High school dress codes are usually described to be about professionalism and preventing distractions. Don’t get me wrong, that sounds reasonable, but in general they don’t always feel fair. A lot of the time, it seems like girls are targeted way more than boys, which makes the whole system feel biased and uncomfortable.
In schools, girls are often pulled aside for tank tops, crop tops, short shorts or exposed shoulders. Meanwhile, boys can wear sagging pants, muscle shirts or offensive graphic tees without much attention. This makes it feel like girls’ bodies are being treated as the problem, while boys aren’t held to the same standards.
People argue that dress codes stop distractions, but that raises questions. Why are girls expected to change how they dress so others can focus? Instead of blaming girls, schools should be teaching students respect and self-control. Learning how to deal with real-world situations is part of education.
Honestly it concerns me how big of a deal teachers make about dress code. Like excuse me, why are you pulling me out of class, taking away what you claim to be “precious learning time” simply because you see my stomach? Uhm hello, it’s a crop top?! Last time I checked everyone has a belly button and more importantly, everyone has a torso, so why is mine so distracting to you? In my eyes it is always the teacher who is distracted rather than the students which rubs me the wrong way because I am supposed to feel safe around you and now I just feel targeted. High school kids have normalized clothing as a way to express themselves, and they know as well as I do that crop tops are so common in everyday style for all types of people, that we don’t register it as “inappropriate” like our teachers do.
In my personal experience, I have been dress-coded or just had teachers, men and women, giving looks and making controversial comments about what I wear more times that I can count. Starting from when I was 12 years old, my body has always been pointed out significantly more than others. In 7th grade specifically I got sent to the office for my shorts being “too short” when in reality everything was covered. Not to mention the girls next to me wearing shorts with everything out, and I mean everything, and teachers never looked twice. It honestly showed me how much different people will treat you solely based on your body. The unfortunate thing is that my teachers, the adults who should be role models to their students, are the ones who heavily support and ultimately fuel the dress code controversies.
Another issue is how vague dress codes are. Words like “appropriate” or “immodest” mean different things to different people, which leads to inconsistent enforcement. One student might get dress-coded while another doesn’t, even if their outfits are similar. This just causes frustration and genuine confusion in people, not just young girls. In my opinion this tends to plant a seed in girls’ brains about their bodies–a seed that can make or break a girls’ confidence. Like imagine getting dress coded in an outfit that you have been itching to wear, you wake up excited to go to school just to show off your new clothes to your friends, just to get sent to the office and get lectured about professionalism and giving people the “wrong idea”, whatever that means because I honestly still don’t know.
I guess what I’m trying to say is dress codes themselves aren’t necessarily bad, honestly I think they are a good thing to have, but they should be fair and clear. Rules should apply equally to everyone and focus on safety and respect, not controlling students’ bodies. Until that happens, dress codes will continue to feel unfair, sexist and most importantly uncomfortable, especially to girls.
