IS YOUR UNIFORM CHAINING YOU DOWN?
Uniforms have been around for as long as we can remember, but are they doing us a favour or are they an unnecessary burden.
Uniform is worn by many different kinds of people, for many different reasons. Most police and retail workers wear uniform so they can be recognised by the public, easier to approach and less likely to feel uncertain. Almost all of the schools in the uk have a uniform set in place that the students have to strictly follow, and if not consequences such as detentions are handed out. Having a uniform could establish equality between the students to decrease the amount of bullying that occurs within school, it reduces peer pressure to wear branded and more expensive clothing. Setting uniform and dress codes could also be beneficial because ‘school isn’t a fashion show’, and students are less aware of how they look and concentrate on the task at hand. A lot of the time this can increase punctuality since young people spend less time picking outfits and doing hair if there are strict rules in place. Also by teachers monitoring small things like uniforms (which are punished if not followed), it is less likely for bigger, more severe issues to occur. School uniforms also improve professionalism and enhance how a young person views body image. The cost for uniforms is much lower which majorly helps parents and carers.
However, it’s not a perfect reality and does have some flaws. Uniforms detract from a young person’s individuality; it strips them from their culture and their creative background. Many people say that we should let children to dress and express themselves how they want to increase self confidence. The children also may find other, more undesirable ways to express themselves, such as piercings, tattoos and their attitude, which can become a tougher problem. Uniforms take away from diversity and this shouldn’t be the case, people should be surrounded by different people especially during the age where they are learning and building their characters. The cost of uniform is unreal, even though you’d only be buying one at a time. The cost of a school skirt averages out to about £30, whereas you could by one for a third of the price in a high street store. This is even harder for parents who care for more than one child. A child in uniform could be an easy target for stalkers since most school have their logo on the uniform, they are also more vulnerable to abuse since uniform makes them look young and indefensible. Getting certain children to follow a uniform rule may be difficult and waste time in fixing issues rather than fulfilling their educations.
'we should be allowed to learn wearing what we want and being ourselves, theyre turning us into human robots, both the way we dress and how we are taught' - school girl who didnt want to be named
Manahil Ullah - Ursuline Acedemy Ilford
