adults wear uniforms at work and so do schoolchildren in most other countries


• Children are too preoccupied with clothing and peer pressure to focus on their education


• Uniforms policies offer one less distraction for the teachers


• Uniforms make good financial sense for both families and the community

Characters quoted and what was left out

This news segment portrayed multiple arguments that put a positive spin on the issue of school uniforms in the public schools. It was narrated by Marcus Jones, WGBH reporter, and the opinions expressed by the narrator are assumed to be the general WGBH viewpoints, seemingly shared by Marcus Jones. The most prevalent strategies used by the media was the careful positive language used by the supporters of school uniforms and the careful editing of comments made by those who may not have been entirely supportive.

The segment begins with Jack Robinson, the former head of the Boston chapter of the NAACP and current president of the National Association of Black Americans. The media is sure to highlight his credentials, though a careful observer must note that being a leader amongst African Americans does not necessarily make him an expert on educational policy and dress codes. He is careful to use words with positive connotations. The narration introduces his proposition as a "voluntary" uniform policy. However, it does not clarify the exact meaning of the "voluntary policy". Since this segment was filmed, the term has been clarified (as it was actually implemented in the Boston Public Schools) to mean that participation is voluntary at the school level, but not the individual level. If a school elects to enforce a uniform policy, then the students at that school are required to wear the uniform or face consequences. It is a mandatory policy at the individual level. Knowing that the idea of taking away choices from the individual can be perceived negatively, the narrator chose to use the word "voluntary".

Jack Robinson goes on to state that "As an adult, we all wear uniforms. Those of us in the business community wear business uniforms..." He goes on to cite other professions: doctors, lawyers, dentists, cab drivers, police officers, astronauts, engineers, professional football players. I found it interesting that he chose to focus on extremely desirable, high income producing professions (save perhaps the cab driver). Doctors, Lawyers, and Astronauts would not have been the first professions that came to mind when I thought of uniform-wearing workers. Why did he choose not to mention plumbers, fast food workers, toll collectors, members of the armed forces, and garbage men? Again, it is clear that his comments were designed to gently sway the audience's opinions towards his person ideologies.

The segment next cited The Boston Herald as a source. The Herald article was entitled "He's the littlest pusher" and focused on a 9 year old drug runner. Jack Robinson pointed out a quote of a 9 year old boy admiring a peer's wardrobe ("He's always got nice clothes to make him look good when he hangs out with the bigger guys") and used it to draw the conclusion that "Children are too preoccupied with clothes and other stylish possessions to concentrate on their education". Again, he seems to be appealing to the readers emotions as opposed to their logical side. The article did not mention the effects of clothes on school performance and the connection is weak at best.

They next interview John Grady, a school committee member, who the narrator says is encouraging the idea. He is quoted saying "if we can get by all that stuff that deters from the kids getting into school and learning, then I'm for anything that can be tried." This seems to be a classic example of a quote out of context. Mr. Grady could have been replying to a question on any educational intervention and the media may be generalizing the meaning to include school uniforms. Also, the quick editing does make me wonder if he had a "but" to add to the end of that sentence.

They do include comments made by a Caucasian child and an adult, presumably a Boston Public School child and her mother, though that is not confirmed. When asked about a uniform policy, the child stated ""I don't like them. I wouldn't want to wear the same colors all year long." The mother said "They're entitled to their own identity and it's kinda nice to see them all in different colors. These comments seem to be shallow, emotional and unfounded, and again the editing is questionable. Did they just choose the clips that made the interviewees sound immature and unknowledgeable? They did not seem to make an effort to find children and parents who would have more information about or experience with the subject of school uniforms.

The segment finishes with a commentary from Marcus Jones who notes that, "from a purely economic standpoint uniforms seems to offer something for everyone: Parents save money on clothing bills, students have one less peer pressure to worry about, teachers have one less distraction to contend with and the whole community can profit by having uniforms manufactured in the neighborhood." Here, this seems to be his opinion, as these assertions have no source and (as we see in other articles) can be controvesial!

Who was left out?

Boston Public School teachers

Boston Public School principals and administrators

People experienced with school uniform policies, such as:

• children who currently wear uniforms to school (such as private, parochial, pilot, or charter school children)


• parents of children who currently wear uniforms to school


• public school administrators that had implimented a uniform policy


• educators who had done research on the effects of uniforms in schools

The American Civil Liberties Union, a vocal opponent of public school uniform policies

Students Opposed to School Uniform Policy

This was a TV news segment presented by WFMY, a CBS affiliate in North Carolina. The air date was July 8th, 2007. The segment begins at 0:21 seconds.





Prominent arguments:

• School uniforms restrict students freedom and right to express their style
• School uniforms encourage students to conform and discourage them to challenge authority
• High School students are mature enough to have their side heard and make their own wardrobe choices
  

Characters quoted and what was left out:

A News Anchor and Reporter, Eric Spyva, introduced and narrated this segment on a controversial dress code (known as Standard Mode of Dress, or SMOD) being implemented at Reidsville Middle and High Schools. The WFMY broadcasters narrations seemed neutral, though the editor's choice of what comments to include and who to interview did have an impact on the ideologies expressed.

School leaders in Guilford County, a neighboring county, say that a Standard Mode of Dress (evidently already implemented in their district) had "a drastic impact on grades, behavior problems, and socio-economic boundaries." Details of this program and how the school leaders came to their positive conclusions were not specified.

Reidville high school student Chris Knight, dressed in a Jedi Knight costume out of protest, was then shown commenting at a board meeting. He had clearly separated the students from the board, referring to "we" versus "you" in his comments: "Shackled to a desk, we would see them fly as the eagles. You would have them conform, we would have them dare to question and if need be to defy." Throughout the segment, we do not hear opinions from board members who supported the SMOD. I doubt that they would have said that the intention was to "shackle students to their desks."

Students are also shown protesting on a busy road. Reidville senior Rebecka Inman was interviewed regarding her choice of clothing and was careful to use language to make her style choices very unintimidating. She pointed out her "regular t shirt" and "standard pair of Bermuda shorts." She was not interviewed (or if so, her comments were not included) regarding students wearing clothing that would be considered distracting or inappropriate for school. At the hearing, her argument focused around her maturity as a seventeen year old and her ability to make her own choices.

One parent who supported the uniform policy cited fighting with her daughter about appropriate choices as her main reasoning for wanting SMOD implemented. A man (presumably a member of the school board though he was not identified) was shown giving details on what the dress code would look like, however the positives and motivations behind the policy were not given. The school board was shown on tape many times however their comments were noticiably absent from the report.

At the end of the segment, the news anchor reported that the school board had voted 7-3 to rescind the policy.

Who was left out?

School Board members addressing why they had proposed the Standard Mode of Dress policy in the first place
Reidsville Middle and High School teachers

Reidsville Middle and High School principals and administrators

Students who supported the Standard Mode of Dress policy

Parents opposed to the Standard Mode of Dress policy

Child development specialists could have been interviewed to get expert opinions on adolescent needs regarding expression and choices.

People experienced with school uniform policies, such as:

• children who currently wear uniforms to school (such as private, parochial, pilot, or charter school children)
• parents of children who currently wear uniforms to school
• people who had done research on the effects of uniforms in schools