[Sample APA Paper] To Wear or Not Wear Uniforms
This is the Introduction Part
School uniforms have increasingly become a popular trend among schools around the
world. In countries such as Japan and the UK, wearing of uniforms has been an enduring
tradition dating back as far as 19th century (Namba, 2018). However, in countries such as the US
and Germany, there has been no significant history of wearing school uniforms. Parents and even
children disagree with the enforcement of school uniforms, arguing that uniforms curtail their
freedom of self-expression (Spring, 2016). This depicts the misconception that exists regarding
school uniforms. Uniforms could be a form of imposition on students, but they neither limit their
self-expression, nor their ability to learn. Wearing uniforms to schools is advisable because it
allows schools an opportunity to develop common values and other cultural aspects which
facilitate learning.
The Body Starts here…
In countries without school uniform wearing culture, the basis of rejecting such cultures
is that uniforms deny students their right to expression. Uniforms are regarded as impositions on
children, which should not be the case (Spring, 2016). Students have multiple other ways of selfexpression such as the accessories they wear, the people to socialize with, hair style, and even
the cultural or academic groups to join. Moreover, in most school uniform wearing schools,
students can make any design of their uniforms without violating the dressing code adopted. For
example, in Japan, seifuku or uniforms for girls can be designed in any style provided they
maintain the common model, such as colors, adopted by the school (Namba, 2018). Therefore,
students wearing uniforms also exercise invaluable freedom and self-expression. There lacks
evidence-based assertion that casual wearing is facilitative of the learning of a student as is the
universal goal of schools and learning centers.
However, school uniforms are identified as facilitating the development of a common
culture among students. This commonness does not inhibit the diversity of students’ personal
values, but it enhances the ability of students to acknowledge their oneness in learning. Baumann
& Krskova (2016) claim school districts wearing uniforms report fewer cases of bullying
because bullies mostly mock their fellow students based on their dressing code. Therefore, the
targets of bullies are minimized when students wear similar clothing. When students wear
uniforms, the school environment is more formal and likely to be bullies-free.
Moreover, considering that countries such as the US have significant income disparities,
uniforms continue to be regarded as an essential aspect which would reduce the acuteness of the
differences in socioeconomic classes among children (Spring, 2016). Typically, the children
from higher socioeconomic classes would wear casuals that depict their scales of privileges. The
children from lower socioeconomic classes would not afford to wear such casuals. These social
classes are evened by school uniforms because children would wear similar models and colors of
clothes from the same retailers dealing in school uniforms (Baumann & Krskova, 2016). It would
not be easy to determine in which social class someone is, and this would enhance the
commonness of students to make learning their primary goal.
This is the Conclusion Part
A comparative review of the value of school uniforms demonstrate that they enhance the
commonness of students and make them focus on learning. School districts without school
uniforms might experience cases of indiscipline, such as bullying and inappropriate dressing
codes, more than schools wearing uniforms. This alone can further enhance the ability of
students to learn. Schools uniforms also eliminate social classes and students make education
their primary focus. Even if uniforms are termed as inhibiting the freedom of students to express
themselves, a more thorough review demonstrates that even uniform-wearing students have other
ways of self-expression. Overall, it seems more arguable regarding the need for students
wearing school uniforms.
References
Baumann, C., & Krskova, H. (2016). School discipline, school uniforms and academic
performance. International Journal of Educational Management. 30(6), pp. 10031029. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJEM-09-2015-0118
Namba, T. (2018). School Uniform Reforms in Modern Japan. In Fashion, Identity, and Power
in Modern Asia (pp. 91-113). Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3319-97199-5_5
Spring, J. (2016). Deculturalization and the struggle for equality: A brief history of the education
of dominated cultures in the United States. Routledge.