school uniforms for high schoolers - pros and cons

It's not a big deal, in my mind. They can express their creativity in other ways at school and wear what they want after school.

I did both. I like the fact that I did not have to think about what I wore to school each morning. It was easy to grab the plaid skirt the light blue shirt and the shoes and socks...certainly made it easier for my Mom. We still found ways to distinguish ourselves though. We knew who the richies were...they wore nicer shirts and had to have the (add a bead necklaces were all the rage in my day) full necklaces. Then there were the ones who were just normal..like me...I had the ol pony tail and shredded end bow tied in my hair. The punkers had punk hair and still managed to sneak large safety pin earrings...The freaks rolled their skirts and their shirt sleeves up...trust me the gang bangers will still find ways to show their colors if they want to. Kids always find a way to differentiate themselves. Even if it is just to identify themselves as belonging to whatever group. Just my experience anyway...

I left that school and went to a school that did not have uniforms and I struggled making decisions to dress everyday. That is my nature though....of course - guys I think have it easier than girls since they are usually okay with jeans and a t-shirt...Other people probably wouldn't struggle as much as I did though.

I wore uniforms for 12 years of school. The boys wore uniforms 1st -8th grade, and had to wear a jacket and tie in high school.

We always found a way to express our individualism.

Might not seem like much, but for the girls, it was all about shoes, and the vests and sweaters of our choice we were allowed to wear under our school jacket. This was in the 70's when sweater vests were really in.
Since we all were wearing the same color, there was an unwritten law that you could wear ANY color vest you wanted, whether it matched the uniform or not.

I know some girls hated it, but I never minded.

I don't know which came first, the chicken or the egg, but I've never really cared that much about having an extensive wardrobe of a bunch of different looks. If you have me a dozen pairs of pants, all the same except for the colors, and a bunch of shirts that have a few different styles, but different colors for each, I'd be perfectly happy.

Was it becasue I wore the uniform and got used to it, or didn't like clothes so liked the simplicity of a uniform?

As far as the boys, I feel it made them a lot more comfortable in situations where they would have to be dressed professionally.

The school where the children whom we have guardianship over is starting school uniforms this coming September. The school is from JK through grade 8.

I don't mind that they see fit to institute a uniform policy. However, I do mind that we have to fork out additional dollars to cover this. $30.00 per shirt and $50.00 per pair of pants. There is no option but to wear the uniform. Apparently, children without a uniform will be sent home.

We just spent nearly $500.00 for school shirts and pants to outfit the 2 kids. The pants must be navy blue and the shirts can be either white or maroon. Of course, the school emblem is on the shirt. It irks me that I have to pay for the school emblem. This, of course, is above and beyond the cost to clothe the kids for after school etc.

I never wore any uniform in school other than the mandatory white t-shirt and blue shorts for gym. I am not sure what effect this will have on the children.

Does the high school charge much for the uniform?

The uniforms that are in the public school system in my town are very generic. Now they just say Khaki pants and a white shirt. Or for the girls khaki and plaid skorts with a white shirt. They are not expensive and you can get them pretty much anywhere....the school emblem does seem to be expecting quite a bit - especially for that much money! YIKES!

It is interesting how things have changed. When I went to high school, it was the opposite. Many people felt that the rich kids used their clothing as a means to stand out from the crowd. In my day, cashmere sweaters, and felt skirts with poodles on them were de rigeur outfit for the blossoming socialite.

I never had to wear a uniform, and would have fought like a tiger to avoid wearing one. At the time, the kids going to Catholic schools wore them, and were considered "quaint" by the rest of us.

I can understand the rationale for wearing a uniform, but, IMO, there should be a broader selection. White shirts or polos with collars and dark
pants are uniform enough, but allows for differences in taste, budget, etc. I see no reason to insist on a school emblem (unless the maker of the emblems are manufactured by the principal's brother-in-law).

That's probably what the county would do here - go the khaki and white shirt route.
I suppose it's like anything else; kids would hate it at the beginning, but eventually learn to live with it.

It's just a idea that's still in the discussion phase. Though, most parents will put a lot of stock in what the sheriff and the county police recommend when it comes to safety in the schools.
I'm sure the debate will heat up with the first gang-related incident of the school year.

Uniforms are pretty much universal where I am, if you wanted to question individualism amongst kids here, required uniforms wouldn't be the way to go IMHO. Also, because it's such a sure figure in schools and kids growing up, no one really likes them but few really care about it either. As far as I can tell anyway. I did like the equalising benefit they brought though. I never really thought too much about clothes for style or whatever, if it was comfy it was usually fine with me. So competing with people? Having my clothes used against me to score points? ugh. We have a store that holds a huge collection of jumpers, ties and jackets all specific to the school they're for with the badges and everything. Parents start off with such high hopes for how clean and tidy they'll be kept as well!

School uniforms can be expensive.

My daughter has been wearing uniforms since Kindergarten, and she
doesn't mind at all, and most of her classmates are the same. They don't
know any different, so I guess it's much more acceptable and agreeable
to them.

Having to start wearing uniforms in high school when there was a free dress code prior to that is not as easily accepted by the teens. They're
not used to uniforms and they probably will reject the idea of conformity.

No experience here with school uniforms, but I remember a French teacher fondly recalling how many cheat notes could be concealed in the pleats of her school uniform kilt! After that I kinda wished that we had kilted uniforms.

Once i heard someone say that uniforms were equalizers, but at schools i see with uniforms, the poor wear shitty uniforms and the rich wear good ones, just like normal clothes. theres no change, just adaptation.

They are called gangsigns, unless we start chopping off hands this bs doesnt really do anything except make school look like a giant fuckin sea of alternating color.

But then the idiots who cant dress nice get a free pass.

I don't believe that having a school dress code or uniform will affect creativity as there are so many other ways to express yourself. Myself, I prefer a school dress code as this allows parents to spend less money than being forced to buy a uniform. My daughter goes to private school and they have a dress code.

In some ways it is helpful beyond the no fighting over what to wear - one thought process is it gives a sense of importance to school - dress is serious so school is serious. However, this only goes as far as the parents support of it. If parents give that sense of importance as well. As anything it will only work in pros if parents and teachers take it seriously and are supportive. If you simply follow the rules, but grumble about it or talk about limiting creativity, the kids will react in kind. I think a dress code can help, but the attitude and support from the family has to be there as well - otherwise it is simply another rule enacted by the school.

OGIONIK said: "But then the idiots who cant dress nice get a free pass."

That makes me laugh...it's so true! The only reason I loved uniforms is because I could not make a good decision about what looked good to save my life. I would get up and struggle and inevitably put on the most ridiculous looking outfit....In college - I learned to get some of my better dressed friends to go shopping with me and tell me what looked good together. I was and am a fashion disaster waiting to happen. I should be on that show...What Not To Wear...I am a perfect example!

All that comes to mind is Catholic High School Girls in Trouble.

I'm afraid this idea doesn't work, as I've just joined a gang--a gang of Russian high school exchange students. We've adopted their school uniform as our gang uniform, though we roll up our left pant legs.

We terrorize the suburbs on our ten speeds, weilding slingshots and BB guns.

Watch out or we will **** you up. Unless it's after 11:00pm (curfew); then you're safe.

They asked me to come up with a name. I'm still mulling it over, but I think "Megadeth" would be a fitting title for us. I just came up with that last night.

I wore uniforms all through grammar school and high school. I didn't mind the grammar school uniforms, but we all hated our high school uniforms. Aaaack, talk about ugly. To start with, we had brown and yellow plaid wool A-line skirts. They were bad enough, but the uniform company switched to some synthetic brown and yellow plaid pleated skirts the next year; those were worse. To go with the skirts we had chartreuse blouses, which, if washed a million times would eventually turn to a not too bad yellow. We all looked like bumblebees. We all wanted to burn the uniforms. It was an individual joy for each of us to trash the uniforms on graduation day - unless we had younger sisters in the same school who could inherit the treasures.

I suppose the uniforms semi-protected the students with less financial cushion (like me) or little style sense from the competition for clothing savvy. Since all the uniforms were the same, the only area for any style play was choice of shoes and socks, oxford style shoes being mandatory. Most of us wore white bucks, but white bucks came in good (expensive) and icky (not so expensive) versions at the shoe store, and even white socks had possible variations related to expense - angora tops, embroidery....

We didn't have a gang problem at our school. It seems like never-never land to me now.

regarding the BB gun Gargamel..."Look out - You'll shoot your eye out."
Megadeath is definitely a fitting name for such a ferocious gang as yours that or instead of "The Crips" or "The Bloods" maybe something along the same lines - like "The Hellraisers" - that seems appropriate - given the general mayhem you cause on the 10 speeds with the sling shots and BB guns before 11:00 PM.....Scscscsc scarey.

ppssssssst mismo, in actuality they're the Kool-Aid kids and still drink
lemonade made by Mommy.