Did you know 57% of private schools in the United States require their students to wear uniforms to school? There is usually not a uniform for most public schools, but more than half of the time you will see religious and private schools ensure a strict dress code or an established uniform. If you attend a school with or without uniforms, have you ever thought about whether or not they should be required? Well, I’m here to tell you three reasons why they shouldn’t.

My first reason is that uniforms make schools focus on something other than the students’ education. According to ProQuest, “‘Now, instead of focusing on uniform violations, the school has been able to focus on upping its first-period attendance,’ Schaefer said. Staff had been spending ‘an inordinate amount of time’ enforcing the policy, requiring students to come down to the office and calling parents, some of whom felt badly because they hadn’t been able to get to the laundry.” This means that when schools focus on uniforms, student’s grades may get brought down from missing class time that was lost to office time after uniform violations.

My second reason is that uniforms limit kids’ ability to show self-expression through their clothing. According to ProQuest, “Teens may still want to express their individuality by wearing non-school logo tops”. This means that they can develop lower self-esteem, and cannot show their personality and preferences w/ uniforms.

My third and final reason is school uniforms create a financial strain for families whose children’s sizes are hard to find and those who go through growth spurts. According to ProQuest, “It created financial strain for families, especially for students with hard-to-find sizes or when students experienced growth spurts, according to a presentation outlining the survey findings.” The stress of financial strain can cause distress to the whole family and make it hard for them to buy basic necessities.

Overall, these are just a few of the main reasons why schools should not require students to wear uniforms. You can help our next generation not have to worry about any of these problems just by bringing it up to a school board member or even a teacher you have about it. Whether it be because you want them to get the right education without interruptions caused by being in the office from something about the clothes they are wearing, wanting to keep them from their family going through financial strain, or just wanting them to be able to express themselves and dress comfortably uniforms should not be allowed in school.