School Dress Codes

By: Kristen Carpentieri and Peace Evans

Rationale for exploring School Dress Codes:

• We have decided to discuss school dress codes because in the book Twisted, we hear about girls dressing “slutty” in school to get noticed.

• We wanted to take a closer look into whether or not school dress codes are fair, effectively enforced, and how teens in school feel about dress codes by administering a survey to 100 students here at West Seneca West.

Why have uniforms and/or dress codes?

• Many school officials agree that school dress codes help districts achieve the goals of “safety, discipline, and school unity.”

• Dress codes increase academic achievement and ensure a healthy school environment.

• Dress codes avoid gang violence.• Uniforms make students more confident and

less judgmental of other students.

Why have uniforms and dress codes cont.

• Uniforms allow students to better resist peer pressure.

• Dress codes and uniforms keep students more concentrated on school work.

• Uniforms put students on a more equal social footing.

When we asked 100 students in a survey:

Keep Students More Focused on School Work

YesNoBoth

73 %

26%

When we asked 100 students in a survey:

Would you ever attend a school that made uniforms mandatory?

YesNoBoth

12%

87%

When we asked 100 students in a survey:

Better grades as a result of uniforms

YesNo

78%22%

When we asked 100 students in a survey:

Less bullying because of uniforms

YesNoBoth

62%

36%

Analysis on 3 out of the 4 previous charts:

• We found the results of our survey on the topic of education and bullying interesting because students feel that uniforms don’t prevent bullying, don’t keep students more focused on school work, and don’t result in better grades. This was interesting because school officials and administrators feel that these are the most important reasons for making uniforms and/or dress codes mandatory.

When we asked 100 students in a survey:

Does race effect the extent of dress codes?

YesNoBoth

29%

70%

Analysis:

• This chart was interesting because in schools that are located in bad areas, the dress codes have been proven more strict. The schools have gone as far as banning gang affiliated colors and things such as baggy jeans and chains on jeans. It was interesting to know that students were unaware of this.

When we asked 100 students in a survey:

Do you think your school dress code isn’t strict enough?

YesNo74%

26%

Are school dress codes always fair?

• In Morgan Hill, California, five students were sent home from school for wearing clothing with images of the American flag when it was Cinco de Mayo.

• In Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, a boy named Kerry Lofy was turned away at the door to prom and fined $249 for wearing a dress as a joke.

• In Texas, a boy named Taylor Pugh was diciplined for having too long of hair in school.

Are school dress codes always faircont.

• At Mendenhall Junior High, a 13 year old girl named Jennifer Little was diciplined for wearing skinny jeans to school. The administrators claim they were too tight.

• At Jackson’s Brinkley Middle School, 12 year old Derrick Newson got in trouble for having a mohawk. Administrators claim it diverted attention from the learning process.

When we asked 100 students in a survey:

Does your school have certain dress codes you feel are unreasonable?

YesNo

41%59%

Analysis:

• The results of this question were interesting because although students don’t feel our dress code is unreasonable, they still manage to break the dress code.

When we asked 100 students in a survey:

Do you know of any schools with a stricter dress code than your school?

YesNo

79%

21%

When we asked 100 students in a survey:

Do you think dress codes interfere with freedom of expression?

YesNo

74%

26%

Analysis:

• This question was interesting because most of the students here at WSW feel that dress codes interfere with freedom of expression, and that is what majority of lawsuits based on dress code are about.

When we asked 100 students in a survey:

Do you think your school should be able to tell you what you can and can't wear?

YesNoBoth

39%60%

Are school dress codes effectively enforced?

• At Maryland’s Decatur Middle School, principal Saunders finds it extremely time consuming to try and decide whether or not students are complying with the dress code.

• Principal Saunders admitted that she would spend about 60 to 90 minutes a day on dress code violations alone.

When we asked 100 students in a survey:

Do you follow your school dress code all the time?

YesNo

49% 51%

When we asked 100 students in a survey:

Do you think schools do a good job at enforcing their dress codes?

YesNo

47%53%

When we asked 100 students in a survey:

Do you believe "bad" students get reported more if they break the dress code?

YesNo61%

39%

When we asked 100 students in a survey:

Do you think students who are close with teachers and principals get away with breaking the dress code?

YesNo60%

40%

When we asked 100 students in a survey:

Have you ever gotten in trouble for breaking your school dress code?

YesNo

59% 41%

The past charts are interesting because:

• Most students follow their school dress code but feel that their school doesn’t do a good job at enforcing them. Doesn’t this contradict itself?

• Also, our survey shows that students who are favored get away with more dress code violations than “bad” kids. This proves that the dress code isn’t enforced effectively after all.

Why do kids break their school dress codes?

• Kids and teens throughout various places can all relate to breaking their school dress code to either get noticed by someone, to be funny, or to portray themselves as someone, or something that they aren’t

When we asked 100 students in a survey:

Do you think the way you dress determines who you are friends with?

YesNo74%

26%

When we asked 100 students in a survey:

Have you ever intentionally broken your school dress code to get noticed by someone?

YesNo

26%

74%

When we asked 100 students in a survey:

Do you think the media effects the way you dress in school?

YesNo

22%

78%

Lawsuits erupting as a result of school dress codes:

• In California, a 14 year old girl named Toni Kay Scott claimed her school crossed a constitutional line when it punished her for wearing Tigger knee high socks.

• She is one of 6 students who have filed a lawsuit against the school and the Napa Valley United School District. These students believe their school dress code is unconstitutionally vague, overbroad, and restrictive.

When we asked 100 students in a survey:

Have you ever heard of lawsuits because of school dress codes?

YesNo73%

27%

Why school dress codes get broken: comparing our results with Twisted

• In the book Twisted we heard of teens in Tyler’s school who were dressing differently just to be noticed by others. For example, Tyler’s sister Hannah tried to dress more “slutty” and show more skin to be noticed by the boys at school and to try to look “cool”.

• Also, Hannah tried to change Tyler’s look so that he would get noticed more by the ladies.

In our survey we found that:

Do you think girls get noticed more if they show more skin?

YesNo

89%

11%

We asked 100 students as WSW:

What type of attention do these girls get?

NegativePositiveIt depends

59%40%

When we asked 100 students in a survey:

Do you think the way you dress determines who you are friends with?

YesNo74%

26%

What the previous graphs tell us:

• The first graph shows that 89 out of 100 students believe girls get noticed more if they show more skin. This is also how the students in the book Twisted felt.

• The second graph shocked us because if the girls that show more skin get negative attention, why do they proceed to do it? It was a question that stumped us all.

What the previous graphs tell us cont.

• The third graph also surprised us because in high school it seems like people will do anything to fit in. Tyler allowed Hannah to change his look and make him seem cooler than what he was.

Our analysis of the survey results as a whole:

• The results of the survey were mostly a shock to us. We thought it was weird how most students thought our school dress code was reasonable, but yet there were a lot of students that have intentionally broke their dress code. Also, we thought is was interesting how students don’t think that how you dress effects who you are friends with, but we are all well aware that we do disclude people if they dress differently than us.

Our results compared to our research findings:

• In our research, we found that school dress codes have caused a lot of lawsuits and disagreement in the past. Our survey showed only 27 out of 100 students knew that there have been lawsuits over this issue.

• Also, we found that uniforms and/or dress codes are enforced to prevent bullying, make students achieve better grades, and keep students more focused. Our survey proved all of these reasons false.

Works Cited:• Marchant,Valerie. “Dress for Success: It looks as if uniforms and dress codes may well make a

difference.” Time 13 Sept. 1999: C6+. Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 10 Dec. 2010

• Boutelle, Marsha. “Uniforms: Are They a Good Fit?.” Education Digest. Feb. 2008: 34-37. SIRS Researcher . Web. 10 Dec 2010.

• Marshall, Carolyn. “Pooh Character Leads to Suit On Dress Code.” New York Times 22Mar. 2007:A17(L) . Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 10 Dec. 2010.

• Pettus, Gary. “Battle Over Classroom Decorum: Schools Tighten Dress Code Rules.” Clarion Ledger (Jackson, MS). 07 Sep 2010: A.1. SIRS Researcher. Web. 10 Dec 2010.

• “Five Students at Like Oak High School, in Morgan Hill, Calif. , were recently sent home for wearing clothing with images of American flags.” National Review 7 June 2010: 12. Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web 10 Dec. 2010.

• “Texas: Long-Haired Boy Back In Class.” New York Times 20 Jan. 2010: A14(L). Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 10 Dec. 2010

• Viadero, Debra. “Uniform Effects?.” Education Week Vol. 24, No. 18. Jan. 12 2005: 27-29. SIRS Researcher. Web. 10 Dec 2010.