Asking the Right Questions

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This piece is to accompany Buttoned Down

Still considering a uniform policy for your school or district? Ask yourself the following questions: 

Why do we want to use school uniforms?

Examine the reasons. What educational or safety problems are you hoping to solve? What alternative programs address these problems? Are uniforms the only solution? Are they the best way to reach your goals? 

Would uniforms be a burden for low-income families? 

Identify the actual cost of a school uniform. What would the retail price versus secondhand price be? How would you address student insecurities about secondhand uniforms or inadequate sets?

How would we handle uniform-related infractions?

What are your goals? What punishments would be proportionate? If you decide to implement a school uniform policy, explore the benefits of one that forbids detention and suspension for uniform infractions. 

Would a uniform policy infringe upon students’ First Amendment rights? 

Brainstorm potential uniform-related conflicts and prepare for case-by-case review—preferably by a peer review board that can address “right to expression” concerns. Empower students as much as possible.

“The vast majority of empirical research hasn’t found any positive effects of school uniforms … They don’t raise achievement. They don’t decrease interpersonal violence. They don’t decrease substance abuse. They don’t increase attendance or classroom engagement. They don’t increase attachment to community. All the things [educators] thought [uniforms] would do have not happened.” 

—Sociologist David Brunsma, author of Uniforms in Public Schools: A Decade of Research and Debate