|
The clothes girls wear to school vary around the world. We have begun to develop information on individual countries. Styles are less varied today than they once were, but we still see considerable difference from country to country. We have begun to develop information on individual countries. Country trends are affected by school regulations. Some girls attend schools with uniforms. Many countries do not require uniforms, but even here they are often wirn at private schools. We do not yet have much information on America. We do have an American girls gym page. Many schools have English-styled uniforms. We have also begun to work on England. England is particularly important because so many school uniform styles originated in England. They are of course most common in the British Empire countries, especially the Dominions. We note English styles are very common in South Africa. We note garments worn in other countries, but some have not held up as well as the English styles. We do not yet have a page Russia, but do have a pagge on Soviet dress and pinafores. We also have some information on India. School was only for boys in China until Wesrern missionaroes began opening schools. School wear in countries where uniforms are not so common are much more varied and of course provide insights into popular fashions.
South African schools have also adopted the classic girls' uniform items worn by English girls. Of course, South Africa was a British colony and the the school system was established during the British colonial era. The garments include some of the items worn by boys like ties and blazerts. Others items are more gender specific. We are not sure about the headwear at this time. Girls at the schools requiring uniforms wear various styles of skirts and dresses. Often there is a seasonal change in dress styles. One of these is the gym slip, a British school standard. The gym slips the girls here are wearing are good examples (figure 1). They come in various colors. Americans might also call in a jumper, which in England means a sweater. Girls also wore dresses and skirts, some times with blazers. Notice the girls hear wear shirts and ties like the boys with the gym slips. Some schools also have kiklt-like pleated skirts. They are often worn with white shirts and ties like the gym slips. Many schools furing the summer change to light-weight, open collar cotton dresses. They are commonly done in check patterns available in several colors.
We have not yet developed much information on girls' schoolwear in America. Unlike Europe, American schools were coeducational at both the primary and secondary level. We have an extensive American school section, but it does not focus on the girls. Because of the coeducational approach, America became a leader in girls' education. We begin to see girls outnumbering boys in secondary schools years while boys dominated secondary education in Europe. There were no quotas. Te girls who showed up could attend. We have a vast archive of American school images so unlike many countries, we have a lot of material to work with. We see school images from an eraly point in Americ, especially nedhinning woth the 1870s. The school portrait was a well established tradition by the 1890s. Girls always wore dreses to school, often with pinafores into the 20th century. We have an American girls gym page. Girls continued to wear dresses during the first half of the 20th century. Some images how a few giels wearing overalls or other pants, but it was rare. The first major shift was wearing jeans. Secondary schools had resisted jeans for boys in the 1950s. This did not begin to chamge to any extent until the 1960s and especially the 70s when we begin to see girls wearing pants in addition to dresses. The primary schools seem to have left it up to the parents. The secondarry chools resisted jeans in the 1960s, but had henrrally given up on fashion policing by the 70s.
China has a long history of education, meaning educating the elite and primarily for the civil service. And this mean boys. Girl were not educated in China. Of course this was the general pattern in the ancient world. As was often the case, boys taught at home might have sisters who were inckuded in the lessons. Unlike Europe, girls were not educated in Chuna until the 20th century. This basic pattern was even stronger in China than in other societies. The Chinese believed that a woman's virtue lay with her lack of knowledge. An educated woman would be more likely to questiin and argue with her husband. This basic attitide is why foot-binding was so prevalent among women and continued throughout the 19th century, at least among the upperckasses. Peasant girls were unlikely to be subjected to this because thaey has to work. The idea of educating girls did not appear in China until the arrival of the Europeans. European (mpstly British) andAmerican missionaries began foinding missions which included schools (19th century). They usually allowed girls to attend the schools, but even here many parents did not allow their girls to attend classes. The missionaries also founded modern schools including the first schools for girls in all of Chinese history. Huge changes came with the 20th century. Republican forces overthrew the Imperial system (1912). And the country began building a public school system. The chinese at first look to Japan as a model. Schools were opened all over th country. Fundin at first was limited. At firt many parents continued to keep their girls at home, especially in rural areas. The Government did not attack such deeply held social attitudes. Both scocial customs and economics were factors. And the chaos of the Civil War and World War II limited China's ability to build a modern school system. This changed with the Communist victory (1949). Along with huge economic errors, hum=man rights abuses, and wide-spread arrests and executiins, there was for the first time a dgree of order throughout the country. And China built a hige public school systems in which both girls and boys were educated. Unlike the Reoublicn Govrnment, the Communist attacked many traditional social customs, as well as many individuals who came from wealthy, merchant, or landlord families. And one of the traditions was attcked was not educating girls. Parents coukd get into trouble for not sending their girls to school. The Communist Party restricted leadership roles for women, but most other limitaions in women dusappeared. . The primary limitations on women after the Revolution was the result of Communist economic failure. The Revolution did, however, massively expand educational opportunities. And the market reforms began to create economic opportunities as the economy expanded (1990s).
As best we can determine. the vast majority of schools in India, both public and private alike, do have a mandatory school uniform policy in grades 1-12. I am not sure how strictly uniforms are enforced in rural schools, but school uniforms appear to be strictly enforced in urban schools. We would be interested in any information that Indian readers could provide us. The uniform for boys is usually a buttoned-shirt with short sleeves, a pair of plain-colored short pants, socks (often knee socks) and dark lace-up dress shoes. The uniform for girls is normally a "salwaar kameez" very popular throughout India, which is a combination of a knee-length tunic with short or long sleeves, baggy pants,and dark lace-up shoes. OR a combination of buttoned-shirts and knee-length skirts, socks, and dark lace up dress shoes. The uniform for sport activities is mainly : a T-shirt, short sport pants and white canvas and rubber tennis shoes.
The Japanese after the Meiji Restration began building a modern, European-style public education system. This include a primary system open to boys and girls and a secondary systen that primarily focused on the boys. Primary children initially wore their traditional clothes. Gradually uniforms began to appear. Army uniformsfor the boys and sailor esses for the girls. From a fairly early point, girls began attending in large numbers. Village schools were coeducational. City schools continued to be sinle gender. Secondary schools from an early point required uniforms, Prussian cadet uniforms for the boys and sailor dresses for the girls. The secondary schools until after World War II were primarily for the boys.
Europe does not have a tradition of school uniform.. But that has varied from country to country and we see some uniforms. . England is the country best known for school uniform. although it is complicated. This meant uniforms at private schools beginning with the public (elite boarding) schools and grammar schools (16th century). Shie=rly after the Protestant Reformation we see the beginning of state primaries in Germany and America, but no uniforms. (17th century). The uniform garments adopted at the English schools eventually came to be sold to the general public and widely worn at state schools. Only England did not begin to found a state school system until (1870). Uniforms were not required at theenglish state primaries although in the 20th century, mothers began choosing garments adopted by the primary schools. Anglican and Catholic schools often did require uniforms. And some state primaries began adopting uniforms (1960s). The Government did not begin to found a state secondary system until the 20h century. Grammar schools were the first step. They adopted the ethos and uniforms of the private schools. The Government began opening secondary schools in the 20th century. There were various types, but eventually the English decided on comprehensive. The grammar schools and state secondaries adopted the same school uniforms schools developed at the private schools--in the case of secondary schools the garments worn at the public schools. France did no normally have school uniforms. Although Catholic schools had uniforms--in many cases military styles. More common were smocks worm by boys and girls in the state primary schools. Italy was similar to France, bu with an added white collar and bow. We also see smocks in Spain and Switzerland. Russia has school uniforms in private school After the Revolutionist (1917), uniforms were gradually adopted by the Soviet state schools. After World War II, (1939-45) the Communist salivate countries of Eastern Europe also adopted school uniforms, but did not imitate Soviet styles. The notable was the distinctive fancy white pinafores Soviet girls wore in both primary and secondary schools.
Széchy, Éva. "The problems of female education," Comparative Education Vol. 23, No. 1 (1987), pp. 69-74. The author 's eduction al information seems reasonable, but we notice Marist ideological noncence. For examole she dscribes "the underdeveloped, minly agricultural, feudal-capiyalusrf system in Hungsry". Thisd my jve helped estanisjed her anti-capitalist monifides that modern Woke Americans would lso ppreciate, but Mrk would not have apprived. Feudalism and caopitalism, as Marx explained, wre two different stages of economic developmnt.
Navigate the Boys' Historical Clothing Web Site:
[Return to the Main girls' school uniform page]
[Return to the Main girls page]
[Return to the Main school uniform page]
[About Us]
[Activities]
[Biographies]
[Chronology]
[Color]
[Countries]
[Difficult images] >> combine w/ photo interprtation
[Fashion]
[Families]
[Garments]
[Gender conventions]
[Hair]
[Literature]
[Photo intrpretation]
[School]
[Sisters]
[Return to the Historical Girls Clothing Home Site]
