THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, January 3, 1995 TAG: 9501030041
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A1 EDITION: FINAL
SERIES: Rewriting the Lesson Plan
Day 2: School Uniforms
SOURCE: BY PHILIP WALZER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: BALTIMORE LENGTH: Long : 367 lines
Cherry Hill Elementary School's attention-getting policy hasn't changed how reading is taught or made math fun. But teacher Patricia Henson knows it's working.
``I think it makes a difference,'' she said. ``For children, school is more like a job, because they're dressed for it.''
Her son, Chris, a first-grader at Cherry Hill, agreed. ``I like it,'' he said, pausing to think it through, ``because . . . it's blue.''
Then he unzipped his parka outside the schoolyard to show what they were talking about: light blue button-down shirt and dark blue pants and sweater. No jeans, no T-shirts, just all-blue dress clothes.
Increasingly, educators and parents are becoming convinced that what students wear can affect how they learn.
So, following the lead of parochial schools and military academies, hundreds of public schools across the country are asking their students to wear uniforms. A few districts even require them, despite uncertainty about whether that's legal.
In the topsy-turvy world of education reform, the push for uniforms has produced a remarkable degree of support among parents, teachers and administrators - though some students would rather choose their own clothes.
Uniforms are no quick fix, supporters say, but they help restore a no-nonsense atmosphere in the classroom: Kids aren't distracted by envy of their classmates' newest duds or embarrassed by their own hand-me-downs. With one style for all, they spend less time fighting and teasing one another and more time concentrating on schoolwork.
Though research on the effect of uniforms is skimpy, several principals say their uniform policies have helped cut down on suspensions and increased attendance.
For parents, the uniforms - which at some schools cost less than $20 each - generally are cheaper than a full array of brand-name clothes.
Kelly Parker, a seventh-grader at La Mesa Junior High School in Valencia, Calif., can see both sides.
``With uniforms, everybody has to be the same, and I think we should all be different. But it does cut down on problems. People aren't put down because they don't have great clothes,'' she said.
Uniforms have caught on most quickly in big cities like Washington and Baltimore, where discipline problems are the most severe. Some principals use the policies to help avoid muggings over jackets and to keep out gang colors and attire.
In South Hampton Roads, only two schools are encouraging students to wear uniforms - Douglass Park Elementary in Portsmouth and Bowling Park Elementary in Norfolk. The region has been slower to adopt uniforms ``probably because we have not been confronted as much with the massive problems of people fighting and robbing,'' said Ulysses V. Spiva, a former Old Dominion University education professor who sits on the Virginia Beach School Board.
But from one end of the country to the other, the movement is picking up steam.
In August, California approved a law permitting school districts to require - not just request - students to wear uniforms. In Virginia, Gov. George F. Allen's Commission on Champion Schools recently recommended a similar law.
Whether or not the General Assembly approves the law this year, 13 schools in Virginia Beach are considering starting optional uniform programs in the fall.
``It's very important for children to be in a positive learning environment,'' said Tim Jackson, a Virginia Beach School Board member who has sought uniforms. ``Anything that disrupts that environment should be removed. I think school uniforms will improve the atmosphere.'' One school's story
Cherry Hill Elementary was the first school in Baltimore - and one of the first on the East Coast - to begin an optional uniform policy. That was in 1987. Since then, about 100 other elementary schools in the city - about four-fifths of the total - have followed suit.
The school is in south Baltimore, across the street from a row of two-story red-brick housing projects. It has 340 students, nearly all of them black. Eighty-four percent qualify for free or reduced-price lunch.
On a typical day, preschoolers were watching a Barney tape, kindergartners were working on their spelling, first-graders were writing a story. Most were dressed to the nines.
Along with blue shirts and pants, some boys wear navy blue ties. The girls dress in light blue blouses and navy jumpers. Both sexes can also buy matching navy cardigans at a Baltimore clothing-store chain that carries the uniforms.
Boys' pants range from $7 to $13 each; shirts for both sexes are $5 to $10; and most jumpers are under $20. Principal Geraldine Hale-Smallwood estimates a day's outfit won't cost more than $38.
``It's easier on the parents,'' said Carla Manigo, who has three kids at Cherry Hill. ``The average pair of jeans is what - $25?''
Teachers say it's helped them, too. ``When there used to be things like Jordache (jeans), most of the time you couldn't teach,'' said LaSandra Harris, a fifth-grade teacher. ``I'm standing up there trying to teach, and they're busy looking at what jeans he has on or what shoes he has on. I don't have to worry about that now.''
Sunny Johnson, who teaches third and fourth grades, said the students benefit in another way: ``We've had problems in the past with children who were not able to keep up with the latest styles. They would be laughed at and talked about because they didn't have certain clothes. With uniforms, they're more a part of the group and they feel better about themselves.
``And when they feel better about themselves, they do a better job in the classroom.''
Student reviews generally were positive. ``When everyone wears a uniform, it makes the school better,'' said fifth-grader David Brown, who was wearing his under a Dallas Cowboys sweatshirt. ``The students look more intelligent. They don't tease.''
But fifth-grader Nashawna West said the results were overrated. ``They still fight in uniforms,'' she said, ``but they look better.''
Hale-Smallwood said standardized test scores are not available from the year before uniforms were adopted. But the attendance rate has risen from 90 percent in 1986-87 to 96.5 percent last year, and the number of suspensions dropped from five to zero.
``I would not say it's a panacea,'' she said. ``But it is one of the components that have helped improve . . . the achievement of our boys and girls.'' Most policies are voluntary
School uniform policies are far from uniform themselves.
Most public schools that have adopted uniforms simply ask students to wear them. But some, particularly in California, have begun requiring them.
Most are elementary schools, avoiding the rebellious years of adolescence, but some middle schools also are trying them on.
Most encourage students to wear them four or five times a week, but Portsmouth's Douglass Park and Norfolk's Bowling Park have targeted only one or two days to ease the transition.
Even the uniforms are not cut from the same cloth. Bowling Park goes formal with a gray silk cummerbund for boys in the fourth and fifth grades. ``It makes them feel even more stylish,'' Principal Herman D. Clark Jr. said.
Douglass Park, on the other hand, goes for the dress-down approach - or what Principal Gordon Ellsworth calls the ``basic look.'' Students are asked to wear white tops and blue or black bottoms. The style, though, is more flexible: T-shirts or button-downs, dress pants or jeans, skirts or jumpers, are all OK.
``We didn't want to make it too difficult for the parents,'' said facilitator Louise Jones, a spokeswoman for the school. ``You can come as dressy as you want or as casual as you want.''
Parents and students say the ``basic look'' brings all the benefits of dressier uniforms. ``It stops you from fighting,'' said Lance Iman, a third-grader. ``It stops people from making fun of you when they think you're poor.''
But some uniform advocates say it's important for kids, especially low-income children, to dress up.
``It's a funny thing about poor people: They try to look middle class, and dressing is one of the ways,'' said Pernecie Pugh, principal of Sojourner Truth Elementary in Chicago, which sticks to ties, dress pants and jumpers. ``Once you leave the house, people can't tell. And if you come to school wearing a uniform, no one knows what happens at home.''
And that includes teachers. ``In case there's a teacher who favors a child because they're dressed a certain way - they won't be able to do that,'' said Evelyn Rodriguez, whose daughter goes to Westover Hills Elementary in Richmond, which has standard uniforms.
Beyond the anecdotes, statistics offer mixed evidence on the advantages of uniforms of any sort.
The Long Beach Unified School District in Southern California was one of the first U.S. school systems to mandate uniforms for all elementary and middle schools, beginning last summer. One of its schools, Roosevelt Elementary, had 28 suspensions in the 1993-94 school year. So far this year, it's had none, spokesman Dick Van Der Laan said.
Another Long Beach school, Newcomb Academy, which spans kindergarten through eighth grade, reported that its standardized math scores for third grade went up 10 points in 1993-94, when it adopted a voluntary uniform policy. The percentage of sixth- through eighth-graders earning A's and B's rose 17 percent.
But one of the most comprehensive reports on uniforms showed no significant gains. The Washington school system, after looking at dozens of its schools in 1991, concluded:
``Though survey respondents . . . believed that school climate, student attendance and student achievement had improved in part due to the presence of uniforms, a review of . . . schools where students are wearing uniforms did not support those beliefs. The impact of wearing uniforms is inconclusive. . . At most, uniforms may contribute to a change in student perceptions of each other and the values they hold.''
Or as June Million, spokeswoman for the National Association of Elementary School Principals, said, ``The one thing no one knows is whether wearing uniforms makes children learn. But it often improves school spirit and morale, and that's good.'' Virginia considers a policy
No public school in Virginia requires students to wear uniforms, but the Allen administration plans to offer a bill in the upcoming legislative session to give every school system that option. Yet mandatory policies have stirred more controversy, raising both philosophical and legal questions.
In 1991, a uniform bill was pushed by Del. Kenneth R. Melvin, D-Portsmouth, who said his nephew didn't want to go to school one day because he didn't have the latest style in jackets. The bill, which Melvin said was opposed by ``rugged individualists'' in western Virginia, was passed but got whittled down to allow only Portsmouth to require uniforms.
William C. Bosher Jr., state superintendent of public instruction, said, ``We want to clarify that it is the authority of local school boards to make those kinds of decisions, whether it is uniforms or determining the nature of programs. We believe in local autonomy.''
Van Der Laan, the Long Beach official, said mandatory policies are needed to ensure 100 percent participation. ``If you have one-third of the kids still wearing the same thing that caused the conflict before, you really don't solve the problems. We have children of poverty and children of millionaires going to school side by side. When you have the entire student body in uniforms, you really level the playing field.''
But Spiva, the Beach School Board member, said mandatory policies make it harder to win over parents and students. That, said Ellsworth, the Portsmouth principal, is why he didn't consider requiring the ``basic look.''
``The state can't lead where the people won't go,'' Spiva said. ``It's just a matter of culture in America. Any time you say I have to, then I'll try not to do it.'' Voluntary policies, on the other hand, give parents time to size up the program and ease any misgivings before they reoutfit their kids.
Uniform requirements also infringe on students' freedom, said Charles M. Heuchert, assistant dean of the University of Virginia's Curry School of Education.
``The choices children have are already pretty limited by rules and regulations,'' Heuchert said. ``But they have to learn how to make good choices; they've got to get ready for life. They have to learn what's good for me and what's not good for me.''
The legal status is murky, too. Martha McCarthy, an Indiana University professor who studies education law, isn't sure which way judges would rule.
``With compulsory attendance, kids are compelled to be there,'' she said. ``I would think the courts would be fairly sensitive to putting another constraint on their activity.'' Yet she noted that courts increasingly have sided with school officials, whether to censor papers or curb what they consider to be offensive dress, such as a ``Drugs Suck'' T-shirt worn by a Norfolk student suspended in 1991.
Diane Ravitch, a senior research scholar at New York University and former U.S. assistant secretary of education, worries that citywide uniform requirements conflict with the trend to reduce mandates and encourage variety among schools. ``You can't be one size fits all. It just doesn't work very well.''
California school officials say they have tried to offer leeway. Valencia opened La Mesa Junior High with a mandatory policy last fall, but allowed anyone who objected to attend another junior high in the school system. And Long Beach has granted exemptions to all 240 children who sought them for any reason, Van Der Laan said.
Still, some students complain that it cramps their style. ``It's kind of a pain because there's no way to be different,'' said Annie McElwain, a seventh-grader at La Mesa. ``You can't express who you are.''
Yet she acknowledged that there are ways to get around that, too.
Sometimes she wears a pair of neon shoelaces to class.
That's allowed. MEMO: HOW TO START A POLICY
Portsmouth Del. Kenneth R. Melvin's uniform bill, which was signed in
1991, required the state Board of Education to draft guidelines to help
school systems set up voluntary uniform policies. These are some of the
board's tips:
Parent and community organizations should be involved in all planning
and decision-making of a school uniform program.
The uniform program should begin in elementary schools.
All policies should stress the voluntary nature of parental and
student participation.
The principal and faculty of each participating school should be
committed to and enthusiastic about the program.
Planning for and sharing information about the school uniform project
should be started about a year before implementing it.
Individual schools within a school district should decide whether to
participate.
Procedures should be established so all students can obtain a
uniform, regardless of family income level. Financial arrangements
should be made available to families who cannot afford the uniform, such
as, grants from the uniform company chosen, local community
organizations, PTA fund-raising, etc.
OPINIONS ON UNIFORMS
``We've had problems in the past with children who were not able to
keep up with the latest styles. They would be laughed at and talked
about because they didn't have certain clothes. With uniforms, they're
more a part of the group and they feel better about themselves.'' -
Sunny Johnson, third and fourth grade teacher, Cherry Hills Elementary,
Baltimore
``They're pretty good; in the morning I don't have to worry about
what I have to wear.'' - Daniel Bolde, seventh grade, La Mesa Junior
High, Valencia, Calif.
``I notice a lot fewer of the children commenting on each other's
clothing. In the past we had children picking on other children: `You
wore that yesterday.' I haven't noticed too much effect on discipline.''
- Laura Hand, second-grade teacher, Douglass Park Elementary,
Portsmouth
``It makes us not act up.'' - Nelson Barrett, fourth grade, Bowling
Park Elementary, Norfolk
``My daughter's not that crazy about it: She's a little girl and she
wants to wear frilly kinds of things.'' - Patti LaFever, parent,
Douglass Park Elementary, Portsmouth
``I see more of a comradeship between children. They're all in this
together.'' - Shirleva Scott, first-grade teacher, Westover Hills
Elementary, Richmond
``I like wearing them a lot because you look nice and stuff. I love
ties.'' - Kenny Mallard, third grade, Bowling Park Elementary, Norfolk
``I don't really like them that much. Some children want to wear
their regular clothes.'' - Dominique Hubbard, third grade, Westover
Hills Elementary, Richmond
``Our children are spending too much time on foolishness; they need
to be concentrating on academics, not what they're wearing.'' - Del.
Kenneth R. Melvin, D-Portsmouth
``I would probably say it's not a bad idea because it takes away from
a lot of that competition.'' - Katharine Kersey, chairwoman, child
study/special education department, Old Dominion University in Norfolk
``It makes them say more correct answers because they think they're
more intelligent.'' - Monica Wooden, fourth grade, Cherry Hill
Elementary, Baltimore
UNIFORMS AT A GLANCE
Does everyone have to wear them?
All Virginia schools where uniforms are worn - and most schools in
the country - have voluntary policies. But some, particularly in
California, require students to wear uniforms.
What do they consist of?
Usually, boys wear dress pants, shirts and ties; and girls wear
blouses with jumpers or skirts. Bowling Park Elementary in Norfolk adds
an elegant twist - gray bow ties and cummerbunds for the older boys.
How much do they cost?
Prices vary. At Cherry Hill Elementary in Baltimore, an outfit costs
less than $40; at Westover Hills Elementary in Richmond, a jumper and
blouse can cost up to $44.
Who decides the uniforms?
Usually a group of parents and administrators determines the outfit.
Do students comply?
At schools with voluntary policies, participation rates most days
vary from 95 percent at Cherry Hill to 30 percent at Westover Hills.
``Like anything new, it takes time,'' Westover Hills Principal Frances
McClenney says.
What if you can't afford them?
Most schools donate uniforms to parents who can't pay for them.
WHY WEAR UNIFORMS?
Advantages
Reduces teasing and fighting in school
Eliminates evidence of income disparity
Generally cheaper than brand-name clothes
No time lost choosing outfits in the morning
Disadvantages
Limits students' freedom of expression
Mandatory uniforms on shaky legal ground
ILLUSTRATION: Color drawing by Sam Hundley
MICHELE FRANKFURTER, Photos
Boys at Cherry Hill Elementary School in Baltimore can wear a
uniform of light blue shirts with dark blue pants. Some wear navy
blue ties and cardigans.
The girls at Cherry Hill Elementary dress in light blue blouses and
navy jumpers. The shirts range in cost from $5 to $10, and most
jumpers cost under $20.
Richard Carter, a student at Cherry Hill Elementary, shows off his
school uniform. The school's policy on wearing uniforms, like most
nationwide, is voluntary.
Photos
Laura Hand
Kenny Mallard
Del. Kenneth R. Melvin
Katharine Kersey
KEYWORDS: SCHOOL UNIFORM PUBLIC SCHOOLS DRESS CODE EDUCATION by CNB