Teacher Dress Codes

[Shannon Miller <blm98j@CHARTER.NET>]

Alice, that is a hilarious story!  Thanks for sharing!

My concern with teachers being required to dress so professionally is
especially for those who are teaching young children.  I've often been on
the floor with them at carpet time for hours during morning instruction,
then standing outside in the smoldering heat for 30 minute recess, then
painting on the tables, on my knees looking for puzzle pieces, wiping noses,
dodging vomit, bandaging skinned knees and elbows, and one school even had
us looking for lice in their hair, etc.  My point is that we are dealing
with youngsters all day long and
I've always seen that my job is more important than how I look to the other
professionals of the world.  One time I wore one of my nicer outfits to
school and one of the dry erase board markers got against it--totally ruined
it.  I took it off immediately and ran it down to our special education
washers and dryers.  We tried
everything to get it out and nothing worked.

When our school board has asked that we wear nice dresses with hose and
heels/pumps, I imagine myself sprawled out on the floor with my kids
demonstrating an activity for them and I think, "Surely these board members
never taught in a Kindergarten classroom before."  I think I might be more
inclined to dress in hose and heels if I were with the older grades and
could sit down more instead of running all over helping younger children.
It's demanding on the feet, for sure.  I do dress up when we have a special
guest at our school, but I will always see dress code as needing to lean
more toward ease of teaching rather than the world's view of "professional
appearances".  Surely there is a happy medium.

Shannon Miller
Previous K-2nd Teacher
Currently completing MLS degree
DFW, Texas

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