Review: Niche.com "Dress Codes Growing in Style at U.S. Schools"

High School dress codes are a topic of debate among parents and school administrators, and the article “Dress Codes Growing in Style at U.S. Schools” explores the use of dress code and uniforms in U.S. public schools. On the surface this article seems to be balanced because it presents the pros and cons of school dress codes and school uniforms, but with a closer look it does skew in favor of dress codes.

The article presents dress codes as reasonable middle ground between no dress code of any kind and school uniforms. “With all of the trouble that comes with dress codes, many schools are opting for school uniforms.” (Niche). The uniforms are presented, in this paragraph, as a stricter alternative to dress codes. Combined with the “Common Dress Code Rules” above it, the dress codes are presented as a happy medium between no dress code and uniforms.

On the other hand, the article employs scare tactics to gain support for dress codes. “On April 20, 1999, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold opened fire on their school in Littleton, Colo., killing 12 students and one teacher before turning their guns on themselves. After this tragedy, people looked for answers and soon were drawn to the behaviors of Harris and Klebold, including their clothing, which consisted of trench coats with pockets deep enough for weaponry.” (Niche). The article describes what happened during the Columbine School shooting before saying that their clothing is to blame for what they did.

The article presents all of this information, before finally ending the article throwing its support behind dress codes. It heads the support with the title "The Bottom Line", this phrasing implies that no matter what the opposition says, dress codes are still the way to go. “But with schools searching for better security methods in an effort to maintain control, dress codes are sometimes the smallest and easiest form of defense.” (Niche). At the end of the article, this sentence guides readers into seeing dress codes as a good thing to have on public school campuses.

The article from Niche.com presents itself as a balanced source for information, but with its scare tactics and blatant support at the end of the article, it obviously supports dress codes. Overall, this article is credible with its information, but it does skew in favor of dress codes.

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Works Cited

Niche. “Dress Codes Growing in Style at U.S. Schools.” Niche, 12 Apr. 2017, www.niche.com/blog/dress-codes-growing-in-style-at-u-s-schools/.