Student Dress Code Essay

“Sorry, you’re not allowed to wear that.” “Sorry, those shorts are too short.” “Sorry, the straps on that tank top are too thin.” “Sorry, those pants have too many holes in them.” These are just a few typical statements said to average high school students every day in a school’s attempt to maintain their dress code policies. But by limiting what a student can wear, are schools limiting their creativity and self-expression? By implementing dress code policies or requiring students to wear uniforms are schools creating gender inequalities? Are they creating socioeconomic inequalities? Do uniform policies decrease behavioral problems in a school? Do they create a safer environment that can then be used to create higher academic achievement? There

They seemed to reflect the schools’ beliefs in if a student does not dress appropriately in a way that demands respect, then the student must not respect him or herself and therefore does not respect others. The girls in the focus groups were not alone when calling out other girls for dressing inappropriately and provocatively, or as they stated, slutty, the boys joined in as well. Both genders pointed out the articles of clothing certain girls would wear that would label them as ‘slutty’. They claimed that these girls only dressed this way in order to get attention, and none of them brought up the possibility of one of these girls dressing a particular way because she simply feels comfortable and confident wearing these clothes. Another negative aspect of dress codes that the students pointed out was how the rules were applied. Some of the individuals thought that rules involving revealing clothing unjustly target girls. They also discussed their dislike with enforcement of dress codes, for example a girl who has a larger bust wearing a lower-cut shirt is more likely to be told to change or put on another shirt, compared to a girl who has a smaller bust (Raby,