School uniforms

[hogdog]

I hear that School uniforms are OUT as of Jan.................Anybody heard this.................I also heard that Jeff Harrison is totally against them

[emily]

just talked to my mom (a teacher) who said that she has not heard anything like this.

[ctownvillian]

i dont see anything wrong with the uniforms. i have friend that wore them and loved it.

[heathwaldrop]

Uniforms can't go without a vote of the school board. Jeff is against them (he told us this in an interview that ran in the 9-13 issue) and it could be that if somebody made a push to vote on it again, they would get voted out.

Clearly all of the horn-blowing about what great benefits they supposedly provide are hogwash, which is what I've been saying for years and years. Look at the consultants' report on Anderson and Daniel, which both institute uniforms. Not only have they had problems with test scores, but they also were cited for discipline and bullying issues among the student body, and during the summer the district spent thousands installing campus security systems. Uniforms allegedly were going to raise test scores (scores went down), eliminate bullying (they did not), improve discipline (note all of the expulsions at Daniel) and make the campuses secure (then why the cameras?).

So why are the uniforms there? Any ideas?

[ctownvillian]

all the unifrom issue done was start a public uproar in the communtiy.

[Kim_Day]

Hi all:)

Sorry, but I had to laugh out loud when I read that uniforms were going to raise test scores!!!! I know this has been used as a reason to support them, but come on people! There is no magical suit that is going to make your kid smarter! Outward appearances are not going to change inner thinking. That being said, I have mixed feelings about uniforms. Both my kids wear them and they don't have an issue with them. In fact, it makes getting ready in the mornings much simplier. I wish teachers had to wear them. I would love to get up in the morning and know exactly what I was going to wear without worrying if I am looking professional enough. Trust me, there are several teachers that need help in this department. If we were serious about implementing the uniform policy, it should have been done the way it was outlined in the beginning (beginning with that first group and continuing through their graduation).

I am glad that we have a security system and cameras (that work). In the crazy world of school shootings that we live in, it makes students and staff feel safer. A uniform is definitly not going to keep a student from coming to school and shooting the place up.

BTW, when you decide to committ yourself to something as powerful as a school board, you better come into it with no hidden agenda. We are responsible for the good of the whole. Arkansas gave the right to school districts to implement a mandatory uniform policy. Frankly, we talk so much about how far behind American education is compared to the rest of the world, well the rest of the world has been wearing uniforms for decades +.

[emily]

I heard today that the uniform issue will be on the agenda at the next school board meeting. Look for this to be a big issue in the up coming weeks.

[hogdog]

I think if they keep the uniforms they need to make the WHOLE School system wear them including the teachers

[ctownvillian]

like i said just something else for the town to argue about and for crossett to lose more kids over

[heathwaldrop]

Let me clarify on my earlier post. I'm for working security systems too. But we were all told that school uniforms were in place to improve upon, if not fix entirely, every single problem in the district...security being just one of those.

Well, between 2004 when the uniforms were implemented and now...(fill in the blank). The only problem that I can see that the uniforms might have fixed would be overcrowding in the hallways since quite a number of students have transferred out because of them.

You (and this is a general "you," not calling out Kim specifically) can implement your own uniform regimen under your own roof if you want to. It isn't necessary to force everyone else in the district to comply with your ideas of "convenience" just so things will be easier on you.

Oh also, other countries have a lot of things that we in the United States don't have. For instance some countries cut your hand off if you get caught stealing, require your baby's name to be pre-approved by specific government agencies or mandate that all men serve in the armed forces. There are benefits to all of these policies, but we don't adopt them because we're the United States, a country based on democracy and freedom, not authoritarian rule.

This whole uniform thing was a disaster from the very beginning. It was implemented wrong and has been handled wrong at every single stage. The amount of time wasted on this incredibly stupid issue over the last three years or so is nearly incalculable. And you couldn't fill a thimble with the purported "benefits." The data reinforce it.

[bazeballmom3]

But the problem is not in the elementary and DIS, the problem is the older kids. Why make the younger kids wear uniforms and not the high school kids. I drive my child to school everyday and I see kids going into the middle school and high school with their butts showing and girls with their bellies showing. This is the problem if they would send these kids home and give them and unexcused absence everytime they wore something against the school dress code this would cut alot of that out. Basically what I'm saying if the dress code was more enforced we would not have to be worrying about this!!!

[heathwaldrop]

bazeballmom3 said:

But the Basically what I'm saying if the dress code was more enforced we would not have to be worrying about this!!!

That's the big misperception about school uniforms. Uniforms were not put into place because high-school boys were letting their boxers show or because junior-high girls had exposed midriffs. They were put into place in an attempt to prevent poor kids from getting picked on for not keeping up with fashion trends. Had nothing to do with "inappropriate" attire, which already was against school rules.

I know that this might sound stupid (probably because it IS stupid), but this was the thinking from the beginning.

[bazeballmom3]

To me it doesn't matter if your poor or if you have money if its your day to be picked on it doesn't matter what group your in. The reality of it is kids are cruel and really it doesn't matter where on the social board you rank, everyone is gonna get picked on. If it ain't your clothes, its your shoes, if it ain't your shoes it your hair or they'll find something to pick on you about.

[estbh]

I wouldn't necessarily call it stupid but it does buy into this whole theory about protecting a child's "self-esteem" in their formative years. I'm just glad my kids were out of school before the PTB decided to do this.

[heathwaldrop]

bazeballmom3 said:

To me it doesn't matter if your poor or if you have money if its your day to be picked on it doesn't matter what group your in. The reality of it is kids are cruel and really it doesn't matter where on the social board you rank, everyone is gonna get picked on. If it ain't your clothes, its your shoes, if it ain't your shoes it your hair or they'll find something to pick on you about.

You're right. What's more, what's the district going to do about all of those kids who get picked on because they have acne problems, big noses or some other social setback? Are these kids any less important than the ones who are "economically-disadvantaged"?

I wouldn't necessarily call it stupid but it does buy into this whole theory about protecting a child's "self-esteem" in their formative years.

Well my thing is, it isn't up to a school district to step in and play Ward Cleaver. I grew up in the '80s--the Decade of Excess--and peer pressure about fads and fashions was infinitely worse then than now. I was in junior high during a time when the snobbish kids would go around doing "label checks" to see if you were wearing authentic items or knock-offs. Of course it was wrong, sad and disgusting. But we dealt with it ourselves or found mentors to help us cut through all of that nonsense. It's not the school district's place to revoke rights to try to level the playing field between rich and poor. Besides being an exercise in futility, it smacks very heavily of socialism and that should make anybody's stomach turn.

[Outlaw85]

You can't protect your kids forever. I know as a parent you want to but you can't. The whole school uniform thing has gotten crazy around here. It should be all students or none, plain and simple. Faculty should also be included.

You will always have bullies. Uniforms will not solve that problem!

At this point I think we have far more pressing issues than uniforms. We are losing many more students because of academic problems in our schools rather than uniform problems. We need to get our priorities straight and get academics under control and froget about the uniforms. If our school board and adminstrators don't see that then maybe it's time to clean house from top to bottom.

These problems weren't a factor when i was in school. academics here were recognized as tops in the state. Many of our teachers today went to school in Crossett then. Mym question is ,at what point in time did our adminstration allow this nose dive to begin and why did it take so long to recognize the problem?

[Kim_Day]

I know for a fact that the dress code is being enforced at the high school this year. In the past, no it was not enforced like it should have been. Parents have to take a big responsiblility for dress code violations. Who buys these mid-driff shirts and hip hugger or sagging britches? Who lets them get out of the car or get on a school bus looking like that? As mentioned in an earlier post, we are not these children's parents and frankly should NOT have to waste valuable academic time sending students to the office to call home because they are innapropriate. Further more, we send more students home for offensive shirts, saggin britches, etc. more than exposed private areas. I had a student come to class with a shirt on that read "I learned from lesbians." Now, notably the student admitted to purchasing the shirt, but the parent knew he wore it to school. Who is the parent in this situation? This year, I haven't had one student come to class dressed innapropriately, unless you count rebel flags (don't get me started on that!)! In fact, some of them dress better than the teachers.

[bazeballmom3]

Discipline at school and at home is some of the problem. Kids know what teacher can and can't do to them. so some push the envelope. Teacher spend to much time having to discpline kids instead of teaching. And i don't know about other parents but this new math is absolutely CRAZY. Since when do you multiply in a box. How can you help with homework when you don't understand the NEW way.

[Kim_Day]

bazeballmom3 said:

And i don't know about other parents but this new math is absolutely CRAZY. Since when do you multiply in a box. How can you help with homework when you don't understand the NEW way.

I am not sure what grade this is, but I felt the same way when my kids started DI. I was so bad at it that the teacher asked me to stop helping them! I finally went for a tutoring session and that helped alot. I know they offered some Everyday Math workshops this summer for parents. I don't think that many attended. Anyway....I can totally relate to your post! I guess we just push on!

[estbh]

bazeballmom3 said:

Discipline at school and at home is some of the problem. Kids know what teacher can and can't do to them. so some push the envelope. Teacher spend to much time having to discpline kids instead of teaching.

My kids were always told that if they got in trouble at school then they were in more trouble at home - guilty until proven innocent. For that reason, my kids didn't get into much trouble at school at all. I agree that it's the parents responsibility to raise their kids right but I think the kids we are seeing in high school now are the result of that high period of teenage pregnancies - kids having kids.

I attended CHS in the early 70's and like I've said before, academics were something CHS could be proud of back then. Being smart was the popular thing to be.