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Should Schools Be Allowed to Enforce Rules About Tight Pants?
December 1st, 2011
Photography by Lululemon.com
How do you feel about school uniforms? What about school dress codes? Bans on hats? Rules about, well, yoga pants?
One look at Twitter this afternoon and you can see that parents have a lot to say about the dress code at St. Joseph Catholic High School in Ottawa, which is making headlines due to a reported ban on yoga pants. According to the school’s code of conduct and their dress code, in addition to rules about bare midriffs, tube tops and spaghetti straps, it states in bold letters that leggings that are not covered by shorts or a skirt of acceptable length are not permitted. (We can’t help but note that the rules say absolutely nothing about yoga pants specifically, but instead talk about form-fitting leggings.) These rules are not new, they are just becoming more strictly enforced.
They’re also stirring up a lot of emotions. The issue has sparked some very interesting conversations in the parent community online about who gets to decide what is inappropriate to wear to school, about whether responsibility lies with the school or with the parents, and whether dress code rules actually create a better learning environment for students.
According to the National Post, one angry mother, Kathie Cloutier, wrote a letter to the school board and then took her opinions to Facebook, saying: “Why is the emphasis not more on my daughter’s actual education rather than what pants she’s wearing? Does our school system really have nothing better to do than come up with more reasons to make students rebel? It seems to me that schools seem to concentrate more on ‘appearances’ rather than what they are actually there for—to teach our children. Enough is enough already—please just worry about teaching my child rather than turning them off of attending school by imposing ridiculous bans such as this one.”
Do you think the rule against students wearing tight-fitting pants is fair? Or should schools be more worried about academics, and less worried about banning balls, forcing French on the playground and busting kids for wearing leggings as pants?
Copyright © 2012 St. Joseph Media. All Rights Reserved.
I think that banning yoga pants is ridiculous, but I agree with not allowing a bare midriff. Walk into a clothing store and try to find a pair of pants — yoga or not — that isn’t tight. Good luck, even a pant with a wide leg is tight up top. All of this could be avoided by having kids wear school uniforms in both elementary and secondary schools. This way kids are less concerned about what they (and their peers) are wearing and can focus on their studies.
Schools ARE focused on academics. Just because a simple reminder about dress code was made doesn’t mean they aren’t. This just seems like a desperate attempt to get people riled up, or at the very least a red herring argument. I can’t wear yoga pants to work, but that doesn’t mean my company isn’t focused on its business success.
I live right down the road from this school and it should be noted that the school has not BANNED yoga pants, it is simply following dress code requirements that were put in place BY THE SCHOOL BOARD that form fitting pants and leggings also be worn with a skirt or a long shirt. Nobody has ever said the students cannot wear yoga pants, they simply must ensure that they are doing so in a way that is respectful and appropriate for a school environment. Dress codes are not new to these students as all schools have them and they have been obligated to follow them from moment they started Kindgarten.
Alicia – Thank you for your voice of reason! I’m a local too :)
Umm i agree with sandy, good luck finding pants yoga or not that’s not tight up top! my JEANS show off my butt and are just as tight as my yoga pants, not to mention kids are allowed to wear skinny jeans which in most cases are tighter then yoga pants. But also from a friends experience, uniforms are not the answer for some students. The lack of freedom makes kids want to push the limit which will end up creating more of a problem. And from a few people i know a dull “black and white” enviroment causes them loss of focus due to bordom and their grades/productivity levels slip.