School dress codes reinforce the message that women’s bodies are dangerous

[niyad]

(so, the clothing of these young females is "distracting" to the male teachers????? quite frankly, instead of looking at the females, I would be having serious questions about those male teachers)

School dress codes reinforce the message that women’s bodies are dangerous


There are far more rules about girls’ clothing than boys’. When teenagers are denied classroom time it privileges their sexualisation over their right to learn.

?w=620&q=85&auto=format&sharp=10&s=db88c036474e93a4c4cb176a606b2b9a
Some schools say female pupils’ knees, shoulders and upper arms should be covered. Photograph: Indeed/Getty Images


As pupils go back to school this month, one institution has hit the headlines for sending up to 150 girls home for wearing skirts that were deemed “too short”. Pupils at Tring School in Hertfordshire were either placed in seclusion or had to be picked up by their parents, reported ITV news. A statement from Tring School’s headteacher, Sue Collings, said: “We believe that students looking smart and professional is an important element of being a successful school. We also believe that, if students are consistently dressed in the correct uniform, it enables us to focus on teaching and learning. As such, we have a school uniform policy that has been in place for some time that is adhered to by the large majority of the students. The most contentious issue, though, is the style and length of the skirt worn by the girls.” It also stressed that parents and pupils had been warned in advance that uniform regulations would be tightened after a decision by school leadership in the summer.

But parents commenting below the statement on the school’s Facebook page expressed frustration at their struggle to find skirts that would fit their daughters’ waists while fulfilling the length requirement some said their daughters’ heights or body shapes simply made the skirt sit higher. One parent commented: “My daughter wore ‘regular’, not skinny, trousers from a school uniform shop, they had no external pockets as per guidance and [she] was told they showed every bone in her body and was put in internal for four lessons today.” On another post a parent said her daughter had been forced to wear a skirt several sizes too big safety-pinned round her waist in order to obey the length requirement.

Tring wasn’t the only school to take such measures – other reports have described children being sent home from various schools in the past week for wearing the wrong footwear, or even the wrong kind of socks. But while boys have been punished for some dress code violations too, it is clear that the majority of cases involve girls’ appearance being policed. A number of pupils at South Shields Community College were made to change because their trousers were deemed “too tight”. And these cases follow hot on the heels of two schools that have banned female pupils from wearing skirts altogether. In May, Bridlington School in East Yorkshire, reportedly banned skirts after a male staff member was made to feel “uncomfortable” when implementing rules over their length. And in July it was reported that Trentham High School in Stoke-on-Trent was banning skirts, with the head teacher saying: “It’s not pleasant for male members of staff and students either, the girls have to walk up stairs and sit down and it’s a complete distraction.” This week the same school is reported to have sent home 10 girls whose trousers were deemed too tight because they would prove a “distraction” to male teachers.

. . . . .


While the principle of asking students to attend school smartly dressed sounds reasonable, the problem comes when wider sexist attitudes towards women and their bodies are projected on to young women by schools in their attempt to define what constitutes smartness. It’s no coincidence that many school dress codes contain far more rules pertaining to girls’ clothing than to boys’, as we live in a world where women’s bodies are policed and fought over to a far greater extent than men’s. When girls are denied time in the classroom because their knees, shoulders or upper arms are considered inappropriate and in need of covering up, it privileges the societal sexualisation of their adolescent bodies over their own right to learn. We don’t have the same qualms about seeing those parts of their male peers’ anatomy.

. . . .

http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2015/sep/10/school-dress-codes-reinforce-the-message-that-womens-bodies-are-dangerous

[laundry_queen]

1. This irritates me to no end

They are now doing all this stuff in my kids' schools. I finally mentioned it to the one school in the communications we got when this school year started. My daughter was upset because she has really long arms and they want her shorts to be longer than the tip of her fingers - even in phys ed! Her fingers reach nearly to her knees. She doesn't own any shorts that long (just try and find some that long). Oh, and no tank tops either. Oh, and t-shirts better not have a wide neck opening lest a bra strap shows. WTF? None of that was an issue when I went to school (SAME town, some of the same teachers even). So I mentioned to the teacher I thought all of these rules they spent explaining to the girls was body shaming. I haven't had a reply as of yet. It's ridiculous - my workplace has less strict rules. And I am an accountant who works in a head office!

[niyad]

5. some people insist that the answer is school uniforms, which irks me no end. let's just get

them all accustomed to being undifferentiated cogs in the machine.

[The2ndWheel]

12. That's what school does anyway

That's the whole point. Everyone gets the same education, at least up to a certain point. Nobody is different. Anyone can do what everyone else can do. We want everyone to be cogs in the machine. That's how society continues to functions.

[laundry_queen]

23. Exactly.

That's exactly why it bothers me so much.

[yeoman6987]

27. Uniforms would solve a lot of this crap

[katsy]

43. My kids just started HS in an

international baccalaureate HS. School uniforms. I have boy girl twins and what I LOVE is that their uniforms are the same. Except my daughter had skirt option also.

It has eliminated morning dressing nuttiness and doesn't distinguish between male female.

I'm happy for it. We are not rich and the lower school pressure to buy trendy clothes was not kind to our budget.

On an even better note... When my daughter brought up that she likes to distinguish herself and express her individuality... The principle noted that accessorizing was the way to go.

I love IB schools. And the uniforms.

[yeoman6987]

26. Uniforms!!!! It would take care of so much

[laundry_queen]

36. Hell no. nt

[yeoman6987]

39. I guess....I just don't like kids getting killed over a pair of sneakers

I guess I am old fashioned that way. Kids wear the same shoe and you'd have kids still living. I know freedumb and all.

[laundry_queen]

40. Silly

As kids still can wear things to "id" them as certain groups or status even with uniforms. It's ridiculous to think that if kids are killed over sneakers, they wouldn't be killed over something else just because "uniforms".

I'd also like to know if you have any idea just how many kids were killed over sneakers? Before uniforms was this an epidemic? Problem solved now because "uniforms"?

I'm certain you are an expert in this area and I will be waiting your response with bated breath.

[yeoman6987]

41. Yeah now you are being insincere

You know kids have been killed for their sneakers.

[laundry_queen]

42. Where did I say they weren't ever?

I didn't. I simply said I didn't think it was an epidemic that uniforms would cure.

Now it is you that is being insincere to twist my words so.

[mythology]

2. As a guy, I find it offensive to say that I wouldn't be able to focus

due to a woman's choice of clothing. I'm reasonably sure that I can control my eyes. It's not like a short skirt has some sort of magnetic attraction that holds my eyes. Maybe it's that I spend a lot of time in gyms and so see women in sports bras and compression shorts or even just leotards, but it's really not a distraction.

Plus as an adult, teenagers don't hold a hell of a lot of appeal to me anyway (I'm sure I was a dumbass as a teenager too, but damn are kids today stupid. Of course I spend a lot of time around Harvard and MIT undergrads and find most of them to be idiots as well, so maybe I'm just grumpy).

[niyad]

4. as I said, the fact that the male teachers find the attire of the girls distracting is disturbing

to me. as you pointed out, it is indeed offensive to say that you wouldn't be able to focus. but a lot of people don't seem to be able to pick up on that simple fact.

[mythology]

10. Too many guys use that as a cop out for boorish behavior.

It's easier to blame some amorphous male nature than to have a bit of self discipline.

[niyad]

13. sadly, you are correct.

[niyad]

3. . . .

[MineralMan]

6. So, now it's for the male teachers that the girls have to

cover up? Really? Mustn't "distract" the male teachers...

What claptrap! What a pantload! A male teacher who find himself "distracted" by teen girls needs to seek a position in some all-male school. Unless the girls are forced to wear granny dresses or burkhas, their "girlness" is going to be apparent to those easily distracted male teachers. They're adolescent girls, after all.

Adult males in the teaching profession need to focus on the learning experience and not on the "charms" of the girls in their classrooms. That would be my suggestion. Grow up, gentlemen, please. Teach your subject and act like an adult.

[niyad]

8. I wonder if they should even be in charge of young students at all.

[MineralMan]

16. That's an excellent question.

I tend to think that male teachers who are easily "distracted' by young female students should be watched carefully. There's far too much bad behavior from such men in schools already.

Of course, this focus on these students' clothing may come from some other place, with the male teachers being used as an excuse for some other agenda by other people. I have no idea, really.

Male teachers in middle and high schools should self-select out of those roles if they are "distracted" in that way, in my opinion. Grownups need to leave kids alone and behave professionally at all times. It's a mindset. It's something that can be dealt with by individuals. Inappropriate attraction to adolescents is a problem, I suppose, for some men. They should not be responsible for teaching adolescents if that is the case. That's my opinion.

[mythology]

11. Even that wouldn't help

It's not like women aren't punished for being raped in Saudi Arabia. Guys who want to control women will find a way no matter what women are wearing.

[meow2u3]

29. I wonder if the guys making up these dress codes are closet pedophiles

Or do the guys in charge have a massive madonna/whore complex they won't admit to?

[niyad]

45. interesting question. one also has to wonder about the women who are going along

with this. I am thinking here of that town that is attempting to ban mini's and shorts, having tried to ban sagging pants.

[Matariki]

7. On the other hand

men's clothing don't show as much skin usually. Do you think school districts would impose rules on boys dress if they were showing up in short shorts or a few ounces of spandex?

In some ways the problem is pressure on girls to dress 'sexy' in the first place. Boys don't get that same pressure.

[niyad]

9. this society sexualizes young women almost from birth, and then penalizes them for acting

on it.

[Matariki]

17. Yup.

I do wish that that issue could be addressed in some way. Not making girls cover up because their bodies and sexuality is dangerous, but removing the pressure to dress 'sexily' in a day to day context.

[zipplewrath]

19. And anyone that tries to do something about it

It's all a mess. We sexualize young women, almost from birth, and yet when a school attempts to undo some of this, what we end up with is this kind of action and reaction.

As a young man I got a lot of direction on what I could and could not wear to school. But none of it really had anything to do with sexualization. Alternately, practically all the direction the girls got was about exactly that. Alternately, the restrictions on my form of dress was so restrictive, I wouldn't have been allowed to get anywhere near sexualization. No shorts, all shirts had sleeves, nothing tight at all, gym clothes were baggy (and hot by the way), shirts had to be buttoned. Heck, we caught crap if our hair was "too long". The "tightest" outfits were on the male cheerleaders and they were still basically long pants and tight T-shirts.

Alternately, what is interesting in some of the parents commentary is not that they particularly object, but that the clothes the school wants basically don't exist. We're in a fashion fad right now where skirts, shorts, and dresses are short again. You can find SOME "longer" hems, but no where near what these parents are being told to acquire. The school is fighting reality and basically losing (as often happens when fighting reality).

It gets back to whether this is a purpose of a school at all. I'm not sure we can hope that through our schools we can reverse the overt sexualization of our children. If the parents aren't going to raise their kids to avoid overt sexualization, the schools ultimately will be powerless to avoid it.

[Orrex]

14. Two things about this.

1. In high school, I was certainly distracted by girls wearing tight or revealing clothing.

2. That's my problem and not theirs.


If these teachers can't keep their shit together and act like professionals instead of predators, then they need to seek other employment.

[niyad]

15. unfortunately, too many people do not accept that your #2 is the point.

[MineralMan]

18. In 1963, I was a senior in high school in California.

My girlfriend at the time was tall, about 5'11" and had trouble finding skirts that met the school's dress code, which insisted that girl's skirts be below the knee. Girls weren't allowed to wear pants at school. One day, she was busted by one of the teachers for a skirt that only covered half of her knee.

It was a Friday, and every cheerleader at that school was wearing the cheerleader outfit to classes, as they were allowed to do each Friday during football season. Those uniforms had skirts that ended mid-thigh. When my girlfriend, who was also a senior, pointed that out to the principal of the school, she was given an after school detention for her impertinence. The principal got a visit from her father on Monday of the next week. The policy ended and skirts that covered any part of the knee were OK after that. She never was particularly tolerant of bullshit, and neither was her Dad.

Now, she did have very cute knees, I thought, but I was somewhat biased.

[niyad]

20. good for your girlfriend and her father.

[jonno99]

37. +1

[KittyWampus]

21. I fully support school uniforms but this school sounds like it went way beyond.

[Egnever]

35. Agree

School uniforms can take away a huge amount of social awkwardness for students that is just not necessary in a learning environment.

Students should not have to focus on who has the good clothes or who doesn't it just isn't necessary or helpful. They should be learning how to interact with each other based on who they are not on what they wear.

[whatthehey]

22. Girls have more rules because they have more choice

Boys don't get skirt length rules because only pants are generally allowed for them no matter how warm the weather. No kilts for you! They don't get shoulder coverage rules because nothing they are typically allowed to wear ever bares the shoulder at all. If we made clothing options equal by gender, the rules would be too.

[A Little Weird]

24. I'm not sure that's true

Sleeveless shirts and tank tops were popular among boys when I went to school. I can't think of a single instance when a boy was reprimanded for showing some shoulder or collarbone. The only times I can recall a boy being talked to about dress code were 1 - something "inappropriate" written on his shirt and 2 - jeans with a rip that came too close to the crotch and you could actually see his underwear. I agree that kilts never came into fashion but guys did wear "distractingly" tight jeans often enough. And while it was not an everyday thing, there were definitely times when boys would ditch their shirts entirely for gym class. Guys just aren't subject to the same level of regulation that girls are.

Horny teenagers are going to be distracted regardless of what the opposite sex is wearing. I'm pretty sure that's part of being a teen. I find it a lot more disturbing that male teachers are distracted by what their pupils are wearing.

[whatthehey]

25. Any schools allow skirts/dresses/culottes/yoga pants for boys? Then I'm sure.

[A Little Weird]

28. I don't think kilts were banned from my school

I'm sure no one ever thought to do it because nobody wanted to wear them. I don't think kilts are really a thing anywhere outside of Scotland are they? So it seems like an odd argument to make.

[A Little Weird]

30. That's weird - did you change your post?

I swear it said kilts at first and now it's something different.

[A Little Weird]

31. But in answer to your question

I don't know. I have never seen a school that prevented those things from being worn by boys but it's not something boys would wear. But there's a very huge difference in boys choosing not to wear something due to peer pressure and girls not being allowed to choose something because it might make their teachers "uncomfortable".

[BlueJazz]

32. The girls at those schools should get together and wear Burkas. That would start the shit-a-flying.

[niyad]

33. at one point, the high school I attended tried to outlaw both min-skirts and granny

dresses at the same time. I gently enquired whether the members of the school board were out of their minds, or just idiots. the ban did not last long.

[BlueJazz]

38. What's wrong with granny dresses.? Maybe the men need to see just-a-little-leg?

It's been 20 years since high school but I swear, it didn't seem so damn complicated.

[niyad]

47. the board claimed that the granny dresses were also "distracting", from being so

completely different. I had more than a few questions about some of the people on that board.

[valerief]

34. Only one solution. Hire only female teachers. nt

[JI7]

44. Why don't Guys wear Short Shorts Anymore ?

they use to

[niyad]

46. I see this kind of thing almost every day in the warmer weather.