In school choice debates, the role that magnet schools can and should play often gets drowned out by arguments over charters, vouchers, ESAs, and the like. That’s a shame. Many of our best public high schools are magnets, and there have been several compelling—albeit anecdotal— analyses showing that rigorous magnet programs can be a boon for low-income kids (including, of course, a book by Chester Finn).
Since the 1970s, however, the definition of magnet schools has broadened to include any kind of specialized curriculum, from arts and languages to experiential learning and STEM. In many cases, the schools are not selective (or particularly selective). Magnet schools have been created by district administrators for purposes beyond academic rigor—most notably to promote desegregation or to offer more choices to families. The American Institute for Research’s recent study takes a look at whether magnet elementary schools are able to achieve their intended aims.
The study follows twenty-one schools that receive funds from the Department of Education’s Magnet Schools Assistance Program (MSAP) to convert into magnets. The analysts found a mixed legacy of success: The schools surveyed showed some indications of increased diversity, and “traditional magnets”—those with lower pre-conversion achievement rates—improved in English language arts performance. Yet these effects tended to be small, and many of the changes seen in transitioning schools, such as academic improvements among the population of interest, were illustrative of larger district trends.
Interestingly, most of the magnet schools were in districts that already offered ample parent choice—about 22 percent of the schools in any given district were schools of choice, and anywhere from one-fifth to one-third of students in a converting school already hailed from outside the catchment zone. To reach their goals in such a competitive marketplace, one can infer that magnet schools need to truly stand out. Magnets could take a page or two out of successful charters’ playbooks—philanthropic support of high-quality programming, for instance, or greater teacher autonomy—to set themselves apart from other schools with a specialized focus. Another thought might be for the magnets to return to their core promise of working with the most academically gifted students, a niche that lotteries prevent many charters from targeting. Either path would help magnets distinguish themselves again.
SOURCE: Julian Betts et al., “What Happens When Schools Become Magnet Schools?: A Longitudinal Study of Diversity and Achievement,” American Institutes for Research (May 2015).
