Which+economic+characteristics+are+considered+when+deciding+school+dress+policy?

1)Arkin, Anat. "Smart Kids Can Go Casual." Editorial. The Times Educational Supplement 12 Nov. 2004: 27. LexisNexis Academic Datatbase. TSL Education Limited, 13 Nov. 2004. Web. 05 Dec. 2011. .

The article is a news report discussing the recent decrease in implementing strict dress policy in English secondary schools. Many students have been in favor of a more relaxed dress code, while many parents and adults have asked for a stricter set of rules, leading to some schools increasing the severity in its dress policies. This had led to both legal battles for both sides about the issue, as well as claims from both sides that point to the effectiveness in each mode of implementation.

Any school-but public schools in particular-wishes to avoid legal confrontation by any means necessary, as they are a huge money suck in terms of court costs, even if they "win." The goal for a school then becomes settling the issue of dress policy as soon as possible. The austere Hillcrest School reported since their dress code implementation, "the once-struggling school is now oversubscribed." This means there could be a monetary draw to uniforms.

2)Brennan, Timothy. "Do Uniforms Make Our Schools Better? I've Seen Them Boost School Climate." American Teacher 89.5 (2005). EbscoHost. Web. 4 Dec. 2011. .

This small article is about how on urban high school, Central in Kansas City MO, has completely turned itself around after initiating a dress policy. The classes used to known for their decrepit atmosphere and the large amount of gang violence that permeated around and inside of it. According to the author the boys all wore gang-affiliated colors and the girls wore entirely inappropriately revealing clothing. Since the policy change, the school is far and away much better in terms of having little to no graffiti, gang fighting, and an increase in general civil courtesy.

This is a common issue for urban schools and is thus brought up more frequently in the urban environment, where the deficiencies that come with in a lack general economic well-being are more densely located. The problems in attitude and academia caused by said deficiencies are touted to be solvable through dress codes,and it's telling that these schools are pressured more to adopt dress codes than the public schools in more economically well-to-do areas, correlating a hypothesis that dress is a class issue.

3)Firmin, Michael, Suzanne Smith, and Lynsey Perry. "School Uniforms: A Qualitative Analysis of Aims and Accomplishments at Two Christian Schools." Journal of Research on Christian Education 15 (2006). EbscoHost. Web. 5 Dec. 2011. .

This was a study of two schools implementing uniform policies for their students. They surveyed the parents/adults and the students separately, asking them question in relation to how much of the policies intentions-including decreasing competition in clothes, decreasing distractions in schools, teaching students when and how to dress appropriately, and lowering the costs that parents/adults spend on student clothes. There was a tangible difference in perception between the two groups in relation to how the policies affected those goals, with parent stating seen improvement, compared to students who felt that not much had changed at all.

Since the parents/adults payed for the students clothes, the students were not asked their opinion in terms of cost. The parents noted a few things, though the majority said it helped them save money. The durability with low cost of the clothes, in relation to those popular brands of teen wear was a plus. Some parents said though it was a good long term idea, but costly in its initial implementation, seeing the argument as a "selling point." Others noted that if you have a female student, the policy is cheaper, but it's a more expensive option for males. And it doesn't completely relieve the burden of paying for clothes, as students wear other things outside the class. Depending on whether the clothes must come from a specific uniform shop/company can also play a huge role, as the more standardized the uniform was, the more it cost.

4)LaPoint, Velma, Lillian O. Holloman, and Sylvan I. Alleyne. "Dress Codes and Uniforms in Urban Schools." The Education Digest 58 (1993). Education Full Text (H.W. Wilson). Web. 2 Dec. 2011. .

The article is about the different variables that must go into making the decision to implement dress codes is public urban schools. There are many issues plaguing such schools and the article goes along to list several remedies to some of these problems that dress codes can offer, such as sense of solidarity towards the school and community. It displays a list of considerations in determining a dress policy, ending with a comment that each school needs to consider its situation individually.

At one point the article points to students who spend their money on their fashion and hair instead of buying the books and school supplies they will need. The implicit argument is that with a set uniform, they won't have a reason to spend that money on clothes and will focus on getting books instead. "An initial modest outlay" is all that is need by students (or parents footing the bill for the students) to maintain upkeep of their school uniform wardrobe, clearly falling on the side for uniforms in schools.

5)Seggie, Fatma Nevra, and Ann E. Austin. "Impact of the Headscarf Ban Policy on the Identity Development of Part-Time Unveilers in Turkish Higher Education." Journal of College Student Development 51.5 (2010). Project Muse. Web. 1 Dec. 2011. .

Women in Turkey are banned from wearing a traditional headscarf when entering a Turkish university, forcing female students to choose between their religion and education. This ban on women covering their hair, as is custom in many of their societies, was seen as a way to keep the universities remaining secular, as well as snuffing out threats due to religious ideology. Many Turkish women are protesting the ban, as it has been a factor in keeping them out of higher education.

The idea of clothing denoting classes and inciting a class-warfare is not uncommon. These women feel that banning them from wearing their desired attire makes them feel inferior in society. Traditional Turkish women were considered of a lower economic standing, so by forcing their women to remove the item and become untraditional their women appear of higher status and thus, the school will appear more prestigious as well. However Turkey has lost many women to abroad programs, where their religion and education will not be in opposition.