Grade A looks for the classroom

Garfene Grandison, Gleaner Writer

Who says that back-to-school is only about the students? Most teachers are so hard-working trying to help their students rack up those passes that they oftentimes forget their own image. From conversations and points of views, it cannot go unnoticed that teachers are labelled as fashion DON'TS.

This, however, this shouldn't be the case. Why are teachers labelled as nerds taken out of the '40s and '50s era (and we aren't taking about the glam era), or a teacher from the 1800s who looks hard, tough, dressed in beige, grey or pants for that matter? Teachers! Stand up for fashion! Be stylish, be professional, and most of all be yourself in the classroom. After all, parents entrust their children in your care for most of their lives.

Image is important, especially in the classroom, so the Outlook decided to give a few teachers stylish makeovers since they needed some help in learning the ABCs of fashion. We asked each woman about her usual style, why she decided to get the makeover and how important fashion/image is to her in the classroom.

We, therefore, gave each teacher a makeover that showcases her own sense of style, giving them an A⁺ wardrobe too. Just study our easy lesson plan to get grade A looks for the classroom.

Powell: A math teacher at St Hilda's High School, Nickiesha Powell tells Outlook that her style is usually more relaxed on a daily basis since she wears mostly skirts, blouses and vests to school. However, she agreed to a makeover because she wanted to do something different, to peruse various styles to bring a new element to the classroom.

Is fashion/image important in the classroom? She tells us, "I think it's very important. The subject that I teach is one of the hardest, so I make it a packaged deal. I dress to engage the students so that they will be willing to learn," she went on, "we are role models because the students are looking up to us as teachers and they will be adults soon and look to us as a measure of what to do and what not to do," she ended.

Robinson: Teaching students on a daily basis about rocks, soil, the earth and all things geographical, St Hilda's geography teacher Kedene Robinson tells Outlook that her style can be described as ordinary donning just pants and a shirt to school on a daily basis. She decided to be made over to explore her options. She said, "Looking good boosts self-confidence and that's always a good thing and this makeover provided me with that opportunity." Like her colleague Ms Powell, Robinson also thinks that fashion/image is important in the classroom. "We are role models and the girls look

up to us, so we have to dress professionally, modest, and elegant but still modern since there is already a stigma attached that teachers are dull and boring," she shared.

Bernard: A grade-three teacher at the Stella Maris Preparatory School, Bernard tells Outlook that she tries to dress anywhere between casually elegant to semi-formal on the days when she opts not wear uniforms to school. She decided to be a part of the makeover since each new school year, she looks for new ideas both for teaching and for herself if she's not happy with herself. She confessed, "The opportunity reminded me of how good I can look and that's something that teachers often forget when we get caught up in teaching." Image is very important to the classroom setting she states because "people respond to how you look before you even start talking," she shared. She said students like to see their role models in a new style and the parents she finds are a little more respectful when there is a certain level of dress. "The clothes speak before you do," she ended.