School Uniforms

It is highly likely that if you talk to a school aged kid they will complain about their school uniform.  If it’s a pre-teen/teenage girl the odds of them complaining about their uniform are significantly increased. 

I held a mini interview with my friends and parents so I could finally try and discover what exactly people think about school uniforms.

So the Pros:

I asked my friends what they like about school uniforms and it took them a while to come up with answers but we got some interesting responses.

• Gives you a sense of school identity and school pride
• You don’t have to worry about what to wear in the morning
• Warm in the winter
• You can find people in public.  If you’re on an excursion you can find your group easily.
• Fairly comfortable (depends on the uniform in question).
• Won’t be judged by your peers for your clothing.
• Free transport (this is in NSW at least)
• You can sometimes customise your uniform a bit.

I spoke to my parents and this is what they said:

• It’s cost effective.  While it may seem expensive from the off, you only have to buy one blazer/jacket and it can last you years.  This applies to most items and you only have to replace them once or twice in your whole high school life.
• It removes the issue of competing with other students to look the best.
• It removes the element of peer pressure, so people aren’t criticising each other.

And the Cons:

Opposite to what happened when I was looking for good things about school uniforms, when asking my friends what they thought were bad the answers poured out instantly, each person wanting to get their say in and trying to prove to others how bad ours (and others) uniforms are.

My dad however could only think of one thing bad before saying, “what if there isn’t anything else that I think is bad.”

So what my friends said:

• no option for personal expression.
• Itchy/uncomfortable.
• They’re “ugly” and “they make you look like a square.”
• not fashionable (behind the times)
• The Shoes are ugly, uncomfortable and impractical (not good if you’re running for a bus.)
• tights/stockings rip easily
• Not designed to flatter your body shape.
• blazers seem to have built in shoulder pads.

My parents though only said this:

• Not practical for all activities (dependent on the uniform/school/activity in question)

So that is what it would seem others think.  

The conclusion I have drawn from this is that school uniforms are only negative in terms of short term things (such as how we look and running for a bus) but they’re good in the long run (cost wise) so it’s probably worth it and we, teenage girls, should stop complaining.

Fact of The Post: In the average lifetime, a person will walk the equivalent of 5 times around the equator.