Should officials tell students what they can wear?

"Rules of fashion: should school officials tell students what they can wear? (News Debate)." Know Your World Extra 35.9 (Feb 22, 2002): 12(5). Student Resource Center - Gold. Thomson Gale. Centennial High School (MD). 2 Jan. 2007 http://find.galenet.com/ips/infomark.do?&contentSet=IAC-Documents&type=retrieve&tabID=T003&prodId=IPS&docId=A83244901&source=gale&srcprod=SRCG&userGroupName=elli29753&version=1.0.

In this article, a pro of having a dress code in schools is that teens will pay less attention on their clothes and other students' clothes and more on their work. The thing is that teens are always concious about their looks and clothes isn't the only thing they worry about. Students worry about the physical appearance of their face, how their hair looks, and their body. Making teens dress the same won't keep them focused on school, it will just put other areas of their self-esteem under a microscope.

Yes, it's true that "Some young people can't afford to buy the latest styles." and that "they are often teased over the clothes they wear." but it is not true that making everyone dress the same way will stop the teasing. It may faulter it but it won't stop. Bullies will find other ways of teasing passive students like making fun of their hair, glasses, braces, physical features, body weight, and knowledge or lack there of.

As it states in this article, "Dress codes are not fair. They make students uncomfortable." When a student is not comfortable with ther appearance, they will not be able to concentrate and they may lack confidence that they would normally have if they were in their own clothes. School is not just a place for work, it is also a place to meet people, make friends, and experience the "real world". If a student is not comfortable, they may not be able to make friends as quickly. An interest in the same clothing style can start a conversation between two teens. Band t-shirts also let others know that you like a certain band. If a student wore one and another student liked that band, a friendship could be born.