Preserving Tradition: The Rationale Behind Banning Shorts
The prohibition on wearing shorts in school is most likely due to the desire to maintain strict order, discipline, and a unified image of the student. Historically, school rules placed great emphasis on the appearance of students, as their looks were seen as a reflection of their belonging to the community, their discipline, and adherence to established norms. Wearing neat, standard-compliant clothing served as a way to identify community members, distinguishing them from others and shaping students' ideas of what is "decent" and "indecent."As can be seen from the material, even ancient rules taught that students should look neat and proper, which in turn allowed them to stand out as representatives of a specific order and discipline. This means that any element of clothing that does not meet these strict standards (for example, a very loose or informal style, which might today be associated with shorts as casual wear) can be perceived as a violation of that established image.Supporting citation(s):"The rules pay attention to the students' appearance. Schoolchildren must wear neat clothing and have a short haircut: Along with their studies, the school's brethren should care for their clothing and hairstyle. They must not shave their heads or let their hair grow like laypeople, but with a modest haircut and decent attire, far removed from looseness, they should walk within the school and along the city streets, so that by these two features everyone could recognize them as either their own or not." (source: link txt)Thus, the ban on wearing shorts can be explained by the fact that they may be seen as an element of an informal, possibly even indecent style that contradicts traditional notions of neatness and discipline. School rules, by establishing standards of appearance, shape students' understanding of the look that corresponds to membership in the educational community, where appearance reflects inner order and compliance with certain norms of behavior.