Schools which insist on a uniform policy tend to segregate them according to gender. It is unlikely that boys will wear girls' uniforms due to the risk of bullying. However, if they made it compulsory for boys to wear girls' uniforms and vice versa, this would lead to several advantages. Firstly, it would undermine gender stereotypes. Secondly, it would make it less likely that men would develop fetishes for girls' uniforms as adults, making it easier for them to establish relationships by becoming blase about them through habituation. Thirdly, it would make bullying less likely, because all the boys would look completely ridiculous and it would make it more difficult to pick on people because of their appearance. Fourthly, i strongly suspect girls' uniforms are more comfortable than boys'.-- nineteenthly, Nov 29 2007 searle http://www.lambiek....earle_trinians1.gif<sigh> my old school [po, Nov 29 2007] uniform http://lauriekendri...com/2007/09/gay.jpg [xandram, Nov 29 2007] Less likely skirt wearing bullies. http://image.guardi...3/braveheart460.jpg [2 fries shy of a happy meal, Dec 02 2007] //Firstly, it would undermine gender stereotypes.//Such as the stereotypes that boys have different uniforms from girls, and that boys would not be bullied by girls?-- angel, Nov 29 2007 OK, i'll go back to my original idea, which is that they swap uniforms. The trouble with making either optional is that probably what would happen is that the girls would sometimes wear their "own" and sometimes the boys, but the boys would just carry on wearing their "own" uniforms, so not much would change.-- nineteenthly, Nov 29 2007 Which answers precisely neither of my points.-- angel, Nov 29 2007 OK: duly edited. How about now?-- nineteenthly, Nov 29 2007 Nineteenthly Comprehensive School broke records this year following a new uniform policy. It is the first non-fee charging school to ever have 100% of parents withdraw their children and instigate transfers within the same year.-- vincevincevince, Nov 29 2007 I'm assuming here that your references to "their own" uniforms means that girls wear skirts and boys wear trousers. That is gender stereotyping. As far as boys' uniforms go, it is also largely true, but not in respect of girls' uniforms; indeed, there have been cases where schools' uniform policy has been challenged on exactly that basis.-- angel, Nov 29 2007 You should have stuck with the title but left out the subtitle and the body. It would have raised a few eyebrows but attracted less bones.-- wagster, Nov 29 2007 Kilts?
If everyone removed all clothing, would that mean no stereotyping? Or would it be possible to say "The boys are the ones with the dicks?"-- Ling, Nov 29 2007 Cool, [angel]'s back, hello!
I thought uniforms were enforced in order to crack down on bullying in the first place? ie. kids can't take the mick out of "uncool" clothes, everyone having to wear the same.
Apart from shoes.-- theleopard, Nov 29 2007 [angel], yes it is gender stereotyping, but it applies to school dress codes generally. I would be surprised if an English state school had skirts for boys anywhere, although i can imagine a Scottish public school might require kilts.
To avoid the transfer problem, it could be made a national policy.-- nineteenthly, Nov 29 2007 Kids will always bully other kids. If they don't have a reason, they'll find or create one. Your idea would lead to boys taunting other boys for having skinny knees, razor stubble or the wrong underpants. Girls will still pick on each other for being too skinny, too fat or too slutty.
Eventually the switch will lead to the opposite gender stereotype: girls wear trousers, boys wear skirts.-- Noexit, Nov 29 2007 Girls uniforms already accomodate three sexes:
Oral Vaginal/Anal Podophilia (apart from the shoes) -- 4whom, Nov 29 2007 So, crossdressing will stop bullying? Sorry, but WTFISHBONE? I have nothing against crossdressing, actually doing it in the past for dares and stuff, but it doesn't seem like a viable solution to most of the problems you have talked about. And anyways, girls usually use the boy's uniforms at many schools as [angel] pointed out. So, in essence, you want males to crossdress. I belive crossdressing as a punishment is called "Petticoat Punishment", although I could be wrong. So, [after eighteenthly], you now have an intresting idea without an actual problem to solve correctly. Please, if I am mistaken about any of this, do respond.-- Shadow Phoenix, Nov 29 2007 Petticoat punishment is an actual punishment. A boy has done something someone in a position of power wants no-one under their power to do, so they do something which they believe to be humiliating to a single individual (or a small group) which they have singled out. If all boys are wearing dresses and they have done nothing wrong, it will not be perceived as a punishment. It would only work as as one if the general consensus was that females were inferior.
I was about to say that i have also crossdressed, but in fact i haven't because that would be a concession to the idea that there are women's and men's clothes. To a small extent this is true. For instance, men generally have little use for bras and women for codpieces. I would like to encourage an attitude in society which is blind to gender with respect to clothing, among other things.
If there's a problem, it's that attitude, and this idea might help solve that problem. I'm not too comfortable with the idea of it being compulsory, but i also very much doubt it would happen if it wasn't.-- nineteenthly, Nov 29 2007 I can't help thinking there's an underlying fetish motivating this idea...
//i strongly suspect girls' uniforms are more comfortable than boys'//
strongly suspect, do you, Glen or Glenda?-- globaltourniquet, Nov 29 2007 To be honest, i feel a little peculiar about this suggestion myself, not so much because of a fetishistic element as because actually i totally agree with you, [rcarty], and my solution for my own children was to home educate them. I see a lot of children who have come out of school because of bullying, and i myself was bullied, actually by the teachers more than the children. Even so, i found school a welcome escape from a rather dysfunctional family life.
[xandram], you make me smile. I don't think i could pull that off at my age!-- nineteenthly, Nov 29 2007 I'm glad you smiled, I was only being funny, staying neutral with my vote.-- xandram, Nov 29 2007 //I see the problem here as uniformity. That individuals can be bullied into uniformity by schools. //
//Almost dialectical materially ... large support systems are attacking small support systems//
If the second of these observations is true, which I believe it is, isn't it desirable that the "apex group" should be the one run by (usually) responsible adults (namely, the school itself), and not one run by irresponsible dominant children?-- pertinax, Nov 30 2007 [bobofthefuture], that intrigues me as to what you do for a living, and also, clearly there is empathy there. One thing i don't understand about kilts as school uniform is the issue of tartan. Would the school have its own tartan? Otherwise it wouldn't be a uniform.
I think there's a phase of ingrained oppressive culture, among boys at least, i can't speak for girls, at a particular age in schools which is self-perpetuating. Boys often grow out of it, but others grow into it, and it's sometimes maintained by bullying. In the case of the teachers, some of them are generally disillusioned with the educational system, and those are often supportive and good (e.g. charismatic, enthusiastic and on the children's side), but others are trying to keep their authority at all costs and this damages their relationship and attitude to the children. I suppose it depends on what kind of ethos is dominant at the school, whether the adults are likely to be helpful or harmful.-- nineteenthly, Nov 30 2007 So. Many. Damn. Bones. Can't. Help. But. Be. Contrary. [+] *Snicker*-- xxobot, Dec 02 2007 So, there's an autobunner as well, and he appears to be Captain Kirk, or maybe Captain Nemo.
Hello [xxobot], i haven't heard from you before.-- nineteenthly, Dec 02 2007 [+] just another contrarian.
What about Male School Uniforms for Both Sexes? So much less drafty, and most of the girls are going around in pants anyway... skin tight pants... *drools*-- afinehowdoyoudo, Dec 02 2007 [iron_horse], your comment leads me to do three things:
Wonder what your gender is.
Wonder what your sexual orientation is.
Look down at what i'm wearing on my lower half.-- nineteenthly, Dec 02 2007 You could have a garment somewhat like a clerical cassock, or a monk's habit (which we won't go in to). They are practial, gender free and remarkably warm and comfortable.
It will be easy to sell the idea to the lads as "Jedi robes" ....-- 8th of 7, Dec 03 2007 This is bizzare in two respects:
1. Eh? This just seems wierd 2. But thinking about it briefly, it's not that odd an idea, why hasn't this been suggested before?
Neutral Vote-- Germanicus, Dec 03 2007 // learn to respect individuality and diversity //
That's the ideal. However, the objective of most schools seems to be to crush the spirit of the young and enthusiastic, and prepare them for the real world by twisting them into bitter, misanthropic little clones of their teachers, especially Geography teachers. Bastards.-- 8th of 7, Dec 07 2007 oh, I've missed your acerbic little wisdoms.-- po, Dec 07 2007 On the other hand, you could argue that because the purpose of schools is to screw people up, cross-dressing shouldn't be allowed because it would be instrumental in counteracting it.-- nineteenthly, Dec 07 2007 //...fetishes for girls' uniforms...i strongly suspect girls' uniforms are more comfortable than boys'.//Hah! I agree with wagster--all you needed was the title. A + for that.-- ldischler, Dec 07 2007 random, halfbakery