Girls told to wear longer skirts at school because the boys are distracted and male teachers feel uncomfortable.

I also sit in front of a class and see knickers in a daily basis as kids sit comfortable (often cross legged on chairs). Sometimes a lot more than knickers.

Which is why I'm for trousers.

Skirts restrict movement (well, in the sense that climbing a tree, sitting cross legged, playing a somewhat "rowdy" game of football etc isn't possible. Or where the girls have to constantly make sure that the skirt doesn't flap up etc.)
Trousers are simply more practical.

Always with the 'teenage boys are full of hormones' line... I hate that. Boys: not in control, not responsible, slaves to their 'hormones' (how do they cope when they go anywhere that it's school?)

Nobody seems to suggest that girls are 'pumped full' of hormones. Their hormones make them cry and be unreasonable, sometimes, but they never legitimate bad behaviour.

The school might mean that male staff might be uncomfortable broaching the subject to the girls and not them being distracted. I had to tell a girl - one of 5 female teachers in a week- that a young girl`s skirt was too short as it just skimmed her bum.

Believe you me the teenage boys were horrified - not aroused.

Couldn't help a giggle then!

No, this is just not acceptable. No-one should be forced to look at someone else's genitals just to access their education.

The school are just requesting girls stick to the school uniform skirt.

They're not, though. If they were just requesting that, that's what they'd have said. They're also giving the girls a reason why they need to do it, other than 'because it's the rules and you need to comply with that'. If you think it was justified to say that to them, that's one thing, but the OP has been very clear that the girls were not just requested to stick to the school uniform skirt.

harderandharder2breathe:

It is their problem if their clothes are breaking the uniform code.

I get this whole argument - girls should be able to wear what they like etc. and to some extent I have sympathy for the view that it isn't the girl's fault if someone is distracted by her body. I am not suggesting they should all wear trousers or burkas. BUT when there is a perfectly reasonable uniform code in place which protects anyone who might be accused of trying to look at the girls inappropriately, and the girls are breaching it to the effect that no-one can help seeing their underwear, I would say it becomes their problem.

Hey dh/ds apparently you should just shut up and put up, your feelings don't matter and if they do, you will be accused of being a sexual predator

I walked up the stairs to my classroom last week and got an eyeful of bottom with a tiny thong. It was a year 7 girl. I was able (as a female teacher) to ask her to pull her skirt down.
I also sit in front of a class and see knickers in a daily basis as kids sit comfortable (often cross legged on chairs). Sometimes a lot more than knickers.
A girl in my class was messing on the way out of class and kind of scissored over the desk - displaying everything. And I mean everything. Believe you me the teenage boys were horrified - not aroused.
I have been asked by male members of staff to speak to Girls on their behalf as they felt they couldn't.

I don't think boys school trousers tend to be of the saggy halfway down arse variety
We had this at school for years. It's not the trousers, it's how they wear them. For a while it was 'bum completely out'. Yes, we did do what we could to make them cover up, just as we would with girls.
The boys thought the girls would find them sexy like that. I know, because I asked them why they did it.

My dd is at a middle school (yr 5 to yr 8). Girls have been told they must not wear black (or any colour other than white) bras or crop tops under their shirts as it is distracting, and her friend was made to sit out PE because she only had a black crop top under her PE shirt. Distracting for whom??? I really strongly think that if the school can't prevent the boys or male teaching staff staring through the shirt of a 13 year old girl then they have a major safeguarding issue. Especially considering that even a white bra will show a bra shape through a white school blouse. I also wonder how this rule would translate to non-white students, as obviously a white crop top on an Afro-Caribbean skin tone would show through far more dramatically than a black one.

It's made my dd openly self conscious for the first time at school and I think it's awful.

This thread is staggering tbh.

Apparently a make cannot feel uncomfortable for not wanting to see inappropriate clothing in a professional environment!

It's disgusting actually.

The uniform code sends the same message to the boys; it is just that they don't seem to need to have that message reiterated.

Once again, you don't know whether they do or not trifle and once again, this isn't about the uniform code which should of course be enforced. It's about telling the girls that they should observe it, because of the impact on the males around them. We have no mention of this happening to the boys.

I'm not wrong about any of that, because it's all in the OP's posts and thus not a matter of opinion.

Apologies for the misplaced apostrophe - shame! - in my previous post. The rest stands.

Yes they should wear skirts of an appropriate length not the crotch skimming ones I see some girls in. But that's so they have freedom of movement and to reflect workplace dresscodes.

Distracting of boys and ffs teachers is not the girls problem. If particular girls are behaving inappropriately then that should be addresssed with then individually. We should boys behaving inappropriately be addressed with them individually

The school are just requesting girls stick to the school uniform skirt. If 15 year old girls are wearing skirts up to their arses then of course hormonal 15 year old boys might get distracted. It doesn't mean they can't control themselves! But what 15 year old boy wouldn't be looking at a girls arse as she walks up the stairs flashing her knickers? And I can quite imagine it would make teachers uncomfortable also as many 15 year old girls are fully developed and wear these short skirts to attract attention. Again it doesn't mean the teacher can't control them self.

It's common sense. Wear the short skirt in social situations fine, but it isn't appropriate at school is it? Just like it wouldn't be in a normal work environment.

ElisavetaFartsonira:

As it happens I was talking about what other posters were saying, but I still think you are wrong. If you have a rule and it is being widely flouted, there is nothing wrong with pointing out to a group of people that the flouting of that rule by a sub-group has a negative effect on another group.

The uniform code sends the same message to the boys; it is just that they don't seem to need to have that message reiterated.

Fozzleyplum:

I don't disagree, but if a parent asks why (and in my school they do) what should the message be?

Right trifle but if that's the case, you were wrong to suggest they've been told it's everyone's responsibility to dress decently. Because they weren't. If what you're saying is that the boys don't need telling and/or the responsibility of the boys shouldn't have been mentioned to the girls (and you don't know whether they're showing their underwear or not, OP hasn't told us that) then that should be spelled out.

Also, whether the boys were present when the girls were told about underwear is a different issue entirely to whether the girls were told it was everyone's responsibility. It would eg have been perfectly possible to see only the girls and tell them it was everyone's responsibility to dress responsibly, then see the boys separately and also see that.

However, based on the information we have, there has been nothing said to either the boys or the girls to suggest that anyone other than the girls has a responsibility to dress decently, and only the girls have been told that they need to consider the feelings of the opposite sex. That is a problem.

YANBU. This is sexist and yet another way to suppress women, telling girls/women that they should change to make the 'superior' gender feel more comfortable.

I think what was wrong here was the reason given for the requirement that girls wear longer skirts. The announcement should have been:

The school requires that all pupils wear uniform of a size, length and style that is appropriate for school. That includes:

• skirts worn with the hem no shorter than (state length)
• no underwear visible at all, (ie no pants visible above trousers, knickers visible owing to short skirts etc)
• no clothing that is inappropriately tight or fitted - with examples. This would include boys and girls wearing trousers or skirts which are too tight.

There are presumably other requirements - eg style, colour, logos, which could be reiterated at the same time.

YANBU, that reason is pretty awful.

However, I personally really hate the double standard so often associated with this stuff (at least that's how I remember it. Bikinis not being allowed [swmisuits or shirts] whereas the male students were allowed to wear normal trunks...)

Give every kid slacks and button ups and shirt length wouldn't even be an issue.

And I personally do hope they're enforcing correct uniform for boys and girls (sagging pants, short shirt, incorrect knots etc...)