The right to be oneself is the greatest benefit to growing up in an individualistic time.  Unique expressions of personal interests and diverse character traits make up the basis for the intricacies of this distinctive society. The world does not have a singular uniform so why should high school students?

School uniforms act as a restrictive force in society to weigh down efforts for individualism and self-expression. The conservative monotony and conformity that school uniforms encourage disable students to feel comfortable not only in the clothes in which they choose to wear but the skin in which they must live. Scituate High School Junior Sarah Finnegan expressed her disapproval and said “Uniforms don’t let students express themselves; everyone looks the same.” By requiring a singular way for students to present themselves in public, uniform codes are denying the realities of diversity that exist in the modern world.

Many school systems that require their students to wear a particular uniform or dress in a certain way wish to remain within the realms of old-time tradition and reserved interests. The reality of these wishes is idealistic at best and come off as ignorant to the precedents of modern society. The world today grants and encourages individual expression and unique societal contributions. The growing and changing world is not moving towards a time of conformity or traditionalist views, yet schools requiring uniforms are, in effect, empowering this backwards thinking.

A school wide focus on uniforms also takes away time, effort, and thought from issues that should have precedent. The purpose of school is to provide academic knowledge and scholarly purpose to its attendants. However, if so much time and effort is dedicated to maintaining trivial uniform standards, schools lose focus on the more important tasks at hand. As significant time is given to ensuring uniform codes are met, school systems illustrate that restraining individual expression is just, universally accepted and necessary. Because human beings learn by example, uniform’s restrictions on individual expression may cause students to be less accepting to those who are diverse or different.

Schools should uphold students to an appropriate dress code, but their restrictions should not exceed the expectations of appropriateness. Spanish teacher Ms. Bird said she agreed, “Uniforms do not give students the opportunity to express individuality and their own styles.” Schools, such as Scituate High School, that require appropriate dress code yet allow for individual taste and choice in clothing create a welcoming environment for all different types of students.

In addition, every student experiences days when they wish to wear sweatpants, sweatshirts or other comfortable clothing. Schools that forbid such casual attire do not give students the ability to be optimally comfortable and therefore may result in  a lack of confidence with oneself  and poor academic performance for the day.

The steep price of uniforms is another setback they provide for students. Although many people like to consider uniforms as a money saver for families and students, the reality is that they are not quite the frugal option. According to statisticbrain.com, the average annual cost for the school uniforms of an individual is $249. This number can easily rise depending on the uniform’s quality and company as well as  upon the number of each pieces a student chooses to purchase. Although some may believe this preset price will save families money in the long run, the reality is this number does not account for shoes, accessories and other items that a student may need throughout the year.  A student attending a school with no uniform can easily avoid these steep prices while maintaining their individual style.

Mandatory school uniforms are a restrictive hassle to high school students that are both ineffective and unnecessary for a successful school system. Uniforms take the focus away from what is really important to the academic experience of a student body and do not accurately reflect the realities of the real world for which high school is meant to prepare.