The buttoned-down ambiance of the conservatively dressed headmaster/headmistress mirrors the tight-fitting black blazers and gray slacks and red plaid skirts of the boys and girls filing past in the hallways of my old grammar school.
Seeing this scene play out in front of me every day - in fact, playing a big part in this scene each day - gets me to wondering why some schools appear to be so hung up on school uniforms.
What could possibly happen if everyone wore different clothes to school? What if there wasn’t even a dress code that we students had to follow? Would the cafeteria or gymnasium roof fall in, producing a kind of school version of the-sky-is-falling effect? What, in short, is everybody so afraid of?
Probably nothing would change, but everything would, too.
I could imagine a group of seniors following the latest trends and wearing stylish leggings and tops, laughing while turning the unembellished hallway into a version of a fashion-house runway.
I would stare at such a scene, as if the students had painted vivid colors onto the empty school walls. They would look like luminous multi-colored light bulbs casting a glow throughout the entire building.
Just think of it - country club style blazers replaced with street-smart hoodies.
Even though I know all of my fellow students, it would seem like they were all different people from a different universe who I’d never encountered before.
The truth is, big changes on the outside have the potential to bring about equally large change on the inside.
Some students looking for an outlet to express their individuality might embrace a no-holds-barred dress policy. Others may become stressed, feeling they have to come up with a different outfit each day and spending too much anxious time in decision-making over something that’s already decided for uniformed students. Still other stresses could arise among students of lesser means who may feel less confident against a backdrop of peers parading luxury brands they could never afford to wear themselves.
In the broader view, uniforms can be confining to us as unique individuals, yet better represent us as a team.
But to me, conformity even in dress is the same as restricting individuals to think alike.
In author Ray Bradbury’s novel Fahrenheit 451, the protagonist, Guy Montag, lives in a dystopian society, where everyone is brainwashed by the government and everyone’s daily routine is basically the same. While requiring school uniforms doesn’t rise to the level of creating a dystopian world in our schools like the one Guy Montag lives in, it does tamp down at least one form of creative expression - dressing to our individual whims.
Teachers and administrators could even lead the way out of uniform regulations in schools that have them. In my old school, the teachers tended to be very serious and also dressed formally, which totally covered their fun personalities. Some of the teachers were very interesting and nice, but they just seemed less amiable with their ‘cover’ on.
Instead, imagine watching a principal or head of school whose daily dress consists of a plain tie and a collared shirt every day switching to sporting a purple tie combined with a rainbow-colored jacket. Then add a pair of polka dot pants and faux alligator shoes. Now that would be amazing! Or another principal who fancies the same gray jacket, navy blue skirt and penny loafers every day getting into her style groove with a flowing purple paisley skirt, a pair of UGGs, and a silk scarf flowing from a white jacket with bold brass buttons.
Not only would artfully dressed administrators and teachers feel better about themselves, they could also make us students feel more relaxed and less tense. I mean, after all, who wouldn’t like to know a vibey and swag grown-up?
The hallways, classrooms, and other public spaces of our schools would come alive with another way to share our idiosyncrasies. And the school roof wouldn’t fall in and the sky would remain above us, only a little more colorful than it is now.
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