This question is being asked on Sunrise this morning, and I was curious about what you all thought. No doubt it's been done... but oh well.

Personally, i'd have loved for nothing more in high school but to have no uniform. Or alteast be able to wear a school top and my own bottoms.

However growing up a little I realise that if kids were given free reign there would always be the ones that are completely inappropriate (especially the girls), the ones that obviously leave the house in one thing and change on the way, and those who feel like the 'poor' kids because they're parents can't afford the fashion or the designer/surfy labels.

WDYT?

I think there needs to be a little leeway, mainly in high school. we were allowed to were jeans or black pants of any sort, as long as we had the school shirt on (black and white at one school, green at the other school). As far as i know this has changed, and in the black/white school, you know are not allowed to wear jeans.

Primary school i see there no problem with having a set school uniform, it makes life easier when dressing the children in the morning!!

Yes I think kids do need school uniform for exactly the reasons you mentioned.

It erases some of the competition between kids: who can afford brand names and who cant?

It is a sign of conformity and school is the place to conform.

It also makes the school look so much nicer and more respectable and when the children are out in the community they look much nicer in matching uniforms than whatever the latest fashion might happen to be at the time.

I think high school is when a uniform is most important. Its about having pride in your school and unity with your peers..
At our school once we were seniors we often wore jeans and no one commented although officially it wasnt allowed.

The other thing that is handy about school uniforms is that it often helps keep the kids a bit more settled, seeing everyone looking the same as them - I know that some teachers dread 'casual' days at school, because the kids go just a little bit berserk with all the bright colours in the playground, whereas having a sea of green around them every day is one less distraction IYKWIM.

FWIW, I used to HATE casual days at school because I was one of those kids who got picked on for not having the latest label / style / whatever, so would often just go in my uniform and pretend I 'forgot' .

Beck

The more kids I have, the more grateful I am for school uniforms.

I still only have one in school, but i'm sure I will appreciate it more in coming years.

It's good to know that I have 5 tops, 5 bottoms and if all else goes to hell in a handbasket, all I have to make sure i've done is wash those 10 items with accompanying underwear and socks and that means that at least my DS will be organised for what to wear to school without any chooks running around with their heads cut off iykwim

As a child I was grateful for school uniforms.

We never had brand clothes, or even bought clothes, except for jeans (not good brand though). A school uniform meant that I did not feel self conscious about this.

As a parent I love school uniform. It means that it is easy, yes, I am lazy.

That said I do understand that if children are not in uniform at all, most/many do settle and the competition doesn't happen that much, depending on the children

Uniform
'uni' = one
'form' = shape

It shows them as one, a unified front. They represent themselves as a whole unit, rather than trying to make themselves stand out. It represents unity and respect. It allows them to identify themselves as a group.

All important things while children are growing up. It takes so much focus off looks and onto schooling. Plus, a lot of work places have uniforms, it gets them used to the real world in that respect.

Love school uniforms.

No dithering in the morning about what to wear.
Trying to find a matching outfit.
Trying to match up with what your friends are wearing.
For older kids, having to buy expensive brands to be part of the "in crowd" ... and this is starting younger and younger.
Easy to keep and hand down to the next child in the family, with no worries about fashions changing, looking out of date.

It creates a level playing field for all the kids - nobody considered "better" because of their clothes.

I agree, if uniform was never used, a lot of the kids it would a non-issue. But there would enough of it to make uniforms worthwhile in my opinion.

OUr shcool has a uniform - black and gold. And a lot of the girls wear leggings under their dress when it gets cooler. Even with the uniform, we had an issue last year where the school had to ban the leggings with the lace around the bottom, due to social issues ... little girls declaring that you could only play in "their" group if you had the lace on your leggings.

What I do like, these days, is that a lot of schools have more choices.
I know when I went to school, the boys had a button down shirt, the girls a tunic. That as it.
Now there more choices - boys in polos and shorts, with the girls able to wear the same thing, or skorts. Still a tunic as an option (my girls love the dress). Choice of jumper colour, or go for a jacket instead.
Just a little bit more freedom, while still giving the unity that a uniform provides.

Yes they do... My high school had a 'dress code' but no uniform.

The competition was really awful - not to me because I didn't give a sh*t and just wore jeans and a polo shirt every day, but some of the poorer kids really copped it.

When you got on the bus in the morning, you used to get eyed up and down as you walked down the aisle and there would be snide comments about what you had on. Luckily the main PITA had the hots for my brother for years so I was exempt but some of the girls were just destroyed every day.

For all of the reasons mentioned here, yes, I think school uniforms are great.

Definitely love school uniforms here. And I agree, it is even more important in high school. My DDs' names are down at a private school in our area, and one of my major reasons was the uniform policy.

I like it for two reasons. One is the reason that others have mentioned, having grown up with friends who could afford "better" or brand name clothes while not being in that position myself it was good to have that difference taken away on a day-to-day basis. The other reason is simply that it is incredibly difficult to find appropriate girl's clothing at a reasonable cost - by appropriate I mean it covers the shoulders, not low cut, not too short, made from decent fabric that is sun resistant. I'm glad my daughter is going to school in a uniform instead of a flimsy sundress or a ra-ra skirt because that is all I can find at the shops.

Oh, I just thought of a third reason, being in Darwin means that without a uniform there is no way our kids could wear shorts and t-shirts through the dry season if there was no uniform because the retailers sell winter clothes like they do down south so if the kids outgrow or damage their summer stuff we can't replace it until around August.

I think parents need kids to have school uniforms! Saves money and sanity. I wish I had a uniform (with a few options to account for taste and body shape) for work.

meh...i think school uniforms are an expensive waste of time personally. i would much rather send my kids in inexpensive sensible normal clothes than unifroms. what is wrong with trackies/shorts and a t-shirt from your personal selection?

i went to both primary and high school with no uniform and i obviously missed the whole peer pressure=clothes thing as it was a non-issue. my schools had clothing policies from meorey adn we were allowed to wear certain clothes and thatw as it. i do remember wearing jeans to school one winter day and having my mother being rung up and getting trackies brought to me as jeans were on the no-go list.

So there was a 'uniform' of sorts then, wasn't there? It may not have all been the same colour or style, but there were limits.

Absolutely. I love seeing all the kids in the same uniform. It give them a sense of belonging & school pride. It also eliminates the whole issue of what to wear each day. If DD had her way, she'd wear a pair of tights & a t-shirt to school.

School is about education, not about what each other is wearing.

I hate the ironing that comes with it 3 kids, winter uniform 3 days, sports 2 days. So we have 6 pairs of grey pants, 2 pleat pini's and 9 white shirts, to be ironed every week.

Add to this school uniforms socks x 9, 3 ties, 3 jumpers, 3 sports polos, 3 faction polos, 3 track pants, thats alot of uniforms!! Not to mention the spares, like I bought 1 extra jumper ($60 a pop!), a spare tie, 3 extra white shirts, 2 extra pairs of socks each and a hat.

We have a seperate uniform cupboard so this is fantastic, I have a hanger for each child for each day, (I converted the linen cupboard to allow hanging space) and there shoes go at the bottom, everything has a place.

I iron every Sunday arvo (school and work clothes) and yes, I need a uniform for them for every day as I work FT and am not hunting stuff down mid week! I have to wash sports pants and jackets in between but thats easy enough, sports on Tue and Fri and everything bar the knitted jumper is drier safe

Oh, the question, Do They Need it? In my opinion they want it. Private School, zero choice, its the uniform, you wear it, parents have to buy it. Local kids at the public PS school near us all wear bottle green tracksuits with a yellow polo, all available from Big W for about $7 a piece, they all seem to wear it, bet the parents love that, cheap, wash and wear, everyone the same! Local High School is Navy bottoms of your choice with white school logo polo and navy embroidered school jumper. There mostly in it too, you do see the occasional pair of jeans.

Bonus of the uniform is the kids love free dress days at school!!


We do! Every year we get a spend $100 recieve $100 voucher towards the Corporate Wardrobe, so for $230 (out of pocket $130) I got 4 blouses and a vest, I just wear black pants from Target.

We had a very strict uniform code at high school, and I loved it. I would dread casual days - walking up to the school gates with a sick feeling, just waiting for the looks and putdowns.

I was one of those girls, and my mother one of those mothers, who had no clue about fashion, and we knew it.

I'd love a work uniform too...

Yes.

And I wish schools would enforce it. School is not a fashion parade.

Our kids go to aprogressive school with a no uniform poicy. I love it and so do the kids. They also do not have to wear shoes. Great for those with sensory issues.

They used to go to a public school with an enforced uniform policy. I couldn't beleive the prices esecially if you have more than one child attending. It hink schools should have school colours, with clothing available from chain stores, and a logo that people can buy to iron or sew on their clothes.

It could also be considered inequitable when some kids are in hand me downs and others in updated uniforms.

I don't think they need one but it does make things a heck of a lot easier - for everyone involved.

Personally, I went to a Primary School with no uniform (or dress code) and then a Catholic High School with a strict uniform - I preferred having a uniform.

ETA -

Our local public school have just that A colour code (white, light blue or navy tops) and the same colour options plus denim for bottom half. They sell an iron on logo which is optional still and only about $1.

Yes for many of the reasons mentioned above. But mainly for my sanity. I don't have to think about what the kids need to wear to school.

I'm in the pro-uniform camp. I like that it takes one of those potentially distracting factors away from school. You can all be united in b**ching about your unflattering uniform

That's what our school has. The only part of the uniform you can't get from Big W is the dress, and that's optional - the girls can wear the polo and skorts.

We don't even have a logo on the uniforms, although they are thinking of doing that.

And we have a very good uniform shop - the new stuff is cheaper than the ones in Big W. And you can get shorts, skorts, long black pants of varying types, polos, jumpers for $2 each, tunics and jackets for $4.
Everyone wears the uniform - there is an occasional exception in winter when someone will wear a non-uniform jumper/jacket. But it's pretty rare.

I love uniforms! I went to a strict Catholic girls school and we had a very strictly enforced uniform. We all had pride in our appearance and paid attention to the little details (correct ribbon, socks etc). My DS goes to a Catholic primary school and has a uniform. From grade 1 they are taught to tuck their shirts in etc.

I would think buying clothes for school would get expensive. Uniforms are made to last and most clothes these days are not.

Plus my ds looks so cute in his uniform!

When I was in high school we were allowed to wear jeans as our bottoms with a white shirt and blue jumper. We thought we were very cool!

I like uniforms. I do wish that they were not so expensive.
We are lucky that our current school allows the plain polos and jumpers from big w and K mart.
$20 for a t shirt and $40 for a jumper is a lot of money when you have more than one at school. Especially when you then add skirts pants and shoes to the mix.

Do they NEED them?

Of course not.

My son went to this school: www.alia.vic.edu.au and they had no uniform. The kids couldn't care less what anyone else wore - they never got hung up on fashion - it was refreshing. And no, it did not interfere with their learning.

Absolutely! Our culture in Australia is to wear a school uniform for Primary & Secondary schools. To change this would be disastrous I think. The one day / year we were allowed to wear mufti was awful, there was so much pressure to wear the latest thing. Although I suspect after awhile this would dwindle should uniforms become redundant. I fully support a strict school uniform code. Kids in messy half uniforms & half mufti look so slovenly to me.

Most of Europe & the US & Canada do not wear uniforms & they don't have a big issue with the "fashion parade" mentality. I went to school there for a year & it NEVER came up.

Bare in mind I went to a prviate school where you'd get in trouble for not wearing a blazer over your jumper or not having the right 2.5cm royal blue ribbon in your hair (that must be tied above your collar). So it's kind of ingrained in me. I can't even eat in public to this day...

ETA - Another plus for me is that it's cheaper to buy uniforms than civi clothes for kids!!

No. I'm not a fan of uniforms.


My kids go to a school without a uniform. There is no "fashion" issues whatsoever.

I plan for them to go to a high school that doesn't have a uniform either.


I don't buy the argument that you'd run out of clothes, or that it's expensive to not have a uniform. My kids just wear something simple, like jeans or shorts and a t-shirt. The same that they'd wear any day in the holidays. I buy second hand clothes usually so cost isn't an issue. Buying a uniform would cost more than my entire year's clothing budget for the kids.

Don't buy the "fashion victim" argument. Kids in schools with uniforms also find ways to stand out from the crowd, be it different types of socks, shoes, earrings, etc.

Wow I'm impressed by the number of PPs who are OK with no/minimum uniform, I didn't expect that when I opened the thread! Agree.
Whether you have a uniform or not, kids will always find a way to pick the nerds from the trendy kids so there is always social division based on clothing regardless.
Instead of band-aiding these issues by covering the underlying reasons kids do this by forcing them into uniforms, DEAL with their origins.

What the kids wear is not the CAUSE of their behaviour, it is just the SYMPTOM of it. If a girl is a tart, she will still be a tart in a school uniform! At least in mufti you can tell, then you can work on her personality. If you succeed, you will see her dress modify accordingly. If you don't, at least you aren't kidding yourself that the problem is solved by sticking her in a uniform.

You wear a uniform because you are proud to belong; you don't BECOME proud to belong by wearing a uniform.

Uniforms should be available but not compulsory. Then you can measure the level of camaraderie by how many kids WANT to wear the uniform. If they don't, then figure out why...maybe its just disgustingly old fashioned and inappropriate for modern Australia - I see heaps of poor kids decked out in what really amounts to ludicrous fancy dress, things like stupid ineffective boater hats and stuffy hot ties and whatnot, enforced on them by adults with ridiculous ideas of what is important.
That's another great alternative. We used to have that at work, we could wear whatever as long as it had a particular colour scheme, it worked very well.

no they don't need uniforms.

it would be cheaper without them because you buy casual clothes for your kids anyway.

Plus uniforms cost about $35 for shorts and $40 for shirts. 2 kids in uniform and it becomes expensive. Add on the must be black shoes that are never made for comfort.

My kids casual clothes are mainly second hand or on sale. Never spent more then $25 on a piece of clothing for them.

I agree. But how many schools (especially public schools) can you see investing the time into dealing with these issues. I went to a good public school, but even they didn't deal with the ones who practically had a neon sign on their foreheads screaming for help... let alone noticing what they're wearing.

I'm pro-uniform where the uniform is comfortable, practical and reasonably inexpensive. I think it makes life easier generally. But then I tend to wear pretty much a uniform myself, albeit a casual one, because it makes life easier for me.

Uniforms serve a safety purpose also. For instance, Just say a young primary school child went wandering outside the school they can be easily identified with the school logo on the uniform and school would be contacted.


Also promotes equality amongst all students.


So yes, I think they need to wear a school uniform, much neater too than having all these kids wearing whatever they like.

I think so!

Eliminate dramas over "what do I wear?".

Eliminate fights over "you're not wearing THAT!!!"

Easier to identify children on excursions etc

Everyone is on an equal basis

Prepares them for the working world, where chances are they will be required to wear a uniform (depending on job, of course).

They have plenty of time after school and on weekends/holidays to wear their own clothes.

Me, I can't wait until we go to buy a uniform for our little man!

Yes kids need school uniforms.


At my DD school, shirts are $12.50 and shorts are $9.50 Dress is $17.50
Hat $7.50
Sport/house shirts are $10
Library bags are $7.50

Give me free dress at high school and I would have dressed like a cheap sl*t. I wouldn't have been alone in that, either.

I think it would be nice if school offered a uniform, but in a few different styles, as not all kids can fit a certain design, and it can just make them appear fatter/skinnier/etc and make it easier for them to be teased as a result. I would have appreciated a nicer school uniform that didn't amplify the size of my breasts and go see-through if the sun shone on it.

I think uniforms are pretty good... it lessens the competition.

I'm all for uniforms and would pick as school with them over one without (more so for less opportunitly for bullying over clothing and I think they look nice and neat)

BUT in saying that as a parent I'm very financially nervous as we have not only to worry about our year of private school fees next year but the fact that our uniforms will cost us close to $200 per set....and we have summer, winter and sports to purchase (more than likely needing 2 sets of each) all I can say is THANK GOD for the secondhand option! Brand name clothing would probably come close to the same price for us as a private school uniform!

Yes, I love school uniforms.
NO arguments in the morning as to what to wear. No competition between kids. You can identify kids from the same school easily.
Yes, uniforms can be expesive, but , you would probably end up spending just as much on their school outfits anyway.
I went to schools that had both policies and in the end the uniform was the easiest option for all.

The other thing I like about uniforms is that it does teach some degree of conformity. Many may argue that you need to be individuals etc, but sometimes conformity is ok. Its not like once your uniform is on, you lose your personality.

Many professions have uniforms etc, so its just a fact of life.

I think that would be unusual. DD1 goes to a public school in an average area and skorts are $33, sports shorts $25, shirts $35 and polos $24. Hat is $15, library bag $10.

I love school uniforms, I hate shopping at the best of times so it makes it easier for me.

that seems quite cheap to me! Our Tshirts are about $22-24 for short sleeve, just under $30 for long sleeve. Jumpers are about $36. Pants are around the $30 mark, shorts are around $24. Have not had to buy a dress so wouldnt know what they cost! The school vest was around $26. I think our school is one of the relatively well priced ones around but certainly adds a fair chunk to the budget especially when they lose so many items that never get returned.

Still doesnt change my opinion, I think uniforms are great!

We've never had those issues and I'm not expecting that we'll have them in future. (My parents never had those issues with me either).



No, never had those problems.



On our school excursions every child wears a school vest (provided by the school). It is a bright colour with the school's logo on it. We're always recognisable as a group when out and about.



Everyone is on an equal basis at our school anyway.



I've never had to wear a uniform in my working life. Oh, hang on, once. At a minimum wage teenage job. So, should we train our kids to work at places like McDonalds then? (hehe, just kidding...)


I hate the "conformity" argument. Schools conform you enough, without throwing the uniform in there as well.

I hate the "it's cheaper" argument. So, your kids wear their school uniform EVERY SINGLE DAY, even weekends? So they don't actually have other clothes? Of course not. So how is it cheaper?

I hate the "neatness" argument. You don't need a uniform to look neat.

I love that our school has no uniform - it was actually one of the reasons we picked it.

YES!!!!!

I went to highschool in Europe for a term, and there definitely were issues with this. American TV may be leading me astray but considering the number of movies/sitcoms/novels that play on this theme I suspect it's an issue there as well.

I went to school in Berlin for 3 months... it was absolutely an issue there. In fact, my host mum complained to the boss of the exchange that I wasn't dressing 'cool' enough and her daughter was embarassed FWIW I was neat and tidy but wearing jeans, hiking boots, jumper, parka and a beanie/gloves pretty much every day instead of skin tight clothes which were trendy at the time.

CO I was in Switzerland with the same issue. And then when I did buy my mini skirt and tights I apparently bought them from the *wrong* store

When I was in high school I dreaded free dress day. My parents never had the money to by me trendy clothes. You did get picked on if you wore something that wasn't trendy.

Peer pressure exist in every school. It might appear to be there but it always is under the surface. I prefer my kids to be in a uniform so they don't suffer the same peer pressure and taunts that I did. I know it won't stop all of it but at least they won't have to worry about what they are wearing each day.