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Debate:School Uniform
From Debatepedia
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[  ][  ][  ][  ][  ]Should schools require their students to wear a school uniform? |
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[ ]Background and Context of Debate:In some countries, e.g. Britain and many Caribbean states, it is common for school pupils to have to wear distinctive uniforms identifying them with a particular institution, especially to the end of compulsory education at 16. In others, e.g. France, the USA, it is rare for uniforms to be worn, although some private schools may retain them. In both situations the desirability of school uniforms remains controversial among students, parents and educationalists. As a result of this some schools have abandoned uniform at the same time as others have adopted it.[1]
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[ ][  ][  ][  ][  ]Social "leveler"? - Do school uniforms help level the playing field among students? Should they? | |
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[  ][ ]YesUniforms act as a social leveler, under which all students are equal in the eyes of the school and of each other. In institutions without uniform students are often competitive and worry endlessly about their appearance and the clothes they should wear. Pupils without expensive designer clothes and trainers may be singled out as social outcasts, or stigmatised as being from poor backgrounds. For these reasons many parents prefer uniforms as they save them money on buying clothes for school wear.[2]
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[ ][ ]NoStudents always find ways to tease or bully others, regardless of what clothes are worn: Those who wish to be particularly fashionable will want to own the same number of outfits regardless of whether they are allowed to wear them to school or not, changing into them the minute that classes are over. Parents often find some uniform items, e.g. jackets, very expensive compared to the rest of their child’s wardrobe, and complain they can never be worn outside the school environment.[3] Why can't students be seen as "equal" in whatever cloths they choose to wear?[4] Artificial "levelers" like this should be avoided, as they are not part of the "real world": (see below)[5] |
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[ ][ ][ ][ ][ ][  ]Community-building - Do uniforms help build a sense of community among its members? Is this is a good thing? | |
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[ ][ ]YesSchool uniforms help to create a strong sense of school ethos and a sense of belonging to a particular community: As such it promotes discipline and helps to drive up academic standards, which is why a uniform is often adopted by schools which are being reopened with a fresh start after being classified as failing.[6]
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[ ][ ]NoSchool uniforms suppress individualism: They treat students en masse rather than encouraging teachers to recognise their different characters and abilities, and students to accept responsibility for aspects of their own lives. Uniform was better suited to an age of rote learning and military-style discipline than to the more exploratory and creative values of modern education – values which are increasingly important to the wider economy. Many schools, indeed many countries, manage to maintain high school standards of discipline, community and academic performance without adopting uniform.[7]
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[ ][ ][ ][ ][ ][ ]Identification - Is it important for students to be identifiable with a certain school through their uniforms? | |
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[ ][ ]YesUniform has practical benefits when students are outside the school building. Being readily identified with a particular institution may make students more aware of their behaviour while travelling to and from the school, leading them to act more considerately, e.g. to other passengers on buses or trains. On organized trips away from the school it is much easier for teachers to ensure they haven’t lost anyone and to monitor behaviour, than if students wore their own clothes and blended in with the crowds.[8]
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[ ][ ]NoUniforms make students very identifiable and emphasizes the divisions between schools This makes it very easy for bullying and fights to develop between students from rival institutions as they travel to and from school.[9]
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[ ][ ][ ][ ][ ][ ]Real-life prep - Do uniforms help prepare students for "real life" outside of school in the working world? | |
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[ ][ ]YesUniforms prepare students for work environment clothing: A uniform prepares students for life after education, when most will be expected to dress smartly and appropriately for work, adhering to a corporate dress code.[10]
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[ ][ ]NoThe business world is increasingly relaxed about dress codes, making those schools that insist on uniform increasingly anachronistic. Adults who attended schools without uniform do not appear to struggle in the workplace.[11]
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[ ][ ][ ][ ][ ]Appropriate - Are uniforms generally more appropriate than what students might freely wear? | |
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[ ][ ]YesSchool uniforms are better than what students wear freely, because by wearing a school uniform all students will look the same without differentiating between a student and the other, and as such students won't feel jealous toward each other and toward their friends, there are also many students that can't affort to buy clothes for everyday. Also, some students might choose to wear clothes inappropriate in a studying environment. |
[ ][ ]NoUniforms are often inappropriate for certain weather conditions: Uniforms can easily be be too cold in winter or too hot in summer, largely because it is badly designed and cheaply-produced in small quantities for a captive market. Girls in particular complain at being forced to wear skirts even in the coldest months, when many would generally wear trousers from choice and some, e.g. Muslims, for cultural reasons.[12] |
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