TEACHING IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS/RESPECT

Could Putting Teachers in Uniforms Elevate Students' Respect for Them?

A look at what might promote teacher respect and help classroom behaviors

I think we all know public school teachers can pretty much dress however they choose as long as it’s within the bounds of a dress code set by the school, but maybe their attire is part of the lack of respect problem teachers face in their classrooms. I understand teachers want to be relaxed and dress casual because it’s comfortable and in part it allows kids to relate to them like they do their own parents, but what if that’s actually part of the cause of disrespectful behavior taking over in school classrooms?

This thought occurred to me recently when I volunteered to deliver flyers from our local Park’s Dept. to an elementary school here in the burbs where I live. Because one school office was short staffed, I was told if I would don a mask, I could take them around to the classrooms, but the teachers I encountered were a shock! I thought schools had dress codes for teachers, but it soon became apparent if this one did, it was being ignored. See for yourself…

One teacher had her dark short hair in pigtails while she wore black leggings under a short full skirt, white crocs, a tank top that left little to the imagination under a shirt she’d tied at the waist. Never mind all the ear piercings along her ear lobes. She was the only adult in the room, otherwise I would have guessed she was either a para, or a student teacher, although she looked more like a students older sister — anything BUT a teacher. It didn’t appear to be dress-up day either because that was my 1st guess so I glanced at the students, but they were dressed as if they had a dress code.

Another male teacher, maybe age 30, had on a neon green skin tight shirt over cargo pants, but what I slapped me in the face was his nose ring and a large tat on his neck that I couldn’t even make out. My respect level for these teachers was dropping like a stone.

These weren’t extreme cases either. They represented the majority of the teachers I saw that day. Now I should probably add I’m in Kansas which is a politically conservative state where I reside in a small town that has one of the top-rated school system in the state. Yes factor that in, but obviously what’s lacking in at least this one particular school was a professional dress code for teachers.

In a survey done recently over 67% of parents polled said they believe if teachers wore uniforms it might help students and parents to see them more as authority figures and role models in the classroom, as well as leaders in the community. Parents agreed that teachers who dress trendy and have noticeable body tats, off-colored hair, and body jewelry don’t look professional so it impedes their ability to respect them. Teachers in uniform would also help others to identify them when classes are on field trips and a teacher is quickly needed by a staff person at an event. Add to this that parents say if teachers wore uniforms it would reinforce that teaching is a profession and students who may be consider teaching as a career would accept uniforms as part of the job, and their identity with the school.

What I learned is teachers focused on human rights view uniforms as an assault on their individual rights. They argue that if students have the freedom to dress as they want, teachers should have the same privilege, which I agree is valid point — but only when/if appropriate professional choices are made by teachers. I’m suggesting this idea of uniformed teachers as an alternative answer to the ongoing problem of lack of respect for teachers and maintaining respectful behaviors in classrooms, and not as an all inclusive answer to the many problems facing teachers today.

So what are your thoughts? Should schools try this idea or pass on it? Do you think this could help to restore respect for teachers in general? How would you feel if you sat down with one of the teachers I described for a conference?

I welcome all comments.

Thank you for reading and thoughtful writing everyone.