School uniforms

are in the news right now. There has been a suggestion that children should wear "sports gear" to school instead of the more traditional uniforms. The idea behind this is that they might be more active if they are wearing the "right sort of clothing". 

It's an interesting idea but I am not sure how accurate it is. One reason for this is that I am already aware that within the state school system the vast majority of children already seem to wear what would amount to something close to that. All the children in this street go to school dressed in this way. A..., the nine year old girl, wears a skirt by choice but she has sports shorts underneath. All the children wear trainers rather than what we thought of as  "school shoes". They all wear polo shirts in summer and skivvies (long sleeve polo neck shirts) in winter. They have sweatshirts. None of them has a school blazer.

I went through a variety of uniforms because I went to far too many schools. I am old enough that the old box pleat tunics were still common - you know the sort I mean I am sure. They were first seen around in about the 1920's I believe and they were still being worn in the 1960's here. I had a brown one first, then a grey one, then navy, maroon, grey and back to brown. I always had white shirts but the colour of the school tie changed. I had v-neck "jumpers" (sweaters to you North Americans) and a blazer. My hair ribbons for my plaits had to match. My raincoats were made from a sort of canvas material which had a rubberised lining. 

Almost every child wore these uniforms. They were expensive but they were passed down families and around other families. My first tunic was new but only because it was made from a length of material that my grandfather happened to have left on a bolt. It was not the "right" colour but uniform was not mandatory so it was considered this did not matter.

Why did most people dress their children this way if it was not mandatory? I suspect because it was simpler and, despite the initial expense, it was seen as cheaper. Most mothers would have been making the uniforms back then. They certainly would not have been commercially available.

Fee paying schools here tend to be much stricter about what students wear. Ms W's school has a very firm uniform policy. It's not cheap to buy new but even there the school's "uniform shop" sells items on. Ms W has had almost no new clothing for school because of this. It doesn't bother her. She is not averse to buying her other clothes in the local charity shop - but that is exceptional.

Are uniforms important? There are plenty of them to be found in the wider community - police, ambulance, some tradesmen and shop assistants, priests and more. We wouldn't feel the same respect for a judge dressed in a t-shirt and jeans either.

Does our dress affect the way we behave? That seems likely. We tend to be more careful when wearing "best" clothes. 

But will a change to a "sports gear" uniform mean children and teenagers are more active? I am less sure about that. 

What it might mean is that some things are even easier to care for than they are now. Perhaps we could teach children to do their own washing?