When the topic of dress codes in
public schools arises, parents and the students rarely agree on what they
believe is important. Many issues are related to this topic such as quality education,
freedom of expression, freedom of religion, safety, and teaching young
individuals to display good behavior. According to Lisa Lumsden from the U.S. Department of Education, school administrators have
“tightened
up student dress codes or begun requiring students to wear uniforms as a way of
reducing the risk of violence and creating a positive, productive learning
environment” (Lumsden). Thus, creating a vast amount of mental ease or chaos.
The
topic of quality education has always caused others to debate but now with
stricter dress codes being made, the debates have exploded worldwide. According
to an article from NBC News, Diane E. Levin, a professor of education at Wheelock College in
Boston, “sexualizing childhood is diverting students from the kind of learning
we want them to do” (NBC News). It seems as if not only parents agree with this, but
“Brittany Meredith, 16… said the dress code at her school was a good idea” due
to the vulgar clothing she witnesses young students wearing outside of school
(NBC News). Vulgar
clothing inside of schools could create controversy, rumors, and disrupt the
quality of the students’ education because of others wearing distracting clothing.
Freedom of expression, to an extent,
is a right that we have as Americans. In an article from NBC News, a young girl was almost
arrested at school due to the fact that she was wearing a shirt mourning a
friend. “The
teenagers, all students at Millard South High School, were ordered to stay home
from one to three days in late August for wearing T-shirts that memorialized
Julius Robinson, 18, a Millard South football player who was shot to death in
June. The
shirts were being sold to help raise money so Robinson’s family could buy a
headstone for his grave” (NBC News). The issue behind this is others may wear, “RIP Grandma
shirts”, said a grandmother of one of the students suspended (NBC News). Not only
is this an example of denying the right of freedom of expression, but also
freedom of speech to be able to mourn for a loved one.
According
to the New York Times, “the American Civil Liberties Union filed a lawsuit
demanding that
the Chesterfield County, S.C., school district end what the suit describes as
the continuing promotion of religion in several of its schools, including the
middle school that held the prayer rally” (NY Times). Also, in
2003, France opened a case to ban religious headscarves and Veils, although this was not against a student, but
against a preschool teacher. In 2013, “France’s
Supreme Court ruled in March that the private day-care center’s action amounted
to religious discrimination. But the Paris Court of
Appeals decided that the case needed to be re-examined because it concerned the
principle of secularity enshrined in the French Constitution. On Wednesday, it ruled that the center was
within its rights to fire the woman” (NY Times).
Throughout
the world, it is known that school should be known as a safe place. Although, it seems as if that may not always be
true. The New York Times
publish that, “Jane E. Workman
and Beth Winfrey-Freeburg of Southern Illinois University found that
gang-related headwear was the No. 1 target of dress codes and uniform requirements, cited
in 89 percent of the more than 80 school policies they reviewed in 2006. Jackets
were second, cited in 64 percent of policies, because they can bear
gang-related symbols and hide weapons”, showing that schools are trying to keep
the students safe with the strict dress codes. Parents may become irritated with this section of the
dress code, such as a mother, Debbie Pau, said “I don’t get child support, and
I already did my back-to-school shopping” (NY Times). Although
students may not be able to wear their favorite bright red blouse or cobalt
blue shoelaces, it’s for their protection.
In
today’s society, it is very important to teach young individuals to “stay out
of trouble” or to display good behavior. According to the New York Times, “at
North High School in Akron, Ohio, dozens of students were suspended earlier
this month after nearly 100 challenged the dress code by wearing hooded
sweatshirts. A spokeswoman for the Akron Public Schools District said most of
the students agreed to take their hoodies off when faced with discipline, but
more than 30 refused and were sent home for insubordination” (NY Times). The
dress code did not prohibit sweatshirts, only ones with hoods, which students
chose to wear and go against the rules. Creating a vast amount of chaos because
of the large amount of students sent home that refused to take off the hoodie,
was this for their safety or to improve the quality of their education?
A few debatable questions to ask yourself are:
- · Should children/teenagers/students be allowed to wear whatever they want in an educational environment? Is it actually a distraction?
- · Are dress codes justified or preventing freedom of expression?
- · Are dress codes in public schools preventing gang related incidents or causing them to rebel?
- · Is it justified/safe for dress codes to prohibit religious attire?
- · Are dress codes teaching young individuals to rebel?
In conclusion, the topic of dress
codes in public school will always be at the top of school-related debates. It
seems as if the agreement sides of the dress code and the disagreement side are
quite even. Ponder the thought, are dress codes creating structure or causing
students to rebel?
Works
Cited
"French Secularism on Trial." New
York Times. N.p., 2 Dec. 2013. Web. 26 Jan. 2014.
Henley, Jon. "France to Ban Pupils'
Religious Dress." The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 12 Dec.
2003. Web. 27 Jan. 2014.
"Students, Parents Bare Claws over
Dress Codes." Msnbc.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Jan. 2014.
"Uniforms and Dress-Code
Policies." Education.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Jan. 2014.
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