40% straight A's in High school

jack
Sun, 17 Jul 2005 00:56:49 +0000

marite: Our schools are county-wide, and one can choose to attend his or her ‘neighborhood school,’ whether elementary, middle, or high school. The neighborhood schools are large and public, usually within walking distance, and mostly in leafy and lovely surburban neighborhoods. Magnet schools, also public, were initially created to draw kids away from their suburban neighborhood schools (like a magnet) into inner city schools for integration–basically voluntary integration. These schools receive money for special programs and also offer superior academics and excellent well-qualified teachers, across the board. Often, each magnet school has a theme (some focus on art or technology; others are known for rigorous academics), but they are all standouts in every program they offer. And the schools are culturally diverse. Every family has a base school (the neighborhood school), but you have to apply to a magnet school. Every child can get into a magnet, but he may be not always get his first choice magnet school. That often depends on your district. But that is the extent of the selectivity. There is no entrance exam or testing, as in the schools you mentioned in your earlier post. Consequently, there is a wide range of type of student and student ability, but they all have access to the same great programs and outstanding teaching.

One would think that every student would want to attend a magnet, and every parent would want all that the magnets have to offer, but the neighborhood schools are also full. Many people don’t want to go into the inner city neighborhoods, nor do they desire a diverse student population–so that’s their choice. My daughter’s middle magnet school, for instance, was just an amazing school that prepared her very well for the rigorous academics she faced at her magnet high school. The down-side, of course, is often a school that is very run down, in need of serious renovation, and sometimes across the street from project housing–as was her middle school. The neighborhoods where magnets are located are perceived as dangerous, and quite often, they are.

My daughter attended a fine private school in Manhattan, where we lived for several years. When we moved to our present location, we put her in a large public magnet school and never looked back. I thought each magnet she attended was terrific and certainly far superior to any private school she ever attended–without a doubt.