School Uniforms have been a hot debate for quite some time. One side argues that requiring school uniforms will diminish peer pressure when it comes to making clothing choices and it will be easier for students to get ready in the morning by eliminating the need to select an outfit for the day. The other side of the argument states that requiring school uniforms restricts the freedom of students and that the cost of uniforms is often more of a financial burden then buying "street" clothes for everyday wear. The first article, from pbs.com entitled "School Uniforms", is a very convincing article because it includes the testimonies from students supporting the notion that school uniforms make life much easier for them. The article then goes on to show the prevalence of school uniforms and how more and more schools are electing to implement this policy. Finally, this article offers a concession to the other side which strengthens the pro-uniform argument.
The second article from Buzzle.com entitled "Facts Against School Uniforms" was much more difficult to read than the previous article. Arguing against school uniforms, this article was very informative but I found myself getting distracted by the grammatical errors instead of focusing on the author's main points. Although there were many errors, the main points were addressed and the arguments were valid.
If I hadn't have had an opinion before reading these two articles, I would have sided with the first one because it was far easier to read and the arguments were listed in a logical fashion. However, I personally do not support school uniform policy because it limits the rights of the students. Adults are trying to encourage students to behave in a mature manner and it is impossible for students to grow and learn to make healthy choices if all of their decisions are made by adults.
