Strollerderby : school uniforms

Pop Quiz: Australian Kids Made to Wear Shades Because...

Kelly Mills — Wed, 01 Aug 2007 12:30:00 GMT

Before you click this link and find out why Australian children are being required to wear sunglasses as part of a school uniform, see if you can guess the correct answer.

Sydney's Arncliffe Public School has made sunglasses compulsory for children from kindergarten through Year 6 because:

a) The school is hosting a campus-wide Risky Business lookalike contest, to be judged by actor Tom Cruise

b) After a few violent incidents, the school has a "no bullying" policy, and has implemented the shades as part of a plan to crack down on students shooting dirty looks at one another

c) The school aims to protect children's eyes from harmful UV rays, which can contribute to cataracts

d) Facing budget cuts, the school has negotiated a deal with Ray-Ban as a part of a "make our kids walking product placements" strategy of education funding.

Guess the right answer and you'll receive an invisible gift basket full of smug satisfaction at your newsy knowledge.

School Uniforms: In or Out?

Karen Murphy — Tue, 26 Jun 2007 18:02:00 GMT

When the trend toward school uniforms began some years back, I totally cringed. What??! Eschew my individuality? Er, I mean, my kid's individuality? NEVER!! I will never knuckle under! Nevernevernevernever!

But now it's kind of making sense. I mean, there go all the morning decisions about whether the flannel snowflake pants look too much like jammies and people will comment and therefore I really need jeans with embroidery on them like all the other girls in my class have even though you said I can't have them and they do look rather trashy for a seven year old but still I need them okay mom? And also the wearing of the shirt that we had in kindergarten that we love so much even though we're in fifth grade now and taller than our teacher and the shirt it only comes to our elbows now and it's pretty much in tatters but we luuuuuurve it so much, that will stop as well. With uniforms, anyway.

It turns out some other parents like them too. Schools love them, especially for older students. What's not to like? Rows and rows of lookalike kids, easy to identify as belonging (or not) to the school, which as we all know are frequently targets of infiltration. Uh, or not. Uniforms may improve confidence, too! No more comparisons of what "everyone else" has that your kid does not. It levels the playing field. And then they go out into real life where things are not so level. Oh well.

A study of kids-in-uniform over the years 1994 through 2002 in urban high schools resulted in mixed reviews on how uniforms benefit school districts. The study indicated that uniforms may have caused improvement in rates of attendance, graduation and suspension, but no improvement in academic proficiency or expulsion rates in schools with uniform policies. In other words, a mixed bag. Uniforms may make your kid stay in school but won't make them smarter. Huh.

I wonder why they didn't ask the kids what they thought? I'm still troubled by the lack-of-individuality question. What about you? Love 'em? Or hate 'em?

Family, Backed By ACLU, Sues School District Over Dress Code

Alisyn — Thu, 22 Mar 2007 19:36:00 GMT

Apparently, 14-year-old Toni Kay Scott's parents thought that her school's explicit dress code - which has been in effect for 10 years and is spelled out in the school's policy statement - applied to everyone but their daughter. The Scotts, along with the A.C.L.U., are suing Redwood Middle School and the Napa Valley School District for "unconstitutionally vague, overbroad and restrictive uniform dress code policy.''

Young Toni Kay, now an 8th grade honor student, has been "dress coded" (i.e. punished for dress code violations) 12 times in the last year and a half, but that hasn't stopped her from wearing shirts with logos and slogans on them, pink sneakers, and socks with Tigger on them. Granted, these all seem like petty, insignificant offenses - and they are. But Toni Kay is a repeat offender, more than occasionally disregarding her school's explicit policy of solid color clothes/backpacks only, and no pictures, words, symbols or patterns. She takes time away from students and teachers by doing so. She wastes the school's resources every time someone has to sit with her in detention. And for what? The right to wear some Disney store sale rack socks? Please.

The Scott family and the A.C.L.U. say the dress code "flouts state law, violates freedom of expression, and wastes teachers' and students' time and attention that would be better spent on education." The school district says "[The rules] ensure the safety, and protect the instructional time, of all students." The district also sites the fact that kids are on a level social playing field in uniforms. The school principal says "You cannot tell on my campus the kids that come from a low-income family.''

I just don't get why this is such a big deal. They're school uniforms, not iron maidens. Parents of middle schoolers - how do you feel about the uniform controversy? Hate 'em or love 'em? Why?