New Zealand School Uniform Garments: Uniform Pants and Trousers


Figure 1.--Short pants were seasonal wear at New Zealand schools. That does not means that shorts were only wirn during the summer. Rather boys wore shorts done in a heavy weight material during the winter and a lighter-weight material during the summer. Many schools adoptd light-weight cotton shorts during the summer. These boys at a New Zealand prep school wear light-weight school shorts. These are light-weight dress shorts, not the cotton shorts worn at many schools.

New Zealand boys wore mostly short pants or long pants to school. at least in the 20h century. Knee pants were worn in the late-19th century. We rarely see knickers. We see New Zealand children wearing the same styles of uniform pants worn in Britain. We do not know much about the early-20th century, but this seems to be the case after World war I in the 1920s. Most secondary school boys have traditionally worn grey or to aesser extent blue short trousers. The grey shorts were a British influence. The blue shorts seem to be a Scottish influence. The grey shorts were especially common. There were differences, however, as the uniform is chosen by each individual school. Short pants uniforms were widely worn in New Zealand. Unifirms were most common in secondary schools. While grey and to a lesser extent blue were by far the most common colors, there were other colors worn. This was an English influence, although the blue shorts seem a Scottish influence. Many schools with grey short trouser uniforms had seasonal alternatives, a light-weight cotton style in the summer and a more formal hewvy-weight pair in the winter. Many had relatively heavy shorts duting the coller months. Flannel shorts were popular in through the 1950s. Then schools began turing to wool blends like Terelyn. During the summer, boys at many schools wore light-weight cotton shorts. Some schools had navy blue shorts. Here there does not seem to have been a seasonal choice, the same shorts worn year round. Many schools had all the boys wearing shorts, but older boys at many secondary schools wear long pants. More boys in recent years are wearing long pants to school, but shorts are still widely worn. Many schools now allow long trousers for the older boys or during the winter. Boys at a few schools now wear mostly long trousers. Most New Zealand secondary school, however, still require at least the younger boys to wear shorts. Most secondary schools insist on skirts or dresses, but we noted one school which allowed the girls to wear the boys' uniform. This was a school which did not strictly enforce the uniform rules.







HBC





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Created: 2:20 AM 7/18/2013
Last updated: 2:20 AM 7/18/2013