Are these new school dress codes unreasonable?

[CanadianJohn]

From an article in the Toronto Globe and Mail...

"A cursory scan of dress codes across Canadian schools finds them peppered with words such as “modesty,” “appropriate,” “respectful,” “common sense” and “good taste.”
...
"Across the country, several school boards – including the Toronto District School Board, Canada’s largest – are doing away with the concept of modesty in their policies, replacing it with a new priority: “student voice."
...
"The new codes all come with some limits. Toronto stipulates no nipples, buttocks or genitals exposed and all the codes ban hateful messaging and put safety first, meaning no stilettos in gym class or billowing tops in chemistry. But these school boards have drawn a line in the sand – staff will no longer be tasked with policing students’ dress or their bodies.
...
"The policy-makers’ philosophy is this: Letting students wear what they’re comfortable in helps them feel welcome at school and more engaged in their learning. "

www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-is-modesty-no-longer-the-best-policy-on-dress-codes-canadian/

It seems to me that the adults have abdicated their responsibility. Can we really allow teenagers to dress as they please. Most students may well dress modestly, but it would only take one student in a backless top and yoga pants to distract the others.

What do people think?

I’m very, very surprised and think it’s going too far. I’m not keen on very strict uniform policies but this is too far the other way.

I went to schools with no uniform, wasn't an issue ever. But I'm not sure if anyone I was at school with would've been particularly distracted by a back to be honest. Lots and lots of teenagers manage to dress themselves every day and the world hasn't ended yet and I'm pleased my kids will go to a school with no uniform.

Wear what you like - gets my vote, always!

Did you get as far as this bit?

"In Victoria and Edmonton, where student-centred dress codes have been in place for a year, school administrators consider the move a success. The number of student and parent complaints about unfair dress coding has dropped, and some teachers have told school trustees they’re happy not to serve as the clothing police anymore. “A year out, I’m very happy to report that the sky has not fallen,” Victoria’s Ms. Watters said. “There’s been a lot of alarmist stuff: ‘What if someone is wearing pasties, or naked?’ None of that has happened.”

So - seem to be fine.

And why are yoga pants distracting?

It sounds perfectly sensible to me. Very like the kind of policies you get in places like Germany, France, the Netherlands.

Whether someone is 'distracted' by what someone else is wearing is on them - they need to learn to focus.

As a parent, I like a uniform. It saves me having to think on weekday mornings. But DS has a very easy uniform with plenty of options (grey or black bottom half, white top half, cardi/sweatshirt/jumper/fleece in school colours. I can dress him for pennies from the supermarket and the kids have some choice over the fabric and style of items.

When I see the fuss over the local secondary uniforms - insistence on expensive, badly fitting, sweaty polyester from only one supplier with isolation threatened on kids in the wrong shoes/trousers I can't make sense of the strictness. Why does a particular pair of trousers make you more ready to learn?

I grew up in a country with no school uniform and no guidelines on how to dress at school. Unbelievably, not once did I witness a student with stilettos in gym class or nipples exposed. I have no idea how we all did it.

In the USA schools seem to spend a lot of time telling girls off for essentially having adult bodies.

Modesty codes in particular seem to go hand in hand with ideas that the girls 'distract' the boys by eg having a bit of shoulder showing.

All in all it seems to prop up a lot of nasty stereotypes.

I don't know if the situation in Canada, or parts of it, is similar, but the inclusion of the word 'modesty' makes me think maybe so.

I went to school in Germany. No school uniform. What students wore was never an issue, I cannot remember a single conflict about it.

If you Google usa modesty school uniform code or similar, there have been many stories which cover girls essentially being judged as sex objects.

I went to a school with no uniform policy. Once a boy got sent home to change for wearing ripped jeans with a ripped hole in his bum area. No other issues ever.

I worked in a school in France years ago. Not once did I see inappropriate clothing. If anything the kids wore a self imposed uniform of sorts by all wearing denim. I don’t think there will be an issue tbh.

This is Canada. I’d be more concerned with boys pretending to be girls to get into loos, changing rooms and sports scholarships.

Dress codes which promote modesty, and you, are sexist.

If a backless too and a pair of yoga pants is distracting students, then those students really need to get a grip. Oh my! A woman wearing clothes! And having exposed skin! Oh what shall we do! clutches pearls

I think you're a misogynist.

Well won't they all be wear big coats and wooly hats anyway

An excellent idea. Too many school uniform policies are both sexist and promote an unhealthy culture of spying and sneaking, petty rule-enforcement for the sake of it, and bullying.

I think the idea that what you wear has any impact on your education or work is a social construct. I really couldn't care less what my GP wears as long as it isn't an offensive slogan or so revealing as to be indecent (in the legal sense). I care about whether their medical advice is accurate and they are compassionate.

I worked in an unprivileged school with a trouser and polo shirt dress code. They looked scruffy.

We had a dress down day. The kids looked fab. Mostly their clothes were cheap, but actually looked smarter. They were more modest if anything not less. Had they been wearing it all the time theyre be no need for uniform and home clothes so savings there too.

Love the changes. Uniform is majorly overrated

I grew up in a country with no school uniform and no guidelines on how to dress at school. Unbelievably, not once did I witness a student with stilettos in gym class or nipples exposed. I have no idea how we all did it.

Same. And somehow I managed to grow up to be an adult knows how to dress to work appropriately. It's almost like if there are no rules then kids make good choises themselves and they can focus on learning.

I actually did attend an international school abroad that had a uniform and relatively strict rules (similar as the rules in uk). During that year I was very stressed about wearing my normal clothing after school and free dress days. Due to the uniform the clothes became a bigger thing. Previously I had worn whatever to school and I never had to think about clothes. It was very odd for me.

I would love to see this level of common sense injected into British education.

Our child's school has just introduced yet another attempt to paper over its discipline problems by changing the uniform. New shirts, blazers and ties from an expensive supplier - that will definitely eradicate low-level disruption and bullying

I've just shelled out for yet another pair of school shoes because they've changed the "shoe policy" AGAIN, so the ones we bought last term (after the previous change) aren't acceptable any more.

I'd refuse to engage with it, but it's not worth ds2 sitting in an isolation booth with a worksheet printed off the internet during his GCSE year. To me, that is. To the manager headmaster that's perfectly reasonable.

Another German here. Somehow we managed with t-Shirts and jeans during most of the year, if someone came with an inappropriate outfit it was mostly ridiculed by her/his peers than everyone else.

For me school uniform just means most teens do not learn to dress well, if I go into town I either see unflattering outfits, badly dressed in jogging bottoms or trousers which look like they are pyjama bottoms and absolute no sense of style.

Eh its a miricle how uni students manage to learn, what with there being no dress code or anything...

Some of the new rules about uniform are draconian and completely excessive.

I went through school thinking I was quite stupid. I wasnt and my exam/college/uni results have proved that.

I was just uncomfortable and distracted lots of the time by the horrible uniform. I also have terrible anxiety about it because of how it was enforced.

To me it sounds as if they've gone from one extreme to the other. I'm not sure I like what "modesty" seems to imply in this context, but I also imagine that "student voice" could lead to a completely different set of problems

Wouldn't some sort of dress code - though not an actual uniform - have made more sense?

Can we really allow teenagers to dress as they please.

are you serious?
of course you can.
dc school is no uniform. only rules are 'weather appropriate' 'no heels' 'torso covered'
kids are almost uniformly in jeans and jumpers/tshirts and trainers.