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Journal of Research on Christian Education Fall 2006, Vol. 15, No. 2 pp. 143-168

The Dayton Agenda
School Uniforms: A Qualitative Analysis of Aims and Accomplishments at Two Christian Schools
Michael Firmin, Suzanne Smith, and Lynsey Perry Cedarville Uniwrsitv. Ohio

Employing rigorous qualitative research methodology, we studied the implementation of two schools' uniform policies. Theirprimary intents were to eliminate competition, teach young people to dress appropriately, decrease nonacademic distractions, and lower the parental clothing costs. The young people differed with adults regarding whether or not the objectives relating to competition and distractions were met. Both adults and young people agreed that the goal of learning to dress more appropriately was met, yet theydiffered on how accomplishment was achieved—and also on how they understood appropriate dress. Data from both schools was generally comparable, with four notable differences.

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Firmin, Smith, and Perry

School uniforms have been a source of general controversy in public school education in recent years. In 1995, Long Beach, California drew media attention by adopting a mandateduniform policy for all students in its purview. Within a year, the school district published remarkable results, prompting then President Bill Clinton to visit the schools and include the advocation of uniforms in his 1996 State of the Union Address (Clinton, 1996). The result was that the policy was implemented in 70 schools for about 60,000 students. While some laud uniforms as the wave of thefuture (Tooms, 2002), others are concerned for the individuality that students sacrifice as outweighing the benefits received in implementing uniform policies (Wilkins, 1999). Uniforms are not a new phenomenon by any means. Davidson (1990) provides an in-depth history of school uniforms in the United Kingdom. Following in traditions of universities such as Oxford and Cambridge, school uniforms haveidentified children with various sehools, whether elite college preparatory, or public schools. In the eases of private schools, the uniforms beeame a means of defining status, and in the case of public schools, uniforms often provided an equalizing eflect for the poor who otherwise eame to school looking underprivileged. Ironieally, however, it was the public schools that began the uniformtradition. In early British educational history, aristocrats dressed their children as they pleased and it was actually the common schools that set today's standard for uniforms in elite private institutions. In time, rank and privilege were toned in one's classroom dress. The United States has not experieneed the same historical trend with public school students wearing uniforms to classes. Brunsma andRockquemore (2001) indieate that Catholic schools in Ameriea possess a relatively long-standing tradition for school uniforms and that these parochial schools account for about 65% of the U.S. students under such codes. Public school parents have an apparent perception that sueh standards help make Catholic education successful, including the presenee of safe, secure, and orderly learningenvironments (Paliokas & Rist, 1996).

Journal of Research on Christian Education

School Uniforms

145

Brunsma and Rockquemore (2001), however, eontend that in the Catholic education school literature, uniforms are not advocated as being signifieant in ereating the "Catholic sehool effeet." Rather, they make a eontribution toward the overall effeet via leveling the playing field for mutualrespeet of all students since more privileged students are not as easily identified by their elothing or aeeessories. Bodine (2003) indieates that drawing elear conclusions are difficult, however, due to the multiple factors at work simultaneously. Although the United States public sehool system has not experieneed a long history with sehool uniforms (Dussel, 2005), the system did for deeades...
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