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The Facts
What are uniforms?
According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary uniforms are defined as. "Dress of a distinctive design or fashion worn by members of a particular group and serving as a means of identification."
Why do schools require uniforms?
Schools claim to require uniforms for many reasons, such as promoting unity within the school, fighting the economic struggle of clothing children, as well as improving academics and behavior.
How common is the requirement of uniforms?
In the United States, 18.8% of public schools and 57% of private schools require uniforms.
The main argument for uniforms is that they lessen the bullying experienced by students who have to wear them in class. This has been proven by many sources to be false, and in truth wearing uniforms does absolutely nothing to deter bullying or violence enacted on students by their peers. In some cases, the wearing of uniforms has been seen to make aggression among students worse.
Many people claim that by forcing students to wear uniforms the schools are infringing on their right of self-expression. The school years are a vital time in the lives of students, especially for them figuring out their own sense of style and their appearance as a person. Restricting when and where they have to opportunity to express themselves and explore their individuality can be detrimental to their personal growth.
The schools claim that having students wear uniforms helps promote a more successful learning environment and improves the scores of their students. Often this fact remains unproven, what the children wear has no effect on their learning, their attendance, or how they score on their exams.
Uniforms can also be detrimental to families lower on the economic ladder. Often uniforms aren’t provided by the school and can cost an extravagant amount of money. This can put families in a hard place, instead of being able to afford a wardrobe of cheaper clothing for their child that can be worn in and out of school, they’re forced to pay for a handful of uniforms that are only able to be worn in one situation.
About the author
Milla Picket is a Senior, and this is her first year writing for the Poudre Press. In her free time, she is involved in the school's choir and theatre department. She is also a writer currently working on her first fantasy novel for publication.
References
2023. School Uniforms Pros and Cons - 13 Arguments For and Against. https://school-uniforms.procon.org/.
Guide, Step. 2024. “School Uniform Statistics (2024).” UniformMarket. https://www.uniformmarket.com/statistics/school-uniform-statistics.
Marsden, Harriet. 2023. “The pros and cons of school uniforms.” The Week. https://theweek.com/news/education/961830/school-uniforms-the-pros-and-cons.
“Uniform Definition & Meaning.” 2024. Merriam-Webster. https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/uniform.