Summary and Response of " Appearances Are Destructive" by Mark Mathabane

Summary:
Curbing school violence has been an issue in public school in the U.S., and schools had input lots of resource in it. Mark Mathabane, the author of this article, suggests that dress codes can also be a way to protect students. His tow sisters left South Africa to the U.S.A., and went to a local public school. At first, the author thought that for no apartheid and have greater learning equipment, his sisters will had a great experience in learning. But it turns out that his sisters sometimes came home in tears, just for they didn't wearing pretty outfits. It is very different from South Africa, because at there, they only need to wear uniforms.
By visiting other public schools, the author found out that lots of students pay more attention on their appearance than on their academic succeed. Students compare how expansive their clothes are because it can give them status and respect, they also measure how much their parents love them by how much money their parents willing to buy the thing they long to. Those parents who don't have enough money to satisfied their child's appetite, often felt helpless in watching their child going into the wrong road.
Dress codes isn't lower the purpose of freedom. Lots of groups has their own uniform. Other countries where students wear school dress codes often have better grade than their American counterparts, because they can focus on their learning more not appearance. Americans should know the benefit of dress code.

Reflection:
After reading this article, it let me recall my experience in the first semester at university. At the first month of my university life, I was existing and happy to get rid off those boring school uniform. But after the month pass, I felt tired of thinking what I should wear in the next day, and want to have a uniform in college, too. Because I didn't have enough clothes to exchange, and didn't know what kind of cloth is better on me. Parents may thought that school is a place to study not to socialize, but they don't know the competition between peers, especially girls in this age don't want other think they are not attractive. But it doesn't mean that I want to wear dress code in college; on the contrary, now I am quite use to and enjoy this kind of life style.
I am glad that we need to wear uniform when we were in primary school and high school, because we need to have a right sense that academic is more important then appearance. We are rife with the media saying that pursuing attractive or expensive materiel can let us be more attractive, this kind of information can easily let our child become a material person. Though students can still compare their shoes, cell phone, watch...at school, the benefit of wearing dress code still won't change. After those students go to the university, they will have more control on their outfit. Because they are more mature and have a better critical thinking, they can easily separate right from wrong.