Crew cuts no longer required for students

Individual schools to decide own rules

Sirikul Bunnag

The decades-old rule on compulsory hairstyle for students is to be rescinded, said Kamol Rodklai, director of the Education Ministry's children and family rights protection centre.

With the new academic year starting next week, the military-style cropped hair for boys with the longest strand not exceeding 5cm, and neck-length hair for girls _ highly symbolic of uniformity particularly among state-run schools _ will no longer be enforced.

Mr Kamol said the ministry was happy to let individual schools decide what ``code of conduct'' they wanted altered with regard to student hairstyle.

``Times have changed and it would be unrealistic to expect boys to continue carrying the conventional bowl-cut,'' he said.

The ministry only gave a broad regulation governing student hairstyle. Girls may sport long hair but they must make a neat pony tail or plaits. Each school will determine its own restriction on hair length and the new hair rule would be set jointly by the school council and administrators with the agreement of parents.

Once the ``common agreement'' was reached, the ministry need not be informed of it.

Mr Kamol said many private schools had for a long time been allowed to dictate their own hair rules, with stringent regulations remaining only on state-run schools.

Mr Kamol said the new proposal is expected to be endorsed by education permanent secretary Khunying Kasama Voravan na Ayutthaya next week.

Most schools will open for the new term on May 16 and others on May 19.

The proposal, however, has drawn mixed reactions from school directors. Suwat Onjaikla, director of Thaweethapisek school, said students would raise ``endless'' demands for hairstyles and begin comparing discrepancies in policies advocated by each school.

``The next thing you know students will be asking why their school remains steadfast on short hair as opposed to their peers in other schools donning long hair and fashionable cuts,'' he said.

The ministry should institute a standard on hair length for all schools to observe, to prevent students going too far with their demands and schools compromising too leniently.

His was an all-boys school and he personally thought it best for boys in primary schools to retain the military-style haircut. High school students, however, could wear longer hair.

``Students allowed to drift with the tides of fashion would end up concentrating less on their studies,'' he said.

But the policy was welcomed by Prakasit Yungkong, director of Pathum Kongka school, who felt the discussion on hair rule would be a way of forging closer relations between parents and schools.

Sharing this view was Arunee Nakathat, director of Sai Nam Pueng school, who found the present rule obsolete and impractical. She said a review was appropriate provided it did not lead to students becoming obsessed with hairstyle.

Mr Kamol also said the permanent secretary had instructed schools to devise measures to look after the welfare of students.

Schools must maximise safety by improving facilities and ensure the environment was not hazardous or dangerous to students.

Hairstyles can be an inexpensive mode of self-expression, when it is just the cut/style of the hair.  However, as I'm sure we all recognize, much more can go in to the issue than just the style.  Chemical processing (perms, coloring, straightening, extentions) also becomes part of the style and can be used to display status as in "I have the money to do this".  Up until recently the US military's hair policies allowed individual hair styles with restrictions regarding length and disallowing hair to be processed or colored.  Only recently have they recinded this policy and now allow hair to be colored a natural occuring color (hmm, no punk purple or orange, what a pity  )

I personally think children should be allowed choices in their own image such as their hair but that some limits could be in place to prevent hairstyles from becoming a status symbol as clothing and shoes have become in so many US schools.

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Do you go to a public or private school?  I ask because in private schools the students are usually closer in economic status than in public schools.

Yes,I also went to an American school(in Nairobi,some twenty years ago  ) ,and I always felt sorry for my friends who attended the British schools-school uniforms and no fancy hairdos .We were allowed to wear almost anything and I remember sporting a purple do with spikes and then a VERY frizzy perm (it was the eighties after all).Well,these days I think that uniforms/no styling might not be a bad idea after all,definately distracts less from studying 

Leia;
You are quite fortunate to be able to experience the private school environment and you are obviously thriving in it - good for you!  I think that what some of us are referring to is in some public schools (at least here in the US), there can be significant differences in the economic backgrounds of the students.  The "popular" kids tend to be those who "have money" and can afford to buy the latest, expensive shoes, clothes and other accessories.  This can make those who cannot afford the expensive items feel left out.  At times the environment can be very cruel.  When this situation occurs, the students may spend more time worrying about their appearance than their studies.  This is the rationale behind school uniforms and dress codes.  If students all wear the same clothing and abide by the dress code (which may include rules about hair), it is not apparent who "has money" and who does not.  Students will hopefully interact with each other and the teachers based on their intellect and personality rather than outward appearances.  We have a couple of public schools in my area that serve economically diverse areas that have instituted school uniforms and "appearance" codes.  They have found there is less gang activity, school performance has improved, and the general atmosphere of the school is more inviting. 

Being fashion challenged all my life, I would have appreciated school uniforms so that I would not have had to worry everyday about what outfit to wear and would I be ridiculed for it.

Yes, I can see how in that situation, a dress code would be very appropriate.

Anne-Marie, most of the people in my school are from the same economic background and most of us can (thankfully) afford most things that we want. Because of this no one really cares what other people are wearing, and comments are hardly ever passed, even if someone is wearing dirty or trashy clothes. A friend of mine is in our school only because he's smart, his family is actually very poor and his clothes are different from ours, and he can't even afford to get his hair cut most of the time. No one looks at him any differently and he has a lot of friends, and he is very popular because he is smart. I think in some cases a dress code is a good idea but in some places it's not necessary.