Short school skirts "sending the wrong message"

[BeingFluffy]

DD (13) at a Comp had assembly today for girls only. The woman teacher was going on about how some girls wear very short skirts and it "sends the wrong message". From what DD was saying she seemed to be making a link between girls' skirt length and sexual violence. I agree that some girls wear skirts that are no more than belts and it does not look particularly smart, but I really object to that apparently making them more at risk of sexual violence or paedophiles which seemed to be the suggestion.
I feel that I should complain about this but wonder if DD misinterpreted what she was saying, as I really can't believe a teacher said this. Should I just shut up and ignore it, or fire off an email?

MI - the children are not allowed to wear labels at DD's schools (as in visible logos).

Bunbaker Firstly, I think buying a designer hoodie for one day is a bit ridiculous but I guess it's your friends choice....

But, do you think maybe there is so much pressure on these days to look your best because, for many children this is one of the few days when they actually get to wear their own clothes? If you wear own clothes all the time I think many children just get on with it. If you have only one day per half term when you're judged on what you wear, you're obviously going to fret more about what to wear. I imagine even if you DO have loads of designer clothes, you'll still fret about which ones are best.

I'm not saying non-uniform schools are completely absent of such pressure (though I do think, if managed effectively, it wouldn't be much of an issue) but there can't be that much otherwise they would all resort to having a uniform.

As one of the few parents on this thread whose children do attend a non-uniform school I'd agree with you, Doodle: they do just get on with it.

Ah, those were the days.

Gym mistress made us kneel down in a row and measured the distance between the bottom of our skirt and the floor (effectively our knees) with a wooden yard stick measure. Too short and you were sent home with a snotty letter implying that if the matter wasn't rectified you may be suspended. Lots of parents hastily let down the hems on the skirts to avoid having to buy a new skirt.

I'm all for it myself, a regulation skirt with instant detention for shortening it by turning the top over or surreptitious needlework to create a bigger hem !

"This is school, not a fashion parade!" was the head teacher's constant refrain.

Doodle - I'm afraid I find your last post rather naive. I used to teach in a school with a very specific coloured shirt. There were two suppliers- one cheaper than the other. The buttons were a different colour. Kids who wore the cheaper shirts got teased. I think that teens will find a way to criticise whatever the context. So your assertion that they would get over it if they wore whatever they wanted every day is, IMO, a bit fanciful.

EvilTwins I definitely agree that in a school with a uniform, especially one with multilple suppliers, clothes related bullying would be more common.

However, I was talking about in non-uniform schools. The point of the post was that I thought because there was no uniform there may be less concern about what people were wearing...your post does reference that but then seems to make a separate point....

In any case, judging by motherinferio's post, what I said is indeed true, at least in some non-uniform schools.

Also, I said MANY children, not ALL children.

*motherinferior

And those capital letters came across a little more aggressively than intended so apologies for that.

My kids' schools enforce skirt length strictly. My son's school has kilt type skirts that only come in longer length anyway. my daughter's school do have a no more than an inch above the knee policy.
Girls wearing short skirts to school look tarty. I don't get why any parent would want to send their daughter to school in a mini skirt.They're supposed to be going to learn, not so boys and men can leer at their legs.
Thankfully my son isn't desperate to go in shorts so the girls can look at his legs.
It is all very pathetic and unfeminist.
Get an education girls, stop regarding yourselves as sex objects.

2rebecca - I am the opening poster and having sorted out the original issue with the school, I have refrained from commenting further on the various opinions but your post makes me really angry. The girls don't wear short skirts to be "unfeminist", "look tarty" or to invite males to "leer at their legs", what offensive and ridiculous comments. It is more about pushing the boundaries at school; the school uniform is a business suit. At the moment the school are trying to encourage voluntary compliance as far as skirt length is concerned although they have cracked down on other aspects of uniform violations.

Give me strength!

The girls are pushing the boundaries and they expect 'voluntary compliance'. They need to crack down hard and let parents know the girls will be sent straight home if they turn up breaking uniform rules after half term. That way parents have time to buy new skirts and no one can say they don't know the rules.

Inconveniencing parents by having children sent home so parents have to take the day off work is the way to make this stick. Its not difficult - school just needs to have the will to do it. I've seen it done and I know it works. Children and parents who don't like it can go down the road to sixth form college and then they can wear what they like.

The problem is that the girls roll the skirts up not actually alter them and they seem unable to deal with it. The whole school is having to buy new uniform over the summer as they are changing it. In the meantime compliant kids like my DD are threatened with detention if they wear a hairclip in the wrong colour or forgets her calculator.

Sorry, but I'm with the teacher this time which is unusual for me. Unless she explicitly mentioned sexual violence she could have meant as little as not appropriate for a school with high standards. I don't mind my eldest daughter wearing a skirt a third up the leg but some girls really take the mick with the large belts they wear and it SHOULD be addressed.

A secondary in the neighbouring town has banned skirts altogether on the basis that there are practical skirts but their girls clearly don't WANT to wear them. Of course some smart alecs then tried wearing knee length skirts which no-one would have before the ban.

We got a letter yesterday which for the first time mentioned "knee length" or detention - we will see what happens. Unfortunately some of the girls the teachers adore are the worst offenders!

What irks me is the priority in relation to minor and major infringements of the rules. The speed with which they come down on a nice, well behaved girl over a hair band or skirt length and the fact that excuse after excuse is made for those on the fringes of criminality or who swear at teachers, threaten the school community and resort to assault. I couldn't wait last year for a teacher at my daughter's old school to give her a punishment for something petty; nor could I wait until the worst culprits were never expelled, so we moved her and I smelt the rot coming from the canker at the heart of the state system in the UK.

So far no-one has pointed out the obvious solution:

A dress. In the city where I grew up, pretty much every school had a summer uniform which was a dress. Solves the rolled-up waistband problem.

I disagree that short skirts are just pushing the boundaries. If that were the case then boys would be trying to wear shorts and flash as much flesh as possible as well. They aren't.
Girls wanting to wear short skirts is very much about sexualisation. I think it's sad that young girls equate rebelling a bit against the school with trying to show as much of your body as possible.

I think sexualisation which I would see more as pressure to be cool and fashionable - and being told the way to achieve it is to plaster yourself in makeup and show your pants; is a bit different than school girls encouraging men to leer at their 11 - 16 year old legs which you put in your earlier post 2rebecca.

The teacher did touch on sexualisation in her presentation and that led to my DD and her friends thinking the teacher thought they "sluts". She also showed a clip from TOWIE to show how superficial people who judge on looks are.

Unfortunately the girls completely misinterpreted the message which horrified the teacher. The teacher regards the behaviour as teenagers pushing the boundaries. She supports my view that girls or women should be able to wear what they want and not suffer harassment. The school are adamant they do not want uniform or skirt length to become a major issue. The school uniform is a business suit which looks stupid with a mini skirt frankly. They just want them to come to school and learn. But they have cracked down radically in the last week or so - having let the kids get away with it for years and sending mixed messages, frankly.