Introduction:
Summarizing the main theme of article “Appearances Are Destructive” and giving an objective briefing about the whole paper. Mainly trying to simplify the author’s words and transforming the whole page of twelve paragraphs into one.
I. Looks matters much more than grades
A. the importance of appearances
B. misjudgment of parental love
II. Uniforms or not
A. the necessity of uniforms
B. disapproval of the author’s subjectivity
III. Students’ inner voice of uniforms
A. an example of the uniforms in my high school
B. adults’ unconcern attitude toward dressing
Conclusion: School policies on uniforms
A. Designing through our hands
B. Combination with famous brands
Let Go Of the Regular Clothes
Summary Response
Introduction:
The author of the article, Mark Mathabane, has very strong view toward the clothing at school in today’s society. He points out that dress code could both protect the students from school violence and promote their knowledge on learning. While uniforms mark each of the students as an equal, they’re also less of a distraction among the teens, since students are wearing the same items and there is nothing to compare with. The author made some judgments about the American education system combining negative experiences of his sisters. He spoke of how his sister got transferred from South Africa to one of the American public schools which he had great expectations on. The public school seemed well-equipped and modern, spawning lunch programs, fresh new textbooks and dedicated teachers. Mark felt that the American students have all the benefits that other children could only dream about. But still, the studying environment failed him, due to the dress codes. Students cared much more about their appearances than knowledge, clothes with no brands were abandoned to dumpsters, so were the poor families who couldn’t afford to buy luxury accessories. The parents who didn’t dress their kids in the latest fashion were even considered cruel and unemotional by the others. In the end of the article, Mark Mathabane stated that the Americans should wake up in order to realize that education and the safety of kids are ought to be placed above the dress codes.
I. Looks are of privileges to grades
Out of concern for his sisters, Mark started visiting other public schools and asking all around the neighborhood about the situation they encountered. What he found was that the phenomenon was well-known to many others and not at all rare; some families were even the victims themselves. It bothered him very much that the students seemed to be more familiar with the names of popular brands rather than the titles of famous literary classics. They even use it as a measure of parental love: the more bucks mommies and daddies are willing to spend, the deeper is the love. Furthermore, due to this kind of childish competition, poor children were forced to involve in gangs, drugs selling or illegal activities just to earn money to buy expensive clothes if they want to be respected, which resulted in an endless number of news about kids turning bad, fighting in mobs, youth robberies and teen addicts every day. This kind of negative social trend had been circulating round and round but nobody seems to be willing to do a thing. Not only did it spread across the United States, it’s also starting to affect many others around the globe. And it just started up from some kids who had the wrong ideas about appearances and clothing. This might sound ridiculous, but I think not only Mark, but we should also start to worry about the consequences of this phenomenon: what if it carried on to the next generation? Therefore, the simplest way that Mark came up was to bring back the typical dress codes of uniforms. He suggested that if the children are plundered of their freedom to wear anything they want, the riot may cease. Dress codes can restore the school’s order, but only until then is it possible to provide the future generation a better learning environment. Mr. Mathabane pointed out many times that American schools should admit that dress codes could get the students to focus on their work, while bringing more benefits of safe and effective learning than the freedom of expression.
II. Uniforms can be indispensable
In my opinion, I agree with Mark’s first point that the freedom of expression is affecting the relationships and studying atmosphere between students. If the teenagers are really of what he said: caring about one’s look rather than focusing on homework, it’s a must that some school policies need to be changed and altered. Let along that the trend has been spreading and affecting all of the other educates! The last thing we want to see is more and more people turning into idiotic narcissists with low IQ. The author’s example about his sisters’ experience is also very pitiful. It’s always cruel to encounter this kind of situation at such a young age, therefore can we truly understand Mark’s determination to set out to find a cure for the society’s sickness. This reminded of Taiwan’s schooling dress codes: most schools starting from elementary school to high school, some kindergartens included have their own uniforms. Some even have two types of clothing, one for class and the other one for exercise. In this case students focus on their work and outdoor activities. We put on our uniform in the morning without sparing time to think about wearing what pants and what T-shirt, some private schools even banned the accessories like rings and necklaces, which made the dressing ups much easier. Although students tend to do weird adjustments to their uniforms in order to stay unique, the expenses and the amount they can change are low. We can’t blame the teens for wanting to stand out a bit among their peers, since the time of junior high and high school is all about conformity and building our own confidence from other’ respect. At least the dress codes in Taiwan seem to be pretty affective since there haven’t been too many news about how “kids are participating in illegal activities only to earn clothes’ of brands” heard so far. Colleges and universities are exceptions and I think it’s the time the school system trusts us with ourselves. Most of the college students are 20, reaching the age of a full grown man/woman who can vote legally and drive a car. But it also means to take full responsibility of our own and the law. I think it’s great that the school trusts us with such freedom as we’re leaving the educational system and entering the real society of jobs and adults in just a few years. If we can’t even handle this simple kind of challenge, how are we going to survive outside the campus? I guess that’s also why school governors and professors seldom interfered in students’ business, as long as you don’t violate the school rules or flunk a class. I think most of the Taiwanese students appreciate the trust and try to live up to the expectations. And take my own experiences as an example; dress codes can make a school of students much more concentrate on their studies just as Mark said. Indeed, the Americans should really consider performing some changes. But on the other hand I disagree in part with Mark’s second point that all the social disorders are evolving from the ignorance of dress codes. In that case the USA would have become a peaceful and perfect country simply by putting the uniform policy back into use. I think the author spoke a little too subjectively by calling all of the American schools the “equally bad”, no matter the ones with or without uniforms comparing to the schools they used to go in South Africa. And even if the schools over there have no issues over uniforms, but how could Mr. Mathabane be sure that there are no other bigger and more serious problems beside the dress codes? What I am trying to say is that the American schools may have its own flaws but it’s wrong of the author to criticize them while comparing it with the South African schools and speaking of it as if in perfection. A writer of an article should never be so subjective, even if he’s sharing a real life example or some individual experiences.
III. Younger minds speak of uniforms
But to see the whole event from the point of view of an American student who’s been bonded by the school rule of uniforms: I guess I would oppose it for the sake of disagreement. I remembered the time back in high school life when we were forced to wear some dorky uniforms five days a week with a belt and tug-in shirt. Students were always looking for opportunities to pull out the bottom of their shirts from the pants. But while we do that, the uniforms act like a symbol reminding us that we belong in the big family and it felt honorary to be a part of the school. In that case, even though uniforms limited our freedom of wearing whatever we want, it gives you what we craved the most at the age: acknowledgement from school, class, and the pupils. But the situation of American students seemed to be a whole lot different, supposing that I’m one of them and have been given the right to wear vests, Hawaiian shorts and even slippers to school until just now, when all of a sudden the school announced that these privileges are being taken off and we need to put on some unified clothes of the school. Needless to say, all of the students will go nuts and burst out of rage, including me. It will be useless and a lot of effort to reason with a bunch of angry, crazy and rebellious brats. Forcing the rule on them only makes the situation worse because they’re feeling abandoned and distrusted at the moment. The kind of honor toward the school will also be lost in the process, so is the existence of centripetal force between one another. And when people graduate, they leave no pleasant memories behind and never come back to visit, and I think the school will be officially dead then. What we often ignore is that: a small aspect of life is capable of making a huge difference. Through a lot of Internet searches of adults’ opinion toward the free will of dressing at schools, most of them show an attitude of disagreement and disdain. They approved of the ways of uniforms but refused and considered it a waste of time to go into a further discussion of how, why and what. So how can the situation be resolved if everyone is too lazy and ignorant to even think about it? Uniforms may solve the problem of children trying to compare cloths and bags of brands with one another, which can possibly result in a lower youth criminal rate. But what the American schools really need is a way or a policy to persuade their students to put on the unified outfits without receiving complaints, grudges and not at all by force. For the starter, we should stop the passiveness toward this issue and lend our hands to wherever in need.
Conclusion:
One of the solutions is to hold a poll for pupils’ opinions of the style of uniforms that’s acceptable; if the results come from their own voting, they tend to be more acceptable, it’s also a great idea to ask the students to design the uniform themselves. The thing is, as long as the students felt respected and their opinions concerned by the school, they are willing to calm down and listen, only then can the problems be solved. However, some experts and intellectuals may find it unnecessary and out-of-minded to take the students’ feeling into concern, let along giving the kids the rights to design their own uniforms: the schools make their own policies and all of the ones who enroll ought to obey. But just like Mark said, what we want is to give our children a healthy educational environment and if we want them to learn how to respect, we should respect them in the first place. The schools can make sure that the uniforms being designed meet their standards; I think it’s a beneficial way for both the educators and the educated.
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