![\"students\"](\"http:\/\/facultycorner.com\/main\/wp-content\/images\/students-freshmen-2007.jpg\")
<\/a>This 2007 biology class shows freshman wearing mostly t-shirts and hoodies as they dissect a frog.<\/p><\/div>\n
It has now been seven years since we have had this policy and students are still resistant and the dress code policy is still in effect. \u00a0 \u00a0Administration and a committee of teachers is looking into making revisions to the policy. \u00a0 \u00a0 I would personally like these revisions to be based on a thoughtful analysis of the policy and how it has changed the school’s culture and how it has (or has not) accomplished its\u00a0original goals.<\/p>\n
As a teacher at the high school who has been here since before the dress code change, I was one who originally had some reservations about its enactment. \u00a0 I felt that adolescents sometimes needed an outlet to express their individuality, even it it was just a t-shirt with their favorite band. \u00a0As a scientist, I looked for peer-reviewed research that supported \u00a0claims that dress code policies influenced school climate in a positive way, and I found very little supporting arguments. At the time, the dress code change was promoted as a way to improve learning and behavior, and would improve test scores. \u00a0If that was the original goal, then we only need to look at the last 7 years of data to see if there has been any change in these \u00a0areas.<\/p>\n
Anecdotal data comes from what I have observed in class and conversations I have had with other staff members in the workrooms. \u00a0 Instead of creating a climate of teamwork and organization, most of us felt that the uniforms removed<\/strong> school spirit and a sense of community. \u00a0Fridays used to be a sea of black and red in the halls as kids wore school colors to promote our teams. \u00a0Those days were gone. \u00a0 Teachers felt that they had been put into an adversarial position with students from the minute kids walked in the door. \u00a0Instead of saying “Good morning, how are you?” \u00a0we were saying “Where is your polo? \u00a0Are those yoga pants?” \u00a0 \u00a0This sets up teachers in an adversarial role with students which can make it even more difficult to foster a sense of classroom community and shared goals. \u00a0When schools are now moving to models of instruction that are less authoritarian (lecture based) and more project based, group instruction, the dress code conflict feels like a relic.<\/p>\n In addition to\u00a0school culture changes, some teachers felt a lack of support from administration when students were sent to the office over dress code violations. \u00a0Students were given shirts from the closet or sent back with with a note saying their dress\u00a0was okay. \u00a0 Students quickly learned that if they slinked into class and sat down quickly, a teacher might not notice if they weren’t in dress code. \u00a0If they got sent to the office, some would pull a polo out of their locker or backpack and put it on. \u00a0It has become a game of cat and mouse that eats away instruction time, causes conflict between student and teacher, and even teacher and administrator. \u00a0 For example, who decides if those are yoga pants or just skinny pants or black jeans. \u00a0Check out this photo of 4 students in the hallway. \u00a0Can you decide which of the students is dress code compliant?<\/p>\n