School uniforms

Mink Schmink wrote in :
[snip]
Ours weren't too horrid. Shirts were tucked in but there was
a jacket/vest. The main benefit to ME was, having no sense of style, this
wasn't as obvious during school hours only. We ALL looked dorky.
Plus, choosing clothes to wear was no longer a problem, and so dressing
was
fast. Of course, on Sunday, watch out.

That was the benefit to me as well: I didn't care about what was fashionable
and it didn't matter. In addition it was easier to blame your parents for
the details of school uniform, then it would be if you wore non-uniform.
Nobody expected *you* to have brought the individuals items, so nobody
blamed you if they were dorkier then other people's uniforms.

[snip]
Once school is out uniforms can magically be "altered," as well.
On vacation a year ago, I saw two high school girls get on the train (this
was a rural area) with gym bags. As I watched, they transformed - skirt
was rolled up, out of the bag came a slouchy sweater to replace the
jacket, hair was let down, ties strategically loosened (but not removed),
plain socks were removed in favor of those 120 cm socks that look like leg
warmers with feet, lipstick was applied... amazing.

Yeah, I've seen that sort of thing too.

--

Penny Gaines

In article ,
Joni Rathbun wrote:

Shoes, underwear viewed when students change for pe, hair cuts,
earrings, rings, the car you arrive in, the home you walk from,
the house you get off at at the busstop... I don't think uniforms
fool anyone but the adults.

I think I have already posted in this thread that of course school-children
all know who is wealthy and who isn't, but the uniforms requirement means that
the chances for the wealthy/stylish to lord it over the rest are somewhat
reduced. Most of our schools impose restrictions on jewellery and hair cuts
too (mostly for safety reasons). As boasting and snobbery are crimes in
Australia g, uniform reduces the pain felt by the poorer and daggier (though
never to zero, of course).

--
Chookie -- Sydney, Australia
(Replace "foulspambegone" with "optushome" to reply)

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