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    School uniform is special clothes worn by all students of a particular school. The uniform of a school may differ from others. Why should schools use uniforms? Below are some reasons.

    First of all, Notre Dame’s Department of Sociology produced a study in 1998 concerning school uniforms. Their findings using 10th grade students showed that uniforms have no direct effect on “substance abuse, behavioral problems or attendance.” It also claimed a negative effect on student achievements for those students considered ‘pro-school’.

    Secondly, uniform helps to create a strong sense school ethos and a sense of belonging to a particular community. As such it promotes discipline and helps to drive up academic standards, which is why a uniform is often adopted by schools which are being reopened with a fresh start after being classified as failing.

    Finally, uniform acts as a social leveler, under which all students are equal in the eyes of the school and of each other. In institutions without uniform students are often competitive and worry endlessly about their appearance and the clothes they should wear. Pupils without expensive designer clothes and trainers may be singled out as social outcasts, or stigmatized as being from poor backgrounds. For these reasons many parents prefer uniforms as they save them money on buying clothes for school wear. Considering the findings, schools should implement the uniform as their identity. The government should also publish some kind of rule which makes uniform compulsory for schools.

“As such it promotes discipline and helps to drive up academic standards …” (Paragraph 3).

What does the it word refer?