SCHOOLGIRLS’ UNIFORM

Timaru Herald, Volume CXXXVII, Issue 19483, 6 May 1933, Page 11

SCHOOLGIRLS’ UNIFORM

PSYCHOLOGICAL LAW. Any mother who rebels at having to buy school uniform might help herself and her daughter by explaining to her that the wearing of school uniform is based upon psychological law (states “A Head Mistress” writing in “The Daily Telegraph”). One’s attention generally wanders from a person’s words to her clothes. A badly dressed woman unconsciously predjudices you against her, while a well-dressed one has probably set you wondering “how she does it" or made you feel envious.

Appearance affects children as much as, or even more than, adults. The dress sense is developed very early; babies are attracted by bright-coloured clothes and repelled by black. When the girl reaches school age she needs every help to enable her to concentrate on her work. Lack of concentration is the cause of many a child’s poor progress at lessons. One of the great advantages of uniform is that it does not cause distraction, either to the wearer or to her classmates.

School uniforms are hygienically made. When light-coloured “tops” are worn they give a feeling of cleanliness and are easily and frequently washed. The garments are also scientifically made, giving freedom of limb. Hanging from the shoulders, they prevent any undue pressure round the body. All this helps the free circulation of the blood in the body, including the brain, and gives that sense of freedom that is so desirable with young folk.

They are essentially comfortable working cothes and are conducive to work as much as party frocks are to merriment.

The introspective and shy girl is very much helped by not feeling peculiar or noticeable in her uniform. She feels that she is not parading her mother's taste, but is one with her schoolmates, and is thus helped to overcome her self consciousness. Uniform dress, also, does much to

prevent petty jealousy in schools. Rich mothers can afford expensive clothes and often send their children to school most expensively and unsuitably dressed. Poor mothers cannot do this. Much pain is often given to both them and their sensitive children, w'hile snobbish ideas are induced in the expensively dressed children. The uniform “levels up” the two extremes, as it also does the plain girl and the pretty girl, and those who have the dress sen~e well developed and those who are indifferent about how they look. It lessens the unpleasant tendency to pass the personal remarks which come so readily to the lips of young girls and give so much pain to the unfortunate victim. Thoughts about dress should be an out-of-school occupation, when the wearing of “mufti” can be thoroughly enjoyed and appreciated both by the girls and their mothers. In addition to the advantages to the Individual pupil, the pupils as a whole look much smarter, and any deformity in the physique is seen quickly and can be remedied at an early age.