Can Uniforms Really Help Our Schools?

Any discussion regarding the implementation of uniforms in public schools typically begins with the perceived benefits of those uniforms. These benefits run the spectrum from making schools safer to improving self-esteem to boosting school spirit. The two benefits most frequently heard, however, are that school uniforms will decrease violence in schools, and that they will improve academic performance. These arguments are the ones most frequently being used by the Osceola School Board, with the violence issue being coupled with a supposedly alarming rise in gang violence at our schools.

On the surface, it appears that these claims are accurate. The City of Long Beach, California was one of the first to implement a wide-spread uniform policy. The results appeared miraculous: assaults dropped by 67%, vandalism by 82%, and robberies by 35%. President Clinton was so impressed by these results that he discussed it in his 1996 State of the Union address: "If it means that teenagers will stop killing each other over designer jackets, then our public schools should be able to require their students to wear uniforms."

These results, however, turned out to be wrong. Drs. David L. Brunsma and Kerry A. Rockquemore of the University of Notre Dame conducted the first empirical study of the effectiveness of school uniforms. They found that, at the time that uniforms were being implemented in Long Beach, there were a number of other programs also being implemented, including a $1 million grant from the Edna McConnell Clark Foundation for the improvement of teaching methods. They concluded that, while uniforms were the most visible change, it appeared likely that the improvements seen were most likely the result of the other programs.
Their final conclusion regarding uniforms:

“Our findings indicate that student uniforms have no direct effect on substance use, behavioral problems or attendance.”

If uniforms don't help to curb violence, then maybe they at least help improve academic achievement. The Brunsma study covered this as well, and found that, instead of improving achievement, the schools with uniforms actually saw a decrease in test scores:

"A negative effect of uniforms on student academic achievement was found."

Brunsma was not the only study on the benefits of uniforms. In 1998, the Educational Testing Service published Order In The Classroom by Paul E. Barton et al. Barton concluded:

“The notions that school uniforms and zero tolerance for gangs would reduce school disorder and consequently improve student academic performance were not supported.”

Finally, our neighbor to the north, the Orange County School Board, conducted its own study in which it compared its schools (with no uniforms) to similar schools in Polk County (with mandatory uniforms). They found:

"...there is no significant evidence that uniforms impact academic achievement or crime or violence."

A thorough review of the other literature regarding school uniforms has failed to turn up a single study that shows school uniforms have any positive benefit whatsoever on academic achievement or discipline.

Thus, the answer to the question, "Can uniforms really help our schools?" must be a resounding "NO!"

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An excellent article discussing the points above, plus some of the legal pitfalls of restrictive uniform policies, is School Uniforms: The Raging Debate by Darlene Williams.