<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Come on, gae, give it a try. Being the rabid opponent of school dress codes that you are I would expect at least some sort of commentary.Originally posted by gae:
Words fail me...
From today's Enquirer:
<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Words fail me...In the war over school dress codes, students sometimes win.
Consider the case of Scott High School in Taylor Mill. Last year it tried to ban edgy T-shirt slogans, and in the first six days of school, dozens of students got in trouble.
The bad vibe wasn't worth it. This year, administrators dropped the rule, which explains what senior Chris Sanders was wearing the other day. Nobody batted an eye at his shirt, which said, "Redneck Divorce: 'Git out of the truck!' "
"Some teachers thought it was funny," Chris said.
For all that students complain about rules, some educators say they're keenly aware of the risks in being too strict for the culture of particular schools.
That's why committees have been known to spend six hours discussing burning issues such as the flip-flops epidemic. Are the shoes unsafe? Unseemly? Just plain ugly?
There's a fine line between maintaining civility and stoking unnecessary resentment.
"It goes to school climate. If kids don't like to come to school because of what they're wearing, they're not going to learn," said Stephen Sorrell, principal of R.A. Jones Middle School in Florence.
This fall, students at Jones got a pleasant surprise. After a year of meetings, a committee decided to once again allow jeans at the school, which had required khakis for the last six years.
Students can now keep their shirttails untucked as well, although they must wear polos, Sorrell said.
"We did hear a lot of complaints from our kids, so we were trying to respond to them," he said. The new code is also more in line with the high school the student will attend, he said.
Other recent examples of schools relaxing rules:
? New Richmond schools this year are allowing students to wear Capri pants. Parents had complained about the illogic of banning them but permitting skirts.
? The Winton Woods district modified its rule requiring shirts to be tucked in, primarily out of sensitivity to oversized students.
The policy permits shirts to be untucked if they are no longer than mid-hip.
Early indications are that the current dress code requires less staff time to administer.
? Walnut Hills High School backed off an announcement, made at an assembly last year, that students should stop wearing flip-flops.
The next day, half the school wore them in protest, and the rule was never enforced, senior Lilly Fink Shapiro said.
An administrator confirmed her account.
"I figure at this age, some decisions, they have to make for themselves," said Stephanie Morton, an assistant principal.
At Scott High School this year, the change in the T-shirt rule has resulted in an explosion of slogans. Some are ironic, some funny and some loaded with double meaning.
Scott's new rule coincides with a trend in teenage fashion.
Labels such as Hollister and Abercrombie & Fitch are playing with innuendo that doesn't always register with busy administrators.
At Sycamore High, teachers are more concerned with bare midriffs and short skirts than T-shirt slogans, sophomore Daniel Zimmer said.
"I saw a teacher walk right past a student wearing a shirt that said, 'Got crabs?' " Daniel recalled. A promotion for a crab restaurant, the tee also alludes to a sexually transmitted condition.
The atmosphere at Scott High is more positive since the T-shirt rule was changed, students and administrators say. But the school does have its limits.
Assistant Principal Shane Rogers said a few students have been ordered to change shirts this year. Among the offending tees: One that referred to "well-hung" drywall and another featuring a polar bear and the message, "Do it nude under 32 degrees."
"We took care of that," Rogers said.
<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Come on, gae, give it a try. Being the rabid opponent of school dress codes that you are I would expect at least some sort of commentary.Originally posted by gae:
Words fail me...
When the Lakota school district solicited input from parents last year on dress codes, I expressed my opinion that anything that "distracted students from the learning that is the purpose of the schools" should be not allowed.
I included in this category bare midriffs, pants that hung low to show underwear, clothing that was obviously chosen for the purpose of shocking others (including sexual innuendos on t-shirts), and clothing that posed a physical hazard (no flip-flops in gym class, clothes that present a trip hazard for the wearer or others, etc.)
I remember teenage boys, and some of the clothing that teenage girls wear today would keep a boy from focusing on calculus.
[img]redface.gif[/img]
It is in the nature of some teeanagers to try to call attention to themselves, and something that draws favorable attention of their peers and annoys the administration is almost irrestible! But school is not the place for this.
These high school students will have to deal with work dress codes; part of learning is adjusting to restrictions they will have to deal with in life.
<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">I'm glad gae highlighted that particular passage, because when I read this I thought this school administrator is wacky. After spending 10 years in Catholic schools wearing blue and white shirts with blue pants, I'm incredulous that anyone could seriously make such a statement.. If kids don't like to come to school because of what they're wearing, they're not going to learn,"
<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">I'm glad gae highlighted that particular passage, because when I read this I thought this school administrator is wacky. After spending 10 years in Catholic schools wearing blue and white shirts with blue pants, I'm incredulous that anyone could seriously make such a statement.</font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">I thought you wore a plaid skirt.Originally posted by reason:
</font><blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">quote:</font><hr /><font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">. If kids don't like to come to school because of what they're wearing, they're not going to learn,"
My school dress code history
K ? 7, Lutheran School ? Long Island, NY
Black or brown oxfords
Dress pants
Short or long sleeve dress shirts
Blue Blazer with Patch on Pocket
Hair ? Buzz cut
8 ? 10, Conservative Private Day School ? West Palm Beach, Fl
Black oxfords
Gray dress pants
Short or long sleeve white button down dress shirt
Red and Blue striped tie
Blue Blazer
Hair ? Above collar, part on left side
11 ?12 Liberal Private School ? Lake Worth, Fl
Sandals, boots or barefoot, whatever you wanted
Shorts or Jeans
Tie-dyed t-shirts
Hair ? By the time I graduated, longer then it is now
It may just be coincidence. But I started smoking pot and skipping school in the 11th grade.. Things got worse the next year.
No school uniform then no kids of mine.simple
Equality is a wonderful thing and school uniform provides that, doesnt matter if yer daddy is a doctor or binman, the look is the same.
I agree with you SP. I was thrilled when my oldest had to wear a uniform to Pleasant Ridge school back in Cincinnati.
In Green Bay, there are no uniforms, and I've had to spend a lot more on clothes. Not to mention the fact that I pick out what the guys wear everyday. Judging from the outfits they came up with over the summer, then need help getting dressed. Red muscle shirt with green sweatpants and cowboy boots? I don't think so!
I went to Catholic school for 12 years. The first 8 we didn't have a uniform but had a strict dress code - no jeans, no shoes without socks (so no sandals), certainly no tank tops or spaghetti-strap tops! In high school we wore white blouses, grey pleated skirts and navy blazers. Guys wore a white dress shirt, grey dress slacks (no jean-style), a tie and the navy blazer. We looked good! We could get creative by choosing wild knee socks (girls) or ties (boys).
And Trav, I started smoking pot in high school too. I'm not sure the lack of a uniform will stop that. [img]graemlins/whatever.gif[/img]
<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">No, but it was much easer to get my girlfriend neked when she didn't have to wear a bra to school.Originally posted by LAKE:
And Trav, I started smoking pot in high school too. I'm not sure the lack of a uniform will stop that. [img]graemlins/whatever.gif[/img]
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