Do you think that public school teachers should be allowed to wear jeans to work?

I think teachers should be able to choose for themselves. The respect that students have should be based on the fact that the teacher is an adult, an educator, and someone trying to help them succeed. How someone looks shouldn't be important.

I could see high school teachers and college professors modeling more professional attire, as they want students to understand how to dress for a job, but elementary and middle school teachers should not look intimidating to students. As adults, they're probably already commanding respect just by being in the room. I honestly can't remember most of what my teachers wore, but I can remember what they said and did.

Their pants certainly weren't as important as the fact that they cared about their students. (And by the way, I wear jeans to my "white collar" job all the time, and I consider it a moral-boosting perk of my office. ).

Most of last year, I taught in jeans. Looking back, I think that was a mistake. As others have pointed out, teachers need to be seen as authority figures, and not as friends.

This is getting more and more difficult to achieve. I have been a teacher since 1990 -- 20 years. When I first started out of course, I was young and that made being authoritative a bit difficult.

I dressed in business attire though, and that helps considerably. I got too relaxed last year, emulating the other teachers my age. They had been at the school for years though and were fixtures there.

It was my first year at that school, which is almost just like being 25 again. On a first impression, which teacher knows more about whan she is telling you?

I like the points that others have brought up about jeans possibly making teachers seem less like authority figures. I was going to suggest something like casual Fridays, but perhaps they shouldn't be allowed to wear jeans at all. In many offices, even casual Fridays still don't include denim of any kind.

Teachers should be able to wear anything that they want as long as it doesn't interrupt the sole purpose they have and that is to educate. If too provocative or inappropriate, it may deterr from thoughts on the subject and make the focus the jeans or what ever they choose to wear. Be it a joke about them or a statement on how they look good the focus should always be education.

Hope this helps!

Some teacher can and do wear jeans to work. Not all schools are really strict on wardrobe. I think the reason many don't is because jeans are informal, and teachers like to look more professional in front of their students.

Teaching is a profession that requires extra schooling and yearly upkeep of credits. Other professions that have these requirements are far more respected than teaching. Teaching is often seen as the fall back if you couldn't achieve a specific career.

This is far from the truth, as to really teach you have to not only have a passion for the topic but the interest and ability in sharing this. Consequently, if you see your job as a profession and not (as some might) a glorified babysitter, then you dress for the career. Proper attire is really important for younger teachers.

A teacher fresh out of school doesn't want to look like one of the students. They can lose clout with parents and administration. Teachers that look younger may not be able to earn respect of students in the classroom.

They might be seen as a friend rather than an figure of authority. While it's nice to think that because they frolic with students all day that they should be in jeans, this isn't the image that many teachers want to project.

Well our local schools do allow teachers and staff members to wear jeans on casual Friday. I do think its okay as they seem more relaxed, and it makes them appear more human to the kids.

I feel it's more apropriate in a College setting as everyone there knows who the teacher is and people aren't pushing the authority issue. In HS I guess it would be OK for some of the older teachers as other people pointed out young teachers would blend to much with the kids and it would be hard for Parents who are older then you to take a corrective remark towards their child.

I don't see any reason that they shouldn't except that it may lessen the authority that should be presenting. By seeing teachers in casual dress, students may not see them in the same manner they do now. This could place teachers in a more relaxed mind set, and could break down a bit of their needed professionalism.

I always was shocked when I saw my teachers outside of school, at the grocery store or in another relaxed setting. I saw them differently. I would also be concerned with a teacher taking this lenient dress code too far, tight jeans or saggy jeans, or worse.

It could also bridge the gap that many teachers face relating to students. By seeing them as people, and not only a teacher, they may have students opening up a bit more and becoming more comfortable when dealing with difficult issues.

For some reason I can only see teachers in a more office casual look. Maybe it is because we want to present them as responsible professional adults and not cool people. I think this puts them in a good light for the young people they teach.

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