School uniforms?
Kimberly Brooks, leader of PAA chapter PAA-Atlanta Public Schools, wrote the following article challenging the district’s school uniform policy.
Atlanta Public Schools Uniform Policies: What Can We Infer From Them?
A few weeks ago I spent over a hundred dollars in attire for my two children to attend school – a public school.
The school has a mandatory uniform policy for all students. This is a good policy, correct? As a parent uniformity looks more eloquent and prestigious, right? Well, I support the ideology of that concept –until one day where there was an emergency and my daughter wasn’t in uniform. The principal was more concerned with her attire than her education.
To go a step further, though I agreed I would ensure that she wears the uniform, she refused to accommodate her and put into ISS (detention). This is common. After questioning several parents, they too understood this to be the policy. That’s okay. However, I realized I never received the policy. I then questioned it and received no response.
To make a long story longer (lol) I decided to dig a little deeper. Students in public schools should not be required unless the district agrees, and the parents would have to agree. I was unable to locate such an agreement. Furthermore, students are penalized and taken out of general instruction for their attire. At some schools, students miss class because they are sent to ISS and in some cases suspended. Is attire that important? Why do schools require uniforms?
In private and charter schools, uniforms make students distinguishable from other schools. In addition to that it’s a given requirement upon entry to the school and the uniforms are identical. This isn’t the case in Atlanta Public Schools. School districts choose their uniforms. But hey, it’s cheaper correct? The answer is no. Students are still economically identifiable by the quality and uniform type. Furthermore, students who are economically challenged are forced to wear the same clothing more, considering the cheap quality. It is visibly different.
As a frugal parent, jeans and a t-shirt or a sweater are easier to locate than khaki or black pants and oxford shirts. But once again, why should I complain right? Well, here is why. After research I found that most
- See more at: http://parentsacrossamerica.org/school-uniforms/#sthash.J7PBC7aF.dpuf