School uniforms can be a barrier to physical activity among younger girls
Restrictive uniforms could deter primary school students, especially girls, from being physically active, research suggests.
In countries where most schools require students to wear uniforms, fewer young people are achieving the World Health Organization’s minimum recommendation of 60 minutes of physical activity per day for an entire week, a University of Cambridge study has found.
There was a greater difference between girls and boys of primary school age in countries where uniforms were common. The finding was not replicated in high school-age children.
This may be due to the occasional physical activity that younger children get during the school day, for example running, climbing and active play at recess and lunch.
The findings confirm previous evidence that girls feel less comfortable with active play when they wear certain types of clothing, such as skirts or dresses.
Dr. Mairead Ryan, researcher at the Faculty of Education and MRC Epidemiology Unit in Cambridge, said: “Schools often prefer uniforms for a variety of reasons. We are not trying to propose a blanket ban on them, but to present new evidence to support decision-making. School communities might consider design, and whether specific features of a uniform might encourage or limit opportunities for physical activity during the day.
The study, published in the Journal of Sport and Health Science, was based on large-scale statistical evidence on the physical activity participation of more than 1 million five to 17-year-olds internationally, combined with newly collected data on how common school uniforms were in these to land.
The researchers said the results did not definitively prove that school uniforms limited children’s physical activity, but they noted that this had been indicated in previous, smaller studies and that further research was needed to determine causality.
A 2021 study in England found that the design of girls’ gym uniforms prevented students from taking part in certain activities, while England hockey player Tess Howard has suggested redesigning gendered sports uniforms.
Other studies have suggested that girls are more aware of physical activities when they wear uniforms that they feel uncomfortable in.
Dr. Esther van Sluijs, senior author and MRC researcher, said: “Girls may feel less confident doing things like cartwheeling and tumbling in the playground, or cycling on a windy day, if they wear a skirt or dress.
“Social norms and expectations tend to influence what they think they can do in this clothing. Unfortunately, that is a problem when it comes to promoting physical health.”
The WHO recommends that young people do at least 60 minutes of moderate physical activity every day. The Cambridge study confirmed previous observations that most children and adolescents did not meet this recommendation, especially girls, who have a gap of 7.6 percentage points with boys.
The average proportion of all students meeting the recommendation in the three-quarters of countries where wearing uniforms was the norm was 16%. This rose to 19.5% in countries where uniforms were less common.
There was a consistent gender gap in physical activity levels, with boys 1.5 times more likely than girls to meet WHO recommendations across all ages. In countries where school uniforms were less common, the difference was 5.5 percentage points, while in countries where uniforms were the norm, the difference was 9.8 percentage points.
Sarah Hannafin, head of policy at school leaders’ union NAHT, said: “Physical activity, physical education and sport are an important part of the school day and the curriculum for pupils. Schools are doing a lot to ensure that all students are healthy and physically active and to remove barriers to participation, including among girls – and this includes considering the uniform choices available to children.”