Girls being less active due to school uniform

[SummerDays2020]

https://amp.theguardian.com/education/2024/feb/15/school-uniforms-may-be-barrier-to-physical-activity-among-younger-girls

I have wondered why schools don't just have a unisex uniform and this seems a good reason to do it. Also to make the uniform less restrictive.

I have a particular hatred for school uniform so to me it feels like another state the obvious study.

If I was trying to make the worst possible uniform I'd follow suit.
Comfort to learn and play in - stiff shirts, ties even for the girls, skirts, ironed blazers.
Sitting cross legged on the floor - bulky polished shoes covered in wet leaves and playground dirt.
Children learning art - lots of white and ability to stain.
COL crisis - expensive with lots of logos
Confident girls - let's berate them for getting mucky, and then sexualise their skirts and shoulders.
Very young children with possible undiagnosed SEND - let's make it as difficult as possible for them to change alone for PE or swimming with ties, pinafores, stiff shirt buttons.
Stressed parents - let's extend the uniform to cover even miniscule things like coloured ribbons, bobbles or hair beads. That's what their busy mornings need!

I really don't think girls are socialised into it, I think some girls genuinely have a love of playing with clothes and having fun with them, an expression of who they are. My DD has always been like that, she was obsessed with fairies as a young girl, pre-school age she only really liked wearing her fairy costume. She loves jewellery and at her Grandma's house would sit for a long time trying on all of my MILs bohemian jewellery and beads, none of it was pink or princess like. She enjoyed fairy tales and still enjoys fantasy dramas. She's nearly 13 and loves clothes, jewellery, eye makeup up in particular, trying stuff out, she sketches designs as she wants to be a fashion designer, she buys bits from Vinted, bags, tops, jewellery as she has a passion for this. I was similar as a child and was definitely not brought up as a princess, my Dad was heavily involved in politics and current affairs and discussing these things with us, even when we were probably too young but I still much preferred retreating to my flower fairy books or Narnia and dressing up and pretending to live in mythical worlds!

I get frustrated with this line of thought as it suggests there is something wrong with anything other than the practical or sporty with girls, when that isn't the case. I would prefer no uniform but yes my DD does sometimes have the short tartan skirt on as uniform, with DM boots and jewellery she can get away with. Sometimes, she also does wear baggy black trousers for school. When she was at infant and Junior school she at first wanted to wear a pinafore dress but underneath she wouldn't accept the boring airtex and I ended buying her a dolly collar style white long sleeve top from Jo Jo Mamen Bebe, she hated reception year precisely because she could no longer go to school in her fairy dress.

Polos and joggers for all ages I say. In school colours. Nice and comfortable so they can learn in the classroom and play outside. I’d extend it to sixth form too.
I do like a basic uniform though because it is a leveller. I hated non-uniform days at my all girls grammar school.

Of course socialisation is at the root of many choices. Doesn't make them wrong or bad, but the very fact her DGM had all that jewellery and let her try it on is socialisation in action.

Agree.

But if it's "uniform" that stops bullying. The question that I always struggle to get answered is - "why does it need to be shirt, tie and blazer uniform?"

It makes no difference if it's purely "uniform" if it's tracksuit, polo and hoody.

Oh and my DD is naturally a good long distance runner, for sports day everyone volunteers her but she isn't interested in sports really despite a natural ability to run. She likes walking, swimming, beach ball and yoga. She hates mixed football and rugby at school.

I know right?!

Uniform is an income leveller.

It'll help you not show your poor of you can find £50-60 for a blazer and £20 for the schools own style skirt that has a logo sewn onto the waistband where no one see its.

It's scary when the country and schools are run by people who cannot compare the basic £100 quid infirm for 3 items against how much could be brought from high street stores for the same amount (and they need those clothes for out of school anyway).

It costs about £200-250 to kit out a child for secondary.

Even a basic uniform including polo and jumper would be way less of infirm is something that's insisted on.

I disagree as socialisation suggests that the interest is a construct of her environment and what she is exposed to but it was her propensity for this interest which encouraged Grandma to get the beads out not the other way around. Equally, I have a DS who is 4 years older, his toys were generally lego, trains and a love for soft toys, from the baby years she could and did play with them and didn't get bought a load of pink stuff but she her interest in the abstract came about from books and her interests were her own. My DS was read the same books but had no interest. He did dress up in beads and wings sometimes but generally he was a playmobil, duplo boy that preferred setting up story lines that had a realistic element to them.

I don't agree that dressing anybody up in sports clothes makes them good, better at sports. People have different talents and it is not always down to socialisation.

Plenty of boys are slim with narrow hips and they wear trousers. You can buy longer length then size down. It's not an issue exclusive to girls.

I'm can play the piano pretty well but my Mum can't at all despite having one to use in the house as a child and despite piano lessons. My DD is pretty good at the piano but we haven't always had one, we only bought one when she was 8 but she is a natural. I think some things are innate, it is not all context.

But why do girls have to wear trousers, why do they need to wear what the boys do? Some women prefer skirts as they find them more comfortable.

Why do they need to dress in smart business wear???? They aren’t in work and their days are different. How many people do you know who go to work in business attire nip out and play football on their break?

I work in a university and DH has a very senior position in a business. He doesn’t wear a jacket or tie and I’m super casual. The idea that uniforms represent modern workplaces is laughable.

I'm not anti uniform, but I hate all of the polyester blazers and ties children are forced to wear. I especially hate "school shoes" which are uncomfortable and bad for your feet. Many schools go too far with draconian uniform rules which do disproportionately target girls. Make the rules make sense and children will be happier and less inclined to rebel against them.

I never said they did. Just that i don't think it's any more difficult for young girls (pre puberty) to find trousers to fit than young boys. If they want to wear trousers.

Could you not have taken up some trousers?

No as the waists were and are far too big. Even the smallest skirt was far too big at the waist.

When I was at school myself and had to wear uniform I had to have the waists taken in to be able to wear skirts. I didn't bother with trousers.

She was allowed to wear joggers for some of the first term but is expected to wear proper trousers and skirts now.

Since about year 4 DD has refused to wear trousers for school but she still is active. She wears those shorts under her skirt. I do understand those fancy uniforms with the hat and blazer on little kids though

I think some schools strike a sensible balance. Local highschool is black trousers/ jeans black shoes/ trainers white shirt/ tie black jumper. They give everyone a school tie as a gift rest of it is unbranded. Even primary school was just dark bottoms ( grey/ navy /black) and a polo shirt.

Dd (11) is v active at school as are most of her friends ( play football/ bulldog etc at break). The school has a strict uniform ( blazers and regulation shirt, jumper etc) . However, girls can wear grey uniform trousers ( not jeggings) and the key thing in my opinion is shoes- unusually for a prep they are allowed any brand of totally plain black leather trainers as school shoes. Personally I think they are smart enough and so much easier to run around in. Dd quite often does wear a skirt but they all wear those shirt cycling shorts under them which the school is also fine with. They’re also not super strict on skirt length within reason

Exactly. My DD wears trousers 90% of the time or skorts and proper shoes not silly ballerinas in the winter!

As an undiagnosed autistic girl at school, I hated skirts and could never explain why - I know know that I can never be comfortable in tights due to sensory reasons.

If a uniform is really needed, why can't it be black leggings and t-shirts/ hoodie with school logo?

Start a campaign to get things changed. Jamie oliver got school dinners changed.