In a small rural town in Illinois, a girl halfway through her freshman year of high school arrived at her Advanced Placement Latin class wearing leggings with a tiny dress over them ( Dockterman). Leggings were against the dress code at her school, but because of the dress she was wearing over the top, she thought it would pass the dress code requirements, as she was adequately covered (Dockterman). This, however, was not the case when he arrived at the Latin class. Her teacher noticed her violation of the dress code and sent her home, in tears, to change (Dockterman). When she returned to class, she had missed part of an important review for her AP Latin exam and was the subject of derogatory comments from other students in the class (Dockterman). All schools in the United States have enforced dress codes with regulations similar to that exemplified by the girl from Haven, Illinois. Dress codes like these have been put in place especially for female students across the nation, in the hope that girls will gain more self-respect and become more modest. However, this often leads to ridicule of girls and “slut shaming” (Dockterman). The negative aspects and effects of school dress codes are greater and more significant than the positive effects dress codes have on students or the school learning environment. These strict dress codes implemented in most public schools today and the restrictions they place on female students are unfair. The enforcement of dress codes on female students in schools across the United States is sexist, degrading, and unnecessary. According to the United States Census Bureau, there are 72.8 million students currently enrolled in public high schools in the United States (United States Ce..... .middle of paper... really the only male dress code requirement in schools in the United States. In addition to this, female students do not physically avert the gaze of their peers towards their bodies. A young girl cannot be held accountable by her peers by choosing to be distracted by her clothing choices (Levin È). responsibility of each individual student to focus on their school work while in a learning environment (Levin they should be ashamed for not policing themselves). Sexism in dress codes shifts the blame to female students for sexual discrimination and distraction in the classroom holding individuals of both sexes accountable for their education (Dockterman) Whether a student chooses to divert his or her attention from learning to another student's clothing is entirely up to him or her (Levin).