I have taught 40 years and have seen increased PRESSURE in the area of fitting in---clothes have become way too important in the daily school scene plus the clothing industry has taken us WAY OVER the line in sexualizing our young people. Many parents have become whimps in allowing their kids to "express themselves" through clothing. Uniforms would be a great equalizer--takes away the stress of "what to wear"!

It amazes me as to the clothing children are allowed to wear whether at school, around home or even at the malls! Where are the parents???????

As a parent of three children, I reserve the right to veto ANY clothing they chose to purchase, it is my right and responsibility to do so!! I think it is sad that the schools have to take on yet another parental responsibility to have students dress respectfully of themselves and others, yet it is necessary to eliminate distractions and inappropriate clothing being worn to school. There is also the issue of safety, parents would be amazed if they knew the amount of weapons that could be hidden in untucked shirts and saggy pants!

It is sad to see there are adults out there who believe that school uniforms are the fix for the ills of society. When children start school they have imagination, they color outside the lines and rarely the color adults believe are proper. By the time they finish school their imagination is gone and all they can do is be complicit or rebellious. Children should not go to school to lose their identity. Maybe instead of worrying about clothing we should be more concerned about how to fix the real issues in these children's lives. Clothing does not make you join a gang, clothing does not make you a bully, clothing does not make you poor, and clothing does not make you have bad manners. Clothing is a noun not a verb. Children are individuals not a collective.

Yes. Uniforms level the playing field for all students and allow the shift of attention to more elevated thinking, like academics. There's too much oneupsmanship with students' focus on fashion and too much overt sexuality in many popular styles. As a parent and an educator the preoccupation of endless consumerism fueled by media is troubling. I'm in favor of uniforms for teachers as well.

This should be a school-to-school decision, based on the needs and culture of each individual school community. Within our district, some schools have gone to uniforms and some have not. There is no "one-size-fits-all" answer to this question. (No pun intended originally!)

I think it should be up to each school/district. Having gone to both public and parochial schools, I experienced both uniforms and "civilian" clothes. I actually preferred the uniform because I never had to worry about what I was going to wear. I could individualize with wacky knee socks! When in public school, I did fret about what I wore since I was frequently wearing my brothers hand-me-downs that didn't always fit well--and that was way before we got as fashion-conscious as today's youth.

As a retired teacher and teacher educator, I am in favor of a strict dress code decided by students, parents, and teachers at the elementary and high school levels. For the middle school, I advocate for a simple uniform. I taught at the middle school level where we had a strict dress code (tan pants and a white shirt for boys and a navy blue skirt or slacks with a white blouse for girls) from Nov. 1-April 1. Each year the level of politeness and improved behavior increased when the dress code was in place. As teachers we were always surprised by this, but also happy when the annual dress code went into place.

I do think at the high school level, especially, students should be involved along with teachers and parents in setting a dress code. If a school either allows certain days or months when students can wear whatever they wish within the bounds of decency, then students will also be able to be creative or express themselves.

You ought to look into the research on the effects of wearing uniforms in school. The most interesting finding is that wearing a uniform does nothing to improve students' behavior or academic performance--but it makes adults think that the uniform-wearers are better behaved and smarter. In other words, it's an illusion based on people's biases, like so many other educational fads.

I wore school uniforms from grade school through my undergraduate degree. They DO help prevent cliques and disparaging commentaries on dress and SES. But they do cost money, and for some families that's an additional hardship they don't need.

The problem with a dress code is finding a fair one and staff having the temerity to enforce it.

Why not just common sense? These days common sense, as Mark Twain remindes us, "ain't so near as common as most folks think!"

I believe it very much depends on the school and its culture. I believe in some cases it would be very helpful but not in all. The school community should make the decision.