Middle school students at Pottsdam Middle School in Pennsylvania can now add Uggs boots to the list of clothing items that may not be worn to school. It’s common knowledge that many schools have dress codes which prevent the wearing of some articles of clothing, such as baseball caps and extremely baggy pants, but I have never heard of a school banning a particular brand of shoes before.
According to the school, the shoes were causing problems…or more appropriately, it was the items that students were bringing into the school – hidden inside their shoes – that was causing the problems. Many students were hiding their cell phones in their furry boots and then texting during class. After several students were caught in the act, the school decided to ban the shoes in order to address the issue.
Some parents are quite upset about this new banned article of clothing. In addition to the ban being “totally ridiculous,” according to a Facebook post by a parent, some people are saying that the Ugg-ban is sexist against girls, who are the main wearers of the shoes.
“Pockets, bras, socks, what’s next?” one parent wrote on Facebook.
The winters are quite cold in Pennsylvania, so the middle school is still allowing students to wear their warm winter boots to school. When students arrive at the school doors, they must then change into shoes that stop below the ankle, such as sneakers, so that they cannot hide their cell phones.
Personally, I think the parents are reacting a little too harshly. If the students are bringing in cell phones, which are banned at many schools, then it makes sense that the items used to conceal the contraband items should be banned. However, if the shoes are banned, the students are probably going to just find another way to sneak in their cell phones. So maybe the school should just do what Jeni Alexander, another parents, suggests.
“Just take [the cell phones] when they have them in class, give them a detention, and be done with it,” she said.
All in all, I think this is a lot of trouble to go through in order to fight cell phone usage in classrooms. If the cell phones are causing the problem, then the teachers should just take the phones away during class. Or, even better, the parents should not allow their children to take their phones to school. Now there’s a novel idea.
Via 39Online.com
