school crack down on hair colour

[mrsfuzzy]

new school year and problems already! ds is 14 and like a lot of girls her age experiments with her hair, for the first time during the school hols she tried a semi permanent raspberry colour on her red hair [god knows why- ex p let her do it] anyhow i was cool with that as it doesn't look that obvious, as she washes it it becomes less obvious, however school are cracking down on these things make up, uniform etc as they did last year, but she brought a note home yesterday saying to remove the dye or steps will be taken, i wasn't fazed by this as each wash reduces the colour, but how do people 'get away' with flouting the rules about such things one girl has dyed her hair jet black with blue streaks over the hols and mum told me she is not going to remove the colour for anyone, one lad keeps one side of his head shaved in spite of repeated warnings, mum says she ignores them, i accept the school policy that's not the problem but aibu to wonder why it seems the 'easy targets get picked on' to set an example? any thoughts or similar experiences anyone?

So did the state school you worked at, employ a zero tolerance approach towards uniform? littlemog

I attended a massive comprehensive which had a 6th form on site. They didn't have a zero tolerance approach to uniform. They got good results. I just think all this is a bit sad.

Actually when I was teaching I got pretty tired of enforcing uniform requirements, but that was largely because the sort of parents who were happy for their children to flout them tended to be unsupportive of wider discipline issues as well.

Fellow teachers who turned a blind eye to the smaller issues also contributed to other breaches of discipline which gave those parents and children plenty of opportunities to contribute to wider discipline breakdown. Inconsistency of approach and parents who latch on to that go on to cause bigger problems ime.

Maybe the parents and other teachers had a point...

daft just because you have been to school is not really the same thing as understanding what it's like to be a teacher.

I have worked in 4 state secondaries and the slackest on uniform was the lowest achieving. It was a kind of 'don't give a fuck' attitude that permeated the place. The last state school I taught at was incredibly hard on uniform, got great results but also had a hardcore of very annoying parents who felt that their little darlings were being victimised by the school as the were being asked to abide by simple rules. It is really very annoying.

daft your remark to ilovesooty just shows the huge lack of understanding that you have about how schools run. Consistency is all when it comes to rules.

Just because you have taught does not mean your experiences are representative, your views shared by all teachers or that you understand what it is like to have your child struggle to abide by (often unwritten) rules in a zero tolerance environment.

I've been thinking about this issue, and I think I would be very discouraged from applying to any school that made a huge song and dance about the pupils having to present themselves in a very circumscribed way.

The reason for this is that there is no research evidence to suggest a causal link between strict 'appearance rules' and academic achievement. Actually, no, it's worse than that: there is ample evidence to show that strict appearance rules are NOT associated with enhanced academic performance. I am not sending my children to a school where the pedagogues and leaders have not even bothered to research what actually works in education .

littlemog I think private school uniform policies are really not about academic attainment but about cementing a social identity and marking people as a member of a particular social groups (e.g., considerably richer than yaaaaw, as Harry Enfield would have said).

PS, what is a 'state school parent'? Is it someone who sends their kid to a state school, or do such people have other distinguishing features?

Consistency is all when it comes to rules

Absolutely. The teachers don't make those rules, but if they don't work as a team to enforce them, parents and pupils have the opportunity to kick against them and threaten the wider framework which is there to ensure that the school runs smoothly. That's when a lot of time gets wasted, arguments take place, and achievement suffers.

Consistency is no good if you are wrong in the first place.

If children are not all the same, how can you apply consistency when fairness dictates leniency towards extenuating circumstances?

You are absolutely right. I know absolutely nothing and you are the expert just like every other entitled parent who thinks that they could do a better job just because they went to school once upon a time

I shall leave you to revel in your smugness and bid you goodnight.

Thinking of a career change in to medicine actually....I mean I have BEEN to the doctor's so how hard can it actually be....?

what is a 'state school parent'? Is it someone who sends their kid to a state school
Yes.

And now I really am going as I am clearly bashing my head against a brick wall.

And if you won't listen to me then listen to ils who clearly knows what she is talking about.

Goodnight.

If people object to the rules and expectations at their child's school perhaps they would be better off finding an establishment more in tune with their requirements.

Wish you well in your new career.

You really don't know anything about me by the way.

No one is infallible, not even teachers.

If parents, pupils and teachers are aware of common aims and frameworks and work together in support of those I do honestly believe that less time is wasted focusing on small issues and teachers are freer to teach with the result that effective learning is facilitated.

I agree, especially with the working together bit.

I do support the school but that also means I will speak out if I think something is seriously wrong. My role as a parent is to act as an advocate for my child, I would be remiss in this if I blindly supported the school at all cost.

"What I did not love were the silly, entitled, undermining parents that I sometimes had to deal with - many of a similar ilk seem to be on this thread."

None of them in private schools, obviously!

No - money talks. You don't bite the hand that feeds.

I think if "being an advocate" results in the pupil attempting (or appearing to attempt)to challenge rules which form part of the school's framework it wastes everyone's time. Yes: take things up with the Head if you feel strongly about something, but I don't think anyone's best interests are served if pupils flout the rules and a confrontation issue happens which holds up learning for everyone.

ilovesooty not an inclusionist then?

Inclusion is a wide issue. I don't think one individual's needs should be advanced by confrontational challenge which is detrimental to the educational needs of the majority, which is why I think issues are better dealt with by approaching the Head to see if there is any room for negotiation and / or compromise. I don't think supporting your child in challenging the rules directly is the best way of dealing with the situation.

Massively amused by some of the comments, especially as I work in a secondary school myself (not the one DD attends).

Difference being my secondary enforces uniform policy fairly and across the board. My secondary wouldn't consider sensible boots under trousers on a rainy day as flouting uniform rules, my secondary wouldn't humiliate a child in front of their peers but deal with the issues one to one behind closed doors. My head has common sense which in turn garners massive respect from her staff and pupils.

Funnily enough the effects of this are a much more rounded pupil who's well turned out. They always look smart, even with their boots under their trousers and oddly they respect that staff who don't spend most of their time bollocking them over petty, meaningless things

As a parent I would not support my child in challenging the rules directly, I pointed this out upthread. However I would be sympathetic if my child flouted rules accidentally, through circumstances that they cannot (or find extremely difficult) to control. If they could cope with the reprimand I would play it down but if a situation was seriously affecting their learning I would speak to the school.

I don't think a zero tolerance environment provides the right calm environment for learning or smooth running of a school.