"Tuck in That Shirt" Tina Seretta

The article “Tuck in That Shirt” by Edward Morris describes the relationship between race, class, and gender.  While many schools strive to diminish these socially constructed differences, the majority ends up “reproducing and even exaggerating” these inequalities.  This article focuses on the studies preformed at Matthews Middle School located in Texas. The research gathered from these studies shows how bodily display and behavior correspond directly to racial stereotyping. The importance of dress code and the ability for teachers to gain a sense of control through the enforcement of this rule is only one reason that supports the benefit of having a dress code. By having a dress code schools try to groom all of their students into the same physical appearance.  By adhering to this form of neatness and proper dress the kids are taught to prepare for similar types of dress and the sense of order often seen in the white-collar business world.

I found this interesting because I could relate it to my life experiences in school. In middle school I attended a private boarding school that was racially diverse but not diverse in class and social status. There were kids from all over the world, and the youngest started boarding there as early as third grade. We had a specific uniform for Mondays (tan pants, white collared shirt, and school blazer) but the rest of the week we were allowed to wear any collard shirt and nice pants with dress shoes. This was interesting because there was no differentiation between race and appearance because all the kids belonged to the same class and social status. In the article the teachers and school officials “interpreted types of clothing as gang related when worn by Latino boys”. The common example of this was baggy Dickie branded pants.  When teachers encountered Latino students wearing these pants in combination with exhibiting opposition and bad behavior in the classroom, the teachers made the assumption that they were dangerous and possibly affiliated with a gang. The teachers labeled these students as “bad” However, the Pakistani student that wore baggy dickies and expressed the same disruptive behaviors would not be considered “bad” simply because he was not Latino, therefore he did not pose as a threat. The teachers assumed certain judgments according to the race of the child. In my middle school this did not happen, kids of all races dressed and behaved exactly alike because we all came from middle and upper class families. The school stresses the importance of a diverse, international, and multi-cultural student body, but how can this be possible if the education is only available to a small percent of families who can afford it. Because class was an equalizer among the students, race and racial differences became somewhat invisible. Dressing in a more neat and formal way was not foreign to the kids at my middle school because they most likely came from wealthy families that have a strong sense of cultural capital. However the kids in the Mathews school often came from families who lived in poor and working-class areas. They may not have been introduced these middle/upper-class mainstream behavioral and appearance norms. When the kids are asked to follow a specific dress code, there is a stronger sense of resistance to the symbolic order.

I also saw a similar pattern in high school. I went to NMH, a boarding private high school.  NMH is very different than most private schools. The school preaches liberal views, its student body is diverse, and the school has almost no dress code.  What is most interesting about the lack of dress code rules is that the majority of students choose to dress nicely.  On exam days many of the students would “dress to impress” by wearing suits or fancy business wear in order to convey the hope for academic success. This is the same mantra of success Edward Morris describes in his article.

Lastly, I found the interview with Derek very interesting; his views pose interesting questions for school officials. Derek explains that to him the “uniforms make the kids feel like prisoners”. He further explains that because everyone looks alike and follows the same strict schedule, schools mimic a prisonlike atmosphere. The teachers would argue that by putting kids in a uniform and stripping them of their initial tendencies to dress like gangsters or hoochie-mamas will in the end keep kids out of jail and help them gain social mobility. Who is correct here? By enforcing dress code rules are we actually helping them, or are we taking away their sense of freedom of expression?