Is there any issue that coronavirus hasn’t affected in education?

From remote learning to wellbeing of pupils and staff, it’s impact has been total.

The latest topic to have been caught up in this is that of school staff dress codes, with many teachers taking to Twitter to weigh in on whether they should have to continue wearing smart attire when returning to school during the pandemic.

In the grand scheme of things, it may not seem like a big deal but it’s just the latest chapter in an ongoing saga that often causes a great deal of frustration for staff - in more ways than one.

Will coronavirus change teacher dress codes?

When I think back to when I was at school in the 1990s, most subject teachers dressed casually. This included jeans, T-shirts and even trainers.

It appeared that only those in more senior positions wore a suit or dressed formally. Post-2000, and the casual dress code was replaced with a more formal, professional dress code, which included suits, ties, blazers, trousers, skirts, dresses and (polished) shoes.

When Mossbourne Community Academy in Hackney opened in 2004, the inaugural headteacher, Sir Michael Wilshaw, insisted that all staff must be dressed in “business formal wear”.  

A trend had begun.

Suited and booted

As such, when I first started teaching, my headteacher insisted that all male staff wore a suit, collar and tie.  

I have continued to uphold this “dress code” for my entire teaching career. Some consider me to be “old school”, despite me still being (relatively) young. Old habits die hard.

Now, though, the coronavirus pandemic has reignited the debate concerning how teachers and other school staff should dress. 

Some schools that are open for key-worker and vulnerable students have seen a relaxation on the rules for both staff and pupils, allowing for jeans, tracksuits and trainers to become acceptable.

The approach is largely influenced by the current government advice, which encourages washing of clothes more regularly to reduce the spread of the virus.

Many teachers have expressed concern over the difficulty that comes with having to wash a suit every day, arguing that allowing flexibility for this period is sensible and safe.

Others have argued that staff should not be wearing casual clothing as it conveys a drop in professional standards when schools need to create regularity for pupils again.

It’s not clear if there is a quick and easy answer - it will be interesting to see where this discussion will go next and if schools do allow any leeway.

A long-running saga

However, from my conversations with fellow teachers, this is not a topic that is going anywhere, regardless of coronavirus. 

When speaking to primary school teachers, it is apparent that dress codes vary from school to school. Some allow jeans or trainers, whereas others insist on a much smarter, formal look.

In secondary schools generally, there is far less flexibility with all generally insisting on formal attire only, often outlawing jeans.

Some schools go as far as banning any tattoos being on show or facial piercings. Some secondaries also require all staff to wear a blazer and men must have a tie.

My research across both primary and secondary teachers has demonstrated a number of discrepancies and inconsistencies.

There are staff who have told me they have seen colleagues wearing dark coloured jeans and nothing has been said to them. In other cases, some female staff have said they have been pulled up for showing too much shoulder or having a nose piercing.

Additionally, there have been staff who said that they have been spoken to about not wearing a blazer and men for not wearing a tie.

These irregularities can create ill-feeling among colleagues.

Why should one teacher be told off for not wearing a tie, whilst another is going about their lessons in a pair of jeans, without anyone batting an eyelid?

Time for a change?

Do these policies in the time of coronavirus now appear very draconian? Is it time for schools to revisit dress code policies and review them going forward post-Covid?

If you look at the business sector, you would see many of them have now adopted a more smart-casual approach.

Men are no longer required to wear ties and there is no expectation on either gender to wear a blazer. However, would it be right for schools to follow “suit” and allow staff, for example, to wear dark coloured jeans or not have a blazer?

Some will stand by the argument that if you, as a teacher, are scruffy or casual, how can you pull up a pupil on the state of their uniform?

It is clear that a certain standard should be maintained - after all, schools are a place of work. 

Yet, there is also arguably a space opening up for teachers to use their own commonsense, professional judgement when it comes to what they put on in the morning, rather than it being prescribed to them.

Liam Davis is a lead practitioner in RE at a school in London. He has previously been a HOY & HOD. He also presents a radio show on Shoreditch Radio London and tweets @davisliam