Glisson 1

Madison Glisson
Professor Scott
MWF 8:30 Comp I
30 September 2015

Sexy and Distracting or Innocent and Getting Educated?

High schools everywhere are struggling with deciding whether or not their dress codes
are considered sexist or appropriate. In the article Enforcing school dress codes teachers girls to
be ashamed not modest written by Jessica Valenti, its an obvious assumption that she believes
the high school dress code is out of line and sexist. Young women in high school are struggling
with staying in class and finding something the dress codes consider appropriate. For the
betterment of male education, female education and the school system as a whole, I agree with
Valenti that the high school dress codes need to quit being highly sexist towards the female race,
and focus strictly on the students education.
Rather than trying to change the way that young women in high school dress, maybe
young men should focus on their school work and not young womens bodies. Self-control is not
a hard thing to accomplish, and these young men are capable of it, but they might not see it that
way. As Valenti says, Instead of mandating that girls cover their bodies or adhere to rules meant
to humiliate them, perhaps men and boys who truly can't control their gaze should be forced to
wear blindfolds when they're around women they otherwise would be distracted by (Valenti
par. 10). She went on to make the statement that we could have faith in these young men
because they are, in fact, fully formed humans with the capacity to exercise self-control (Valenti
par. 12). Maybe what Valenti has to say isnt enough, but there are many others among myself
who would agree with her. For instance, Neil Haran and Reilly Card from Spectrums opinion
article, High School Dress Codes: Sexist or Appropriate state that, If the populace of the

Glisson 2
school is truly getting distracted by their classmates wearing different clothing then why are we
not teaching our students to not objectify and over-sexualize their peers bodies instead of
punishing their classmate? (Haran par. 2). If the real problem that school systems have with the
way these young women dress is the fact that theyre distracting young men trying to learn,
then we should be punishing the young men for their lack of self-control and not staying focused
enough on their school work, because if they dont learn self-control while still in high school
where the dress code is firmly strict on what young women wear, then how will they learn selfcontrol in college where anyone, male or female, can wear just about whatever they want to?
Young women should not have to feel ashamed of their bodies because of a young mans lack of
self-control.
As a teenager in high school, young woman already struggle with self-confidence and
low self-esteem, the last thing they need to deal with is feeling ashamed of their bodies just
because the school system says so. Valenti states that, It's the season of the dress code - so
instead of teaching girls math or literature, schools are enforcing arbitrary and sexist rules that
teach them to be ashamed of their bodies Everyday school dress codes disproportionately
target, shame, and punish girls especially girls who are more developed than their peers
(Valenti par. 2). Today we are in a new day and age, young woman develop far more and faster
than generations before, those who are within the school system in charge of the dress codes.
Even the students notice how appalling the high school dress code is, as Valenti goes on to say
that, one student noted that the curvier girls were singled out a V-neck t-shirt considered
acceptable on one student was seen as absolutely scandalous on another (Valenti par. 5). Young
women should not have to feel ashamed or defined by the clothes that they choose to wear.

Glisson 3
School systems as a whole make young women feel ashamed of themselves, maybe the school
system needs to focus more on their students education rather than the clothes that they wear.
School systems in high school worry more about what young woman have to wear than
about their education for a better and brighter future. What is so shocking, or offensive, about
the bottom inch of a teenage girls thigh, or the bones below her neck? says Laura Bates from
The Guardians opinionated article, School dress codes reinforce the message that womens
bodies are dangerous (Bates par. 6). I have a hard time understanding what is so wrong with
athletic shorts on young girls when the weather is warmer, just because they dont reach the
length that your precious dress code says they should be. What is so attractive about athletic
shorts? Theyre comfortable and they keep you cool, rather than having to wear jeans and sweat
your butt off during class. That, to me, seems more distracting than showing a little leg. Haran
and Card believe that the school systems accuse young women of dressing inappropriately for
the main purpose of getting a males attention, as they go on to say, This is an extremely critical
point in the dress code debate because it suggests that instead of dressing for the purposes of
self-expression or simply feeling good in certain clothes, women dress for other students, namely
male peers. Not only is this highly inaccurate, but it blames the victim instead of holding the
other students responsible (Haran par. 2). Valenti states that, this sends a clear message about
who the schools really care about. Because truly, what's more distracting: boys and teachers
having to deal with the occasional glimpse of a girl's leg, or girls being pulled from class,
humiliated and made to change before returning? (Valenti par. 8). I certainly agree with this
point that Valenti has made, because girls get called out of class left and right for their clothing,
especially during warmer weather. If the school system focuses on nothing but what young
women have to wear, then how is anyone in the school, male or female, supposed to get a well-

Glisson 4
rounded education for a better future for themselves? The high school system needs to finally
realize that education is far more important than the inappropriate clothing that young women
choose to wear.
The high school system as a whole needs to reconsider their sexist dress codes toward
young women for the better education for both male and female students. Focusing on what
women wear should not define them, nor give young me lack of self-control as well. These
young teenage girls feel unconfident, belittled, and ashamed of themselves because of the school
system believes that the clothing they wear is distracting. Bates leaves us with the statement,
If the schools pull girls out of lessons and publicly shame them for exposing too much of their
bodies, they are only preparing them for a sexist and unfair working world in which women are
constantly judged and berated on their appearance (Bates par. 10).

Glisson 5

Works Cited
Bates, Laura. "School Dress Codes Reinforce The Message That Women's Bodies Are
Dangerous." The Guardian. Guardian, 14 Sept. 2014. Web. 27 Sept. 2015.
<http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2015/sep/10/school-dress-codes-reinforce-themessage-that-womens-bodies-are-dangerous>.
Haran, Neil, and Reilly Card. "Spectrum." : High School Dress Codes: Sexist or Appropriate?
Spectrum: West Bloomfield High School's News and Literary Magazine, 24 Feb. 2014.
Web. 27 Sept. 2015. <http://wbspectrum.com/2023/opinion/high-school-dress-codessexist-or-appropriate/>.
Valenti, Jessica. "Enforcing School Dress Codes Teaches Girls to Feel Ashamed, Not 'Modest'"
The Guardian. Guardian US, 21 May 2014. Web. 27 Sept. 2015.
<http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/may/21/school-dress-codes-girlsshame-modesty>.