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What Teachers Should Never (Ever!) Wear
Kayla Baxter, Anna Hennings, and Alice Handley | Monster
We hate to admit it, because we personally feel that clothes shouldn’t matter. In a perfect world, a person would be judged at their workplace based solely on the caliber of their work. Unfortunately, that’s not how the world works.
How you choose to dress each morning reflects how you feel about your job – that you take your position seriously, that you are ready to work and that you pay attention to detail and know what you expect to encounter that day. You wouldn’t go to a construction site in your favorite four-inch stilettos, right? Of course not, you’d go in a hard hat, because it’s appropriate for the situation. Appearances matter!
We’ve all been there, though. The days you wake up feeling sick, but still have to make it into the office, so you throw on any old thing that’s (kind of ) clean.
Regardless of the excuses, there are some things that professionals should just never wear. Ever.
We’ll show you what these things are, why they’re a terrible wardrobe choice and if you’re guilty of having one in your closet – or (gasp!) in your daily rotation – we’ll give you a much better alternative.
And for your men out there who are teachers: this article is geared towards women since we know you probably don’t care as much about fashion as females do!
MATEJASMOLAR
5 months ago
62 comments
Those are not the official rules, are they?
So, they cannot be broken, can they.
Josef
5 months ago
2 comments
If anyone thinks this list is useless, it means you're breaking the rules and you just can't see it. I've worked in a variety of schools and offices, and I see these rules, including the face tattoos (I've heard them called tenure tats, since you now can't be fired for it), broken on a daily basis. This list needs to be printed in its 26 page entirety and hung in every teacher's workroom and office in America! Loved it!
jisomerville
5 months ago
6 comments
Since I already adhere to many, if not all of these 'don'ts," this article was not as helpful to me as I had hoped it would be. I would like to see more informative articles posted concerning the heart and soul of teaching and teaching styles, not a smear of fashion styles. I get the point that teachers should dress professionally- I don't get why it took 26 pages to tell us that.
PoonamDhillon78
5 months ago
4 comments
hi ,
I enjoyed the article and i m impressed by it .
surely u have provided enough guidance of what should teachers never wear.
suchita
5 months ago
18 comments
well nice information. i m an Indian teacher and i don't have any idea what teachers wear in US. But i am sure that even the teachers there know how to come to the class. In India teachers are not supposed to look sexy or wear revealing clothes. we wear salwar-kameez or sarees.
abi31
5 months ago
4 comments
definitely not aimed at teachers.
NaveedAlam
5 months ago
4 comments
I like that!
The apple is realy outstanding for teachers. i didn't visit bettet site than "theapple"
conniek
5 months ago
14 comments
Very Not Useful. I'll concede on a few of these points (no message T-shirts since students can take them personally and nothing ridiculously loud), but most of it was either a bit over the top or just nonsensical.
Each teacher has his/her own style and if we treat our jobs as though they're just a professional, impersonal workplace by trashing all of this no glitter/personal touch/yesterday's style stuff the kids are really gonna see that and know you're just in it for the money. I can see that this is useful for when you know the superintendent is coming to check up on you, but, honestly, not every teacher has to come in a business suit and heels that were professionally up-to-date as of two hours ago.
angel7002
5 months ago
4 comments
If we are going to start giving TEACHERS what not to wear advice, can we start with the "holiday sweaters" please? Your clothing should not make more noise than your students, nor should it distract them from what you are teaching. I would hate to be lumped into the stereotypical, unrelatable teacher category of tapered "mom jeans," aerosoles, and a hideous souvernir t-shirt from my parents' vacation to Canada. Instead I stand out to the students by not standing out.
I am a 26 year old elementary school teacher and these rules have NOTHING to do with my job. I am very fashion focused but I need to be comfortable and appropriate for running around and doing the thousands of classroom duties I need to do. Although I completely agree with no face tattoos, glitter, torn jeans, and short shorts, I don't agree with all these rules. I LOVE Uggs...and yes, i wear them with leggings, paired with a sweater dress and chunky jewelry. It's incredibly comfortable and is appropriate for the classroom. I can run around, paint, stick papers on tall bulletin boards, sit on the rug, tie shoes, bend over desks, and take the kids out for PE. But most importantly, it lets the kids know that I am a real person, I care about fashion and the way I look, I am young enough to relate to, but it still commands authority. It's actually a joke in my classroom (all math problems relate to my shopping addiction) and the kids (and parents!) look forward to what I wear in the morning.
The funny part is, a family gave me a holiday gift that my student had "personally picked out," and it was a complete outfit including accessories. The best part is, the student had me so well pegged, he even got my size right and it was something I would totally wear! Even my mother couldn't have done that well, and she admits it!
dhallmark0314
5 months ago
4 comments
I completely agree with most of the other comments. This article was not relevant to teachers. It was completely written for office workers. I am a new teacher and it did not answer any of my wardrobe concerns. Are denim jeans appropriate if they are nice and dressed up a little with a nice blouse or button-up? Even if this article were written for teachers, it doesn't address teachers in the non-traditional classroom setting. I think that there should be some exceptions to these rules if you are a P.E. teacher/coach, band director, art teacher, etc. Granted, they should still look somewhat presentable, but I am not going to expect my P.E. teacher to wear khakis and a nice cardigan instead of clothes suitable for strenuous activity. And I am sorry, but I don't wear make up very often....even to school. I am a band director. Around here, most band directors go all day with back-to-back classes, no planning period, no breaks, sometimes even no lunch breaks. We are lucky if we get a chance to go to the bathroom. The last thing I need is to have mascara and other make-up running down my face after a mid-day marching rehearsal. And as for things such as glitter, too many sequins, short shorts, and mini skirts............if you are so unprofessional you feel the need to dress like a 13 year old girl, you probably shouldn't be teaching.
sandygirl
5 months ago
2 comments
Too be honest, I don't see that all of these items shown apply to Teachers. What you should have shown was a list and pictures of the things that Teachers should have in their closet. Useful things to wear to school not the office. The exception? ...What does that have to do with Teachers? I have yet to see a Teacher, any Teacher with 15 inch nails. What a let down!!
Devona
5 months ago
74 comments
First, this was not directed towards teachers as the title suggests. Second, several of these forbidden items should really be common sense. I don't think we need to take up space illuminating these mistakes. About half of this article could have been cut in favor of some more helpful tips.
gerlyn
5 months ago
2 comments
THANKS FOR THIS ARTICLES...BUT THESE THINGS WERE NOT APPLIED..MOST OF THE TEACHERS HER IN PHILS....WERE WEARING WHAT THEY LIKE TO....HOPE MANY TEACHERS WILL READ THIS ARTICLES so that they will be corrected....
jolinas
5 months ago
2 comments
A am a student teacher and am amazed at how many teachers wear sweatshirts, flip-flops and no make-up. It looks like they just got out of bed. You can still be comfortable in dark denim jeans, a cotton shirt and flat sandals.
LRodvien
5 months ago
20 comments
Re: Face tattoos: I commented on them. I live in Polynesia (Hawaii) and tattoos are a part of the culture here. Just as a Jewish teacher should be allowed to wear a yarmulke in school, so should a Polynesian be able to express culture through a facial tattoo if he/she wants! That said, I don't care if its a cultural statement or not, teachers can make intelligent decisions about their appearance. If its meaningful for him/her to have a facial tattoo, get one! Why is make-up supposedly required, but permanent markings (tattoos) are taboo? Arbitrary cultural norms.
With most fashion "oddities," kids will be curious and distracted for about 5 minutes and then they will get over it! The only real distractions, IMO, are showing cleavage, tight pants, mini-skirts, etc. Those distractions won't go away in five minutes.
Furthermore, once kids get to know someone who looks/dresses differently, they are likely to learn a little more about tolerance. As adults, they might not be so judgmental of people with tattoos, hijabs, piercings, yarmulkes, or even sparkly sweater vests! They might learn to look beyond the outside and find out what's inside.
I think its the adults that need a little lesson in tolerance here. Its time to judge teachers on whether or not they are good teachers, not on their conformity to (mostly) arbitrary - and often impractical - fashion standards. This is America, people! Diversity, self-expression, willingness to accept people regardless of their appearance are among our greatest assets. Let's not turn ourselves and our children into judgmental, superficial, conformist clones.