Told to take off coat or get a detention

[beth111]

My teenage boys finally got the health message I have being trying to get through to them for years regarding wearing a coat on cold wet days. During lunch time and recess, in the play ground, they decided to wear their coats to keep warm and dry. However the assistant principal informed them that their coats were not apart of school uniform and if they wore them again they would get a detention. Angry and shocked I wrote the assistant principal a note requesting my children wear a coat for health reasons. With the note in his hand and before discussing with me the heath reasons I had, he told them to take off their coats and that I had no say in the uniform policy. I can't believe Victorian public schools, that offer no warm dry areas for the children to play, would deny children the basic human right to stay warm and dry by telling them to remove their coats. Coats have no 'social value' in schools, in fact my children run the risk at being bullied for wearing one. What makes me more angry is on school excursions children are often told to wear a school uniform and a coat is a mandatory excessary, And why? To ensure children stay dry and warm, so why not extend this basic human right to Victorian children who live in cold wet climates? Teachers wear nice thick warm coats so why are they telling the children not to? I think as parents we need to start standing up to some of the education departments out dated policies, that put our children at risk.

I am unclear by your post if they can't wear coats at all outside or just uniform coats..

If no coat at all of course it is ridiculous and those saying it is the rules really have been living in this nanny state too long.

If it is uniform coat you need to get the appropriate coat I am afraid.

I'm in Victoria (Australia), and a teacher here, and it's a load of bullshit that there is no school "coat" available. Except we don't call them 'coats', but jumpers, blazers or most public schools even have a hoodie style jacket available to buy. Every school has several choices of school outerwear available to choose from, If you're sending your child in non-uniform outerwear, then of course they'll be told to remove them.

Ok, some of the replies on this thread are ridiculous. Schools do not have carte blanche over your children's health, and frankly if all they're providing to keep them "warm and dry" is a thin rain jacket, then they are failing in their duty of care.

I'll always remember when I was at primary school, we had to wear our thick school jumpers in and out of school in all weathers. One summer during a record-breaking heatwave, all the parents rebelled against the school's rules and refused to let their children wear the jumpers because they were coming out of school red-faced, sweating and faint. The world did not end.

There ARE circumstances where a parent knows better than the school with regards to their own child's health.

My children have been bought up to think for themselves and if somethings not right attempt to change it

Ah, you're one of those parents, the "we don't follow your rules, we think for ourselves, we're too special to be like everyone else" folks.

Buy them a school coat, ffs. It's 15 deg C in most of Victoria today, warmer than it is where I am, and we're heading into summer!

I remember when I was a child, I forgot my coat during break time and it was raining. The lunch time supervisor wouldn't let me go and get it even though I begged her, a few days later I was in hospital for a week with a really bad fever so, it CAN directly effect your health.

Complain to the school- they are your children and some rules are just ridiculous.

Blazers on at all times unless a teacher says you can remove it

I have a problem with this. It's up to a child to decide if they are hot or cold, not a teacher. Just because it's 30 degrees outside doesn't mean someone isn't cold, and vice versa. Why do schools have such silly rules?

If I work in an office I have to follow the dress code but we're way beyond the days when you looked to your boss to decide if you could take your jacket off.

But wearing a coat indoors is a bit odd. But if a kid is really cold, does it really matter? How does it affect teaching and learning (a school's first priority).

a few days later I was in hospital for a week with a really bad fever so, it CAN directly effect your health

Rubbish, getting a bit wet in the rain does not cause a bad fever. These things were not connected at all.

Sorry Hodoooorrr I didn't realise you were the doctor that examined and treated me?

Nooka - I agree. These threads boggle my mind at the pettiness of uniform rules. People moan about poor school attainments but schools enforce rules where kids aren't allowed to wear rubber boots in the pissing rain. Because having wet feet all day is so conducive to learning.

I think not allowing children to decide for themselves whether they're hot or cold is ridiculous.

We had a no coats indoors rule at school and I have vivid memories of being so cold I could no longer feel my fingers let alone pay attention to the lesson! I was too busy shivering. (Teachers were all there in their warm jumpers and coats opening windows as "it's so warm in here, girls!" )

I just cannot see a justification for not allowing anyone who is cold to wear a coat.

Are you all in the artic? It's nearly June.

It was 10 degrees here yesterday. East coast Scotland.

It's very cold here with the rain.

Sunny here, but a bit of a chilly wind down the alley.

To those who are saying, wear the cost that is too light and t on a vest underneath, would you then be too hot in class? Because you've dressed up right for outsides but not for inside anymore.

Tbh, if all the rebellion a teenager can do is wearing a coat, then they are on the right track. And being on their back and threatening detention for that doesn't make sense. Just like when they insist girls have to wear ballet shoes in winter, never boots type of shoes even when it's snowing and said girls have to walk 1.5miles.
It's obvious that being wet and cold will help learning.
Just as wearing opaque tights in summer when it's, finally!, warm/hot will help too.

A bit of common sense will help.

Btw, we know that being cold weakens the immune system making us more likely to get a cold amongst other things. So yes, wearing a coat IS about keeping healthy.

Sorry Hodoooorrr I didn't realise you were the doctor that examined and treated me?

That dr would have said the same thing I did. Getting wet doesn't put you in hospital. If it did, the entire population of the UK would live in one.

Lol at Hodoooor and the whole population of the U.K. being in hospital.

Errr how can you to tell what that poster's doctor told her??? Do you have a cristal ball?

I don't need a crystal ball. Doctors tend to be quite knowledgeable about illnesses, and they all know that rain does not cause fevers bad enough to warrant hospitalisation.
As do we all, if we give it more than a moments thought.

Slightly off topic but I got back from work, thought I would do a spot of MNetting and have just realised I am sitting here still wearing my coat. Despite that I'm actually still a bit cold. I'm in the midlands (UK) Other people's coat wearing habits shouldn't be anyone else's business.

I think the rule is nonsense. But to circumvent it how about a non uniform jumper and the crap coat over it?

Hodooorrrr it may not have been solely attributed to getting wet but it was a contributing factor- this was stated by the doctor at the time. Unless you were the doctor treating me I think you should wind your neck in.

My necks just fine where it is, thanks. A bit damp, but then rain never hurt anyone.

You sound lovely OP.

The OP does sound a bit unreasonable, if it's just that she doesn't want her children to wear the regulation coat.

But whilst being wet may not cause ling term damage, I think it's fair to say that it can make you fairly miserable. I loathe the feel of wet clothes, really loathe it. It makes me want to claw my skin off. If I got wet on my way to work and didn't have a change of clothes, I would go and buy clothes rather than sit in wet clothes. If I was washing my hands and got my cuffs wet, I would have to change my top. Getting wet when you can get dried afterwards and changed into dry clothes is fine by me, the DC would just have to deal with it. But if the school prevented them from keeping dry and then made them sit in the wet clothes, they would hear from me.

I think the OP might have got a better response if her original post (and the next two, really) hadn't been so damn confusing!