“As a kid, I went to both a Catholic elementary school and a Catholic high school. In elementary school, they had uniforms when I was in junior and senior kindergarten. When I was in the first grade they stopped it. However, since the uniform was mandatory for students attending a Catholic high school, I had to go with my parents to purchase the appropriate uniform.
That was quite a long time ago. I vaguely remember the cost being around almost $300 for a few shirts, a couple of pairs of pants, a sweater, a vest, and a kilt. That didn’t include the cost of dress shoes. My first pair, which lasted a couple of years, was about $100. The pairs of pants were way too long for my vertically challenged self. Thankfully, my mom was able to hem my pants, so that didn’t cost anything.”
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Personally, I never had to wear any type of school uniform during my time in the public education system. Although, looking back I think it would have been very beneficial for the students in my particular area. I like the ideal of streamlining the appearance, learning environment and efforts to promote equality. These days it’s easy for practically any income level to adhere to a school’s uniform policy (ex: even Kmart and Old Navy have cheap uniform options). Clothes, shoes and physical appearances should not be able to distract from the learning atmosphere at school. Great post!
Exactly. Thanks for your thoughtful comment.
I always wanted a uniform so I wouldn’t have to figure out what to wear every day!
The only concerns for me would be taking away the ability to express yourself through clothes, for those that do it, and making families with tight budgets buy a second set of clothes for their kids.
Your second point is a good point. While in the long run it most likely will end up saving the family money, the initial cost upfront is quite a bit. They could always ask other parents of kids who went to the same school, but aren’t using the uniform anymore.