# The official language thread **URL:** \ **Category:** Off-topic\ **Created:** [April 3, 2018, 11:14am UTC](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/t/the-official-language-thread/2524 "2018-04-03T11:14:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 47
**Author:** ![Frenzie](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/user_avatar/forums.thimbleweedpark.com/frenzie/32/4416_2.png) [@Frenzie](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/u/Frenzie)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2018, 4:35pm UTC](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/t/the-official-language-thread/2524/925 "2018-08-27T16:35:48Z")
> [@PiecesOfKate](#): > > I didn’t really like it but I think it did stop pressure over who has the latest trainers and stuff. It might not completely rule out comparison but it puts everyone on a more level playing field than everyone being completely free to wear whatever they want. We had extremely few BS rules and the last couple years of high school we were on a first-name basis with our teachers — to non-Dutch people that might sound insane? 🙂 —, but I really don’t think we had any such pressure. tl;dr I don’t think we particularly experienced any of those pressures that come from making things the forbidden fruit, whether they’re trainers, drugs or sex. > [@tasse-tee](#): > > How about always having to wear your blazer in the school corridors, even in summer? > Always having to ask permission to take your blazer off in class? > And a rule about how the length of your tie: **how many stripes** must be visible? > > High School BS, British Edition. Good grace, it was already bad enough having to enforce nonsense like not drinking. > [@tasse-tee](#): > > I agree with the pros and cons of uniforms that you mentioned. Despite the BS rules, on the whole I didn’t mind wearing a uniform. I should probably explicitly state that my experience with school uniforms is as a teacher. ---
**Author:** ![PiecesOfKate](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/user_avatar/forums.thimbleweedpark.com/piecesofkate/32/93_2.png) [@PiecesOfKate](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/u/PiecesOfKate)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2018, 4:53pm UTC](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/t/the-official-language-thread/2524/926 "2018-08-27T16:53:21Z")
> [@Frenzie](#): > > the last couple years of high school we were on a first-name basis with our teachers — to non-Dutch people that might sound insane? 🙂 At secondary school, yes 🙂 But not at college and some sixth forms. > [@Frenzie](#): > > I don’t think we particularly experienced any of those pressures that come from making things the forbidden fruit, whether they’re trainers, drugs or sex. I think we might be talking about different things 🤔 In the context of school uniforms vs non-uniforms, I think the pressure (as in peer pressure between students) comes from allowing people to wear what they want. We never had that pressure over e.g. the latest trainers because we simply weren’t allowed to wear them, so there was no ‘mine are better/more fashionable/more expensive than yours’. ---
**Author:** ![milanfahrnholz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/cab0a1/32.png) [@milanfahrnholz](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/u/milanfahrnholz)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2018, 4:59pm UTC](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/t/the-official-language-thread/2524/927 "2018-08-27T16:59:36Z")
> [@Frenzie](#): > > to non-Dutch people that might sound insane? Absolutely. ---
**Author:** ![Someone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b77776/32.png) [@Someone](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/u/Someone)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2018, 5:02pm UTC](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/t/the-official-language-thread/2524/928 "2018-08-27T17:02:08Z")
> [@milanfahrnholz](#): > > > [@Frenzie](#): > > > > to non-Dutch people that might sound insane? > > Absolutely. No. Or, to be precise: At university that wasn’t uncommon. At school some few (= very, very few) teachers did that too. ---
**Author:** ![milanfahrnholz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/cab0a1/32.png) [@milanfahrnholz](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/u/milanfahrnholz)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2018, 5:03pm UTC](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/t/the-official-language-thread/2524/929 "2018-08-27T17:03:23Z")
> [@Someone](#): > > No. Or, to be precise: At university that wasn’t uncommon. At school some few (= very, very few) teachers did that too. Well, I think you can tell I´m from the part of the germany with the strictest school system. Utterly unthinkable under any circumstances here! ---
**Author:** ![Someone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b77776/32.png) [@Someone](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/u/Someone)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2018, 5:10pm UTC](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/t/the-official-language-thread/2524/930 "2018-08-27T17:10:11Z")
> [@milanfahrnholz](#): > > Utterly unthinkable under any circumstances here! No teachers from the “68er” generation? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![milanfahrnholz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/cab0a1/32.png) [@milanfahrnholz](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/u/milanfahrnholz)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2018, 5:21pm UTC](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/t/the-official-language-thread/2524/931 "2018-08-27T17:21:36Z")
Well that would be people around my dad´s age. I had people who were often 10 or more years older than him though. Technically there may have been a few but not really in attitude. A classmate of my dad became a politican in the landtag in bavaria so not everyone of that generation is like that obviously. My Dad is more the David Fox type of person, though. 🙂 Nope for us was it was standing up for prayer every morning and respecting authorities. ---
**Author:** ![Frenzie](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/user_avatar/forums.thimbleweedpark.com/frenzie/32/4416_2.png) [@Frenzie](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/u/Frenzie)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2018, 6:33pm UTC](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/t/the-official-language-thread/2524/932 "2018-08-27T18:33:59Z")
> [@PiecesOfKate](#): > > I think we might be talking about different things 🤔 In the context of school uniforms vs non-uniforms, I think the pressure (as in peer pressure between students) comes from allowing people to wear what they want. We never had that pressure over e.g. the latest trainers because we simply weren’t allowed to wear them, so there was no ‘mine are better/more fashionable/more expensive than yours’. I thought you intended a juxtaposition between in school and out of school. On further reflection I think that even if there is such a thing as peer pressure around clothing in some circumstances, it’s a heck of a lot better to learn to deal with something relatively benign like that than with worse forms of peer pressure. > [@PiecesOfKate](#): > > Another being that I didn’t have to decide what to wear every day (I’m the most indecisive person that I know 😉) As an aside, while you seem to be phrasing this as a positive from the pupil’s perspective, from the teacher’s perspective I might very well frame that as a negative effect of school uniforms: the making (clothing) choices life skill equivalent of listening to students who say they only like to read Goosebumps. > [@Someone](#): > > No. Or, to be precise: At university that wasn’t uncommon. At school some few (= very, very few) teachers did that too. It was never odd to me, but I’ve since found out that generally speaking it seems to be unusual. ---
**Author:** ![tasse-tee](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/user_avatar/forums.thimbleweedpark.com/tasse-tee/32/4002_2.png) [@tasse-tee](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/u/tasse-tee)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2018, 6:52pm UTC](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/t/the-official-language-thread/2524/933 "2018-08-27T18:52:52Z")
> [@Frenzie](#): > > On further reflection I think that even if there is such a thing as peer pressure around clothing in some circumstances, it’s a heck of a lot better to learn to deal with something relatively benign like that than with worse forms of peer pressure. I understand what you mean, but to some pupils, the implications of this kind of peer pressure might not be so benign. If a pupil doesn’t have the latest trainers because they’re from a low-income background, then the former being mocked implicates the latter. The pupil might just be making this connection in their own mind, or their peers might be purposefully making the connection - either way, it can be painful for them. And the low-income background may have resulted from relationship problems between the parents, and so on… so it ends up not being “just” about a pair of trainers. ---
**Author:** ![Frenzie](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/user_avatar/forums.thimbleweedpark.com/frenzie/32/4416_2.png) [@Frenzie](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/u/Frenzie)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2018, 7:07pm UTC](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/t/the-official-language-thread/2524/934 "2018-08-27T19:07:26Z")
> [@tasse-tee](#): > > If a pupil doesn’t have the latest trainers because they’re from a low-income background, then the former being mocked implicates the latter. I almost have to wonder if that’s some kind of fairy tale they tell to uniformed children in the UK to justify the uniforms. Pressures in this area were about style. Wider pants = cool, tighter pants = lame, loose boxers = cool, tighter underwear = lame… there’s a theme there. You can’t buy that sense of style. If anything, trying to do so would be your downfall. You already shared how you had the exact same pressures with regard to tie length and such. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![milanfahrnholz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/cab0a1/32.png) [@milanfahrnholz](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/u/milanfahrnholz)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2018, 7:13pm UTC](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/t/the-official-language-thread/2524/935 "2018-08-27T19:13:15Z")
Having spent two years at a higher income school, I can assure you that peer pressure for not wearing the latest greatest clothing indeed WAS a thing in my day and it does exist. Then I changed to a lower income school (that wasn´t the reason though) and at least that problem went away. I mostly got beaten up for being bad at sports or growing out my hair before everyone else did it too. ---
**Author:** ![tasse-tee](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/user_avatar/forums.thimbleweedpark.com/tasse-tee/32/4002_2.png) [@tasse-tee](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/u/tasse-tee)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2018, 7:20pm UTC](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/t/the-official-language-thread/2524/936 "2018-08-27T19:20:39Z")
> [@milanfahrnholz](#): > > growing out my hair before everyone else did it too. So you did it “before it was cool”? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Gffp](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/user_avatar/forums.thimbleweedpark.com/gffp/32/12183_2.png) [@Gffp](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/u/Gffp)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2018, 7:22pm UTC](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/t/the-official-language-thread/2524/937 "2018-08-27T19:22:12Z")
Is this turning into: “the official body language thread”? It’s interesting anyway. I have to say that when I was at primary school with those “suits”, something like that: ![](https://canada1.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/uploads/thimbleweedpark/original/2X/e/ea2841c1974ef0d28bed6a8d1cd7a6b57d67db72.jpeg "Grembiule sì, Grembiule no") (but ours were better, we had ties and different colors as I said before) we all knew that guy was the son of a craftsman while the other was the son of a b… ahem of a professional but… we just tend to forget it, we just didn’t care, and suits helped). ---
**Author:** ![milanfahrnholz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/cab0a1/32.png) [@milanfahrnholz](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/u/milanfahrnholz)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2018, 7:22pm UTC](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/t/the-official-language-thread/2524/938 "2018-08-27T19:22:56Z")
Technically, yes. But it was no fun and I only got told much much later that I had an influence on all the others following suit. ---
**Author:** ![Someone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b77776/32.png) [@Someone](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/u/Someone)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2018, 8:26pm UTC](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/t/the-official-language-thread/2524/939 "2018-08-27T20:26:37Z")
> [@Frenzie](#): > > > [@tasse-tee](#): > > > > If a pupil doesn’t have the latest trainers because they’re from a low-income background, then the former being mocked implicates the latter. > > I almost have to wonder if that’s some kind of fairy tale they tell to uniformed children in the UK to justify the uniforms. From my own experiences I can agree with @milanfahrnholz: It’s NOT a fairy tale. And I wasn’t on a school for “higher incomes”. > [@Gffp](#): > > Is this turning into: “the official body language thread”? As this turns out to be a bigger discussion, maybe @Calypso can move the corresponding posts into a new thread. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Gffp](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/user_avatar/forums.thimbleweedpark.com/gffp/32/12183_2.png) [@Gffp](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/u/Gffp)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2018, 8:28pm UTC](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/t/the-official-language-thread/2524/940 "2018-08-27T20:28:59Z")
> [@Someone](#): > > As this turns out to be a bigger discussion, maybe @Calypso can move the corresponding posts into a new thread. 🙂 I bet our favourite forumer nymph won’t, 'cause that’s all off-topic matter… 😬 It’s up to us to jump on a new thread, if desired 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Someone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b77776/32.png) [@Someone](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/u/Someone)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2018, 8:31pm UTC](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/t/the-official-language-thread/2524/941 "2018-08-27T20:31:12Z")
> [@Gffp](#): > > It’s up to us to jump on a new thread, if desired 😛 But you can’t take the old posts with you into the new thread … ---
**Author:** ![Gffp](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/user_avatar/forums.thimbleweedpark.com/gffp/32/12183_2.png) [@Gffp](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/u/Gffp)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2018, 8:32pm UTC](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/t/the-official-language-thread/2524/942 "2018-08-27T20:32:40Z")
> [@Someone](#): > > > [@Gffp](#): > > > > It’s up to us to jump on a new thread, if desired 😛 > > But you can’t take the old posts with you into the new thread … > [@TWP Forum Meetup Discussion](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/t/twp-forum-meetup-discussion/2428/31): > > Heh, I don’t think I’m going to split off-topics into more off-topics. Let’s say that off-topic in the off-topic section is generally allowed. ---
**Author:** ![PiecesOfKate](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/user_avatar/forums.thimbleweedpark.com/piecesofkate/32/93_2.png) [@PiecesOfKate](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/u/PiecesOfKate)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2018, 8:40pm UTC](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/t/the-official-language-thread/2524/943 "2018-08-27T20:40:55Z")
> [@Frenzie](#): > > As an aside, while you seem to be phrasing this as a positive from the pupil’s perspective, from the teacher’s perspective I might very well frame that as a negative effect of school uniforms: the making (clothing) choices life skill equivalent of listening to students who say they only like to read Goosebumps. I meant that particular bit about deciding what to wear as a joke, because I’m so indecisive 😉 I’m not sure what you mean with the Goosebumps comparison, though? > [@Frenzie](#): > > I almost have to wonder if that’s some kind of fairy tale they tell to uniformed children in the UK to justify the uniforms. I don’t think any of us were really bothered - it was just the norm. I don’t think the notion of not wearing a uniform really occurred to us - you went to school, you wore a school uniform. Apart from the odd ‘own clothes day’ (my mum found that label hilarious - “but 'oo else’s clothes you gonna wear?! Hahahaha”) ---
**Author:** ![milanfahrnholz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/cab0a1/32.png) [@milanfahrnholz](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/u/milanfahrnholz)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2018, 8:41pm UTC](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/t/the-official-language-thread/2524/944 "2018-08-27T20:41:29Z")
> [@Someone](#): > > But you can’t take the old posts with you into the new thread … Why would I want to put my old mail into new clothes? 👴 [Previous page](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/t/the-official-language-thread/2524.md?page=46) [Next page](https://forums.thimbleweedpark.com/t/the-official-language-thread/2524.md?page=48)