An Argument Against School Uniforms: Montego Bay Community College

UNIFORMS SHOULD BE WORN TO COLLEGE Trendy hair styles, fashionable clothing and excessive accessories are all distracting variables that are by no means exhaustive. Allowing students to make their own clothing decisions for college may be very judgmental. Conversely, with everyone wearing the same type of clothing eliminates the chaos about the dress code at the tertiary level. As tertiary level students, we regard it a privilege to wear uniforms at the Montego Bay Community College. Every school is in essence a learning environment; hence we believe that wearing uniforms assist in keeping students in the right frame of mind for learning and is used as a way of identifying students belonging to a particular institution. Have you ever
In “An Argument Against School Uniforms” Dr. Alan Hilfer, senior psychologist in Brooklyn’s Children’s and Adolescent Unit at Maimonides Medical Centre, argues that clothes are a source of expression for students, and as children get older, they become increasingly resentful of uniforms… By instituting a uniform policy; schools are taking away a student’s individuality through their attire (2013). In essence, when students are required to wear uniforms they feel as though they are hindered from showing a part of their personality through the way they dress. For instance, they may want to depict their feelings on a particular day by wearing an outfit which they feel will assist them in doing so. For this reason, opponents argue that wearing uniforms to college has no psychological effect on students. Therefore, students who oppose the idea of wearing uniform feels that they are being deprived of expressing themselves through their casual
However, those students who resent wearing uniforms may be ignorant of the significance of dressing in a professional way. This would actually be the first step in being prepared to enter the working environment. Graham (2012) declared that people such as police man, flight attendant, pilot, army associates etc. wear uniform when they work. This is so because it helps them to have a feeling of self-actualisation. For example, Williams, a police officer stated that he feels a high level of pride and responsibility when he is dressed in uniform (2014). Williams does not just wear his uniform to show people that he is a police officer; instead he wants to be respected at all times. In short, people who wear uniforms carry themselves with the necessary decorum and professionalism needed at all levels of work and school. The wearing of uniforms is an integral part of students’ culture and should be embraced at all levels. Uniforms are needed to uphold a sense of pride at the tertiary level as students represent less than 14 per cent of the Jamaican population as supported by Professor Errol Morrison (2012). As we reflect on the benefits of uniforms in colleges, we strongly believe that this is the way forward and should be implemented by all tertiary