The First Constructive – Improving Our Schools

Rachel Terry

Comm 1270

The First Constructive (Prima Facie)

Introduction – The school system in the United States needs improvement in many areas. The Program for International Student Assessment, or PISA, collects test results from 65 countries for its rankings, which come out every three years. The most recent results, from 2012, show that U.S. students ranked below average in math among the world's most-developed countries. They were close to average in science and reading.  Isn’t it silly to suppose that the way students dress would have an effect on their education? Suppose you were in Court for something important, and the judge decided that a jogging suit would be more comfy than judicial robes. Would that be disturbing for any other reason than it being non-traditional? Costume is a way of reinforcing mindset. A judge in robes is reminded of his judicial responsibility. Students in uniform are similarly reminded of their roles as students.

Thesis Proposition - Public schools should implement a school uniform policy to positively improve the environment of the school because before and after studies show significant improvements in performance and behavior after the implementation of school uniforms.

Define key terms: Performance: student academic achievement.

Behavior: discipline issues such as truancy and suspension.

Issue A:  Before-and-after studies show significant improvements in performance and a decrease in discipline issues after the implementation of a school uniform policy.

Claim 1: Student performance improves.

Warrant 1:  There are many factors that go into overall academic performance, so certainly school uniforms are not the only thing that counts. Nonetheless, the countries that score best on international tests (Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan) are those that have the tradition of school uniforms. We may therefore reasonably conclude that it makes a positive contribution to having a serious attitude towards education.

One study involving two Florida County School Districts where data was collected prior to the mandatory school uniform policy implementation, and then data was collected for several years after the implementation of the mandatory school uniform policy.  Data showed a significant improvement in student academic achievement especially in the area of reading. Promotions to the next grade level had the highest gains in the Polk County School District.

The city of Baltimore provides another major experiment with positive results:

“Eddie Scott, principal at Meade Middle on Fort Meade, tells the Baltimore Sun’s writer, Anica Butler, “There’s research that shows a correlation between appropriate dress and academic performance.” Students will not be distracted with who is wearing what brand of jeans, shoes or shirts. Students can focus on learning which is why they are there.”

Claim 2:  Discipline issues decrease.

Warrant 2: The largest and most prominent example of a school uniform policy experiment in the United States is that of the Long Beach Unified School District, the third largest school district in California having 97,000 students in 90 public school programs, with 46 different languages spoken by local students:

“The quantitative outcomes of the policy have been remarkable. Crime report summaries are now available for the five-year post-uniform policy period and reflect that school crime overall has dropped approximately 86%, even though K-8 student enrollment increased 14%.

The data was gathered before and after the implementation of the mandatory school uniform policy to show accurate improvements. The authors made one valid point. They suggest that the parental involvement that precipitated a policy of requiring uniforms in Long Beach may have precipitated other improvements. I suggest that parents and educators showing that they cared about educational performance had a positive effect upon performance. That’s a good result and a good reason for parents and educators showing they care by adopting a uniforms policy else where.

South Shore Middle School in Seattle, Washington provides a second example of the improvement in behavior possible with the help of school uniforms.   The school has 900 students with a mandatory uniform policy.

The principal of South Shore, Dr. John Oennan, reports that "this year the demeanor in the school has improved 98 percent, truancy an.J tardies are down, and we have not had one reported incident of theft." Dr. Oennan explains that he began the uniform program because his students were ..draggin', saggin' and laggin'. I needed tc keep them on an academic focus. My kids were really into what others were wearinag" Only five students have elected to attend another public school.

Conclusion:  Adopting school uniforms will not solve all the problems of education but it can contribute to significant improvements in performance and behavior.  Before and after studies have proven the benefit of a uniform policy.  Virtually all of the top school systems in the US and abroad have uniform policies as part of an overall program that focuses students on education.