School Uniform and its significance

School Uniform and its significance

 

One very common feature of primary and secondary schools in Nigeria and most parts of the world today is the existence of school uniforms for students. There is hardly any school, especially in Nigeria at this level, whose students wear ‘mufti’ to school. However, the tertiary level –Polytechnics, Colleges of Education and the University___ the students are relieved of the burden of having to wear uniform to school.

As there are many primary and secondary schools, so are there various uniforms: plain, dull, cool, bright, flamboyant, etc. The variety is as picturesque as they are interesting. Whatever the type used by a school, the initiator has a reason for choosing it.

One thing is clear; what we wear affects our psychology positively or negatively. What we wear in terms of choice of colour and material of the uniform, etc. It also affects our productivity; for example, a lady that is wearing a nylon armless blouse in a cold weather and a young man wearing English suite with a tie on a sunny day. So before choosing a school uniform certain factors should be put into consideration. Some of them are:

i)              Always consider the material or fabric vis-à-vis our tropical weather condition here in Africa. Also consider the fabrics and examine if it is too light, thick or transparent for our weather condition. You should also find out if it is durable and easy to wash.

ii)             Consider the colour of the fabric: As we said earlier, the colour you wear affects your psychology which in turn affects your productivity.

iii)          The uniform must be modern and well sown and the students must look smart in them.

iv)           It must fit the wearer: Students are not masquerades.

v)            It must be designed to be friendly to our tropical weather-not exposing the students to cold or heat.

 

What is the significance of school uniform?

 

i)              School uniform gives a school an identity. The public identifies your school through your uniform. If for instance a fight is going on in the street, we will know the school involved. We also identify clean and dirty students, crude and polished students and those that usually hang out till late at cyber cafes, and all that.

 

ii)             A student in a school uniform is an ambassador of that school. Whatever he/she does is attributed to the school.