The Pros & Cons of Magnet Programs
For some reason, some students just seem so drawn to programs that are supposedly offering a better education in comparison to attending a regular high school. You might even say that the attraction is magnetic (insert obnoxious outburst of laughter).
However, in the midst of all the great education in magnet programs, there are still flaws, no matter how wonderful a magnet program may be.
With magnet programs come a higher concentration of cocky know it alls. Of course, being in a magnet program doesn’t necessarily mean that a person is smart, but it’s safe to say that many students in magnet programs are very intelligent.
Unfortunately, that intelligence is not always accompanied by modesty and kindness. In magnet programs, some students expect every other student to have the same level of knowledge as them, and when that doesn’t happen, sometimes the students who aren’t “up to par” are looked down upon.
Clique-ity clack. Yes, I said it. Especially here at Clark High School where the student population is composed of both magnet and non-magnet students, cliques are a very prominent part of the student body. Even though cliques are found at any school, most of the segregation that happens at Clark are between the magnet and non-magnet. Of course there are students who blend in with both crowds and hang out with both magnet and non-magnet students, regardless of which they are.
But when I observe my friends in magnet programs and my friends who are not, I notice that I don’t typically see them mingle amongst each other. For as long as there are both non-magnet and magnet students at Clark, there is always a likelihood of having that division among the students.
The CCSD sorting hat obviously not up to par with Hogwarts. Students are hand-picked for magnet programs by a special admissions officer whose head and body are squarish and contain many gadgets and gizmos. The computerized lottery doesn’t guarantee that all students who actually deserve to be accepted are accepted. It’s by luck of the draw that students get into the programs they actually want to be in.
Is it not unjust that some students who don’t work nearly as hard as other students are the ones who get in sometimes? Yes, sometimes hard-working students get to attend their program of choice, but that’s not always the case.
Bottom line is, magnet programs can be beneficial, but they aren’t perfect - there are flaws to all systems.
Cons
By Lauren Martires
Pros
By Jordan Layola
The person who wrote the cons is an ignoramus; listen to me. The pros of magnet programs outweigh the cons by a good amount due to its flexibility in introducing a blend of cultural diversity (so you don’t just see all white people in one class), it engages students in experience for certain career fields, and simply because it’s free education.
Magnet programs create greater cultural diversity. This is especially helpful in settings where there is a considerably large amount of a certain minority group, especially in some parts of Las Vegas. For example, near Clark, there is a considerable amount of Latinos that are zoned to, obviously, Clark High School. The magnet program at Clark attracts students of many different cultures from distant middle schools for AMSAT, TEACH, and AOF, boosting the ethnic ratios of the total student population.
It introduces students to the real world. Many of the magnet programs in Las Vegas offer a taste of what it’s like to be a dentist, teacher, engineer, or graphic artist. This helps in giving awareness to students so they can make informed decisions if they’d like to pursue something like that in the future. For example, at Clark, we have the TEACH academy, the program that directs young students what it’s like to be a teacher.
It’s free. A pretty simple argument is, why not be in the magnet program? With the hard economical times that are likely to continue, the price of education beyond high school is rising. To put it simply, it would be extremely beneficial to get all that you can without paying for it. When you look at it from a business perspective, this extra education you can receive in high school for free is profitable; just ask an AOF student.
Overall, magnet programs are just something you can’t pass up in such a competitive world. Everyone is competing in this dog-eat-dog world where the more qualities one has, the better. With the magnet program, you learn skills that you give an advantage over everyone else.
