“All students should be able to dress comfortably for school and engage in the educational environment without fear of or actual unnecessary discipline or body shaming,” the code states in its “values” section,” (McCombs). There are a total of 269,995 schools in the United States and just a hand full of them have realized the insufficiency of their dress codes. Admittedly, girls’ have the potential to be scandalous; however, school dress codes shouldn’t be so sexist towards them because it allows contemptuous behavior, affects women scholars’ education, and it is extremely outdated. While it’s true that school dress codes were made to ensure the decency of each individual’s body image, it has been often used by students to target each …show more content…
“The dress code is outdated and out of touch with the clothing that is being marketed and sold to girls,” states Catherine Pearlman. Schools don’t seem to understand that their codes are so old that they no longer fit into the modern day style of society. Additionally, girls can’t be a byword for getting dress coded because stores just don’t sell shorts that go down to their knees or shirts that cover their entire stomach that are also cute and comfortable to wear. Evanston Township High School in Oregon decided to update their dress code in 2017 for the reason that, “The previous dress code and enforcement philosophy did not align with our equity goals and purpose, and it had to be changed.” This is only one school making a tremendous impact on all the daily lives of their students. Also, girls will no longer be used as scapegoats for the boys who are “distracted” during class and are failing. All things considered, it is just a small amount of schools standing up and making the change; however, in time other schools will finally do the right thing for all of their students and correct their student dress
Joseph Wheeler High School's Dress Code Policy: A leading Cause For Rape. Many of the most impacting ideas are taught in school. However, the message that girls’ bodies are property and harassment is inevitable, should not be one of them. It is the message sent to a vast quantity of students around the world,by school dress codes.
To start with, it is important to mention that every day, girls are being sent home by schools due to what they are wearing, therefore hindering their education. Schools are sexualizing female students’ bodies as if they are there to distract male students while in fact, “the standards that high schools, middle schools, and even elementary schools impose on girls— and rarely on boys — have gotten pretty out of hand.” Says Suzannah Weis, in the article: 5 Ways School Dress Codes Reinforce Rape Culture, Because Women Aren 't A "Distraction". These rules are teaching kids that if a woman doesn’t dress a certain way, they are asking for attention. According to them, it’s not the boys’ fault if they give unwanted attention.
Now that doesn’t mean if the dress is shorter than your knee, it should result in consequences, because longer fashionable clothes are hard to find . Similarly, if the student’s arms are longer than the shorts, I don’t see an issue with that as long as there is not anything sticking or hanging out of them. During colder weather there are not a lot of problems with the dress code, but when it gets unbearably hot, girls want to pull out their shorts and tank tops. The main reason for the girls dress code rule is because guys are not able to control themselves, but they will have to learn to in the real world. Placing these rules so the guys can’t do anything is not preventing anything, it is just covering up the real problem at school.
School Dress Code is Sexist School dress code has gotten out of hand, limiting young girls and boys on what they can wear to school. Telling young women that they are distractions in class because of what they wear. Girls get sent home because of their outfits it makes it seem like the administration is not worried about whether or not they get an education. Many types of clothing d or that have such as leggings, low cut shirts, and shorts have been banned or have restrictions. It is hard to find clothes that meet all these requirements.
School Dress codes do not allow students to completely express their individuality. Schools want students to be able to think for themselves and create a sense of who they are, but it is not easy when they are forced to abide by rules that take away from from that. It should be a place of expressing ourselves freely in a learning environment without having to worry about what we wear as an interfering issue. The fact that the school system cares more about the student dress code than their education is an issue in itself. Schools should promote dress code individuality because of religious aspects, mental health, and human experience.
They also need to stop targeting and sexualizing teenage girls with the dress code. Growing up school dress code has taught females from a young age that they should cover their bodies, and that their bodies are “distracting” to not only their classmates, but to society in general.
One of the main arguments on this side of the dress code controversy is the idea that dress codes teach girls that they are a problem. An article from the Huffington Post titled "School Dress Codes: The Funny-Not-Funny Video You Have to See" states that when girls are told that they are a "distraction" dangerous ideas are being put into their brains about control, sexual assault, etc. (Chemaly, 2014) An article in the Atlantic titled "The Sexism of Dress Codes" says that educators and sociologists have said that dress codes can lead to the idea that girls are "asking for it" and "boys will be boys" (Zhou, 2015)
Recently, more and more schools all over the country have turned to dress codes. Some people say that dress codes teach professionalism and protect students. However, schools should not have dress codes because dress codes target girls and limit their freedom of expression. They also are hard to enforce and students break them anyways. First, schools should not have dress codes because they target girls and limit freedom of expression.
Dress codes are a necessary aspect of school, and they help teenagers to focus more in school. Rules for how to dress prevent boys and girls from being distracted by fancy clothing. Often times, girls tend to focus on what other girls are wearing and how other girls may look super attractive or trashy. In addition, boys look at girls who are dressed in very releasing clothing. Whether the person is a boy or girl, both become distracted by revealing or poor clothing.
Any girl who has attended a public high school understands the daily dilemma of dress code. On those scorching hot days as the school year approaches summer, many girls can be found scavenging through their closet for a “school appropriate” outfit or one they won’t melt into a sweaty puddle in. Her dresses will show too much leg, her tops will inappropriately expose her shoulder or collar bone, and her shorts will be too short — at least that 's what the school says. Dress code in modern day high schools should be boycotted because they are a violation to student and parents rights, sexist, out of date, a double standard, and they disrupt a female students education. It 's fair to agree with a policy that claims stringent dress codes increase the emphasis on academics and reduce the pressure of socioeconomic status; however, these dress codes violate the students First Amendment right to freedom of expression and the parents’ Fourteenth Amendment right to raise their children in their own way.
Dress Code School dress codes are harmful. It is sexist toward women and limits students’ freedom and expression. It also targets people of color and hinders learning. The dress code was first established in 1969 by the U.S. Supreme Court in the Tinker v. Des Moines case. This dress code is over 50 years old, and times have drastically changed.
2017 has been a year supporting female empowerment, expression, and confidence with your body. So why should girls feel ashamed of their bodies in the environment where they should feel the safest? The dress code should be less restrictive because, it’s unfairly targeted at females, it makes women feel less confident, and it restricts most athletic clothing made for girls. Schools continually enforce rules that they’ve had since they were founded. Times change, and rules need to too.
Students can express their style and identity through their clothes. Students would like the freedom to keep up with latest styles and fashion and having dress codes takes that away. Lee Rowland, “School dress codes are saying that the self-identity that you want to express through your clothes doesn 't belong here. ”(Rowland 1).
Dress code is very common in places such as offices, workplaces, and schools. Having a dress code in offices and workplaces isn’t a problem because it makes the workers dress appropriate and represent the company. Although people can argue that dress code in schools does the same thing as workplaces and offices, there is a lot of controversy. Dress code and uniform policies in schools hasn’t always been a problem, because clothing used to be simple and plain. As time has gone on, numbers have been dramatically increasing.
Many high schools have implemented dress codes that set rules for what students can and cannot wear while on school premises, and yet many people disagree with these policies. Though arguments can be made for either side, a dress code can have a very positive outcome for all parties involved. A fixed dress code promotes professionalism in a learning environment, and contrary to popular belief, it does not limit a student’s freedom of expression. Last but not least it encourages equality and acceptance among their peers. A dress code can be reasonable if used in proper situations that require certain attires.