Texas Schools Offer Diverse Magnet School Options

Students attending Texas Public Schools have many choices. They literally have a plethora of magnet programs to choose from. Depending on their grade level, they can choose to attend a school that focuses on providing the 3 Rs with a slant; the Arts, Science, Technology and Foreign Language are all examples of the different types of Texas Schools kids and their parents can choose from.

But what is a magnet school, anyway? A magnet school is a one that, while meeting the educational needs of its students by following state standards, also offers students the chance to study in a unique way. In the beginning, magnet schools were begun with the intent of ending racial segregation. Kids of all economic backgrounds could attend any school they wanted to. In some school systems, like the one that serves many Texas Schools, additional magnet programs have been developed at facilities in locations that parents may have found less than desirable without the magnet option being in place. Instituting magnet programs in Texas Schools has both attracted voluntary enrollment and achieved the desired racial balance.

What are your options? Well, there are magnet programs all throughout the Texas Schools educational system. All students – elementary, middle, and high school – can choose to attend a magnet program. Some Texas Schools programs “feed” into one another; elementary Texas Schools students who attend a performing arts magnet, for example, can continue on to a performing arts middle and high school. Many parents want to ensure their child’s academic success, and that is where the Texas Schools magnet program truly shines. Say your child is really interested in computers. I don’t mean they just like to play computer games. This kid understands all the latest technology, gets excited about tech news, and may have even taken the family PC apart. Well, the little tyke needs to attend a Science and Technology magnet program at one of the Texas Schools! The choice of programs that Texas Schools offer is truly staggering. Following is a sample of some choices in Texas Schools located in Dallas and Houston:

DALLAS HOUSTON
K-5 Visual Arts (grades 4-5) Fine; Creative; and Performing Arts
Leadership (grades 4-5) Leadership; Communication
6-8 Arts (grades 7-8) Fine; Performing Arts
Environmental Science Math & Science; Tech & Spanish
Career Exploratory Architecture & Graphic Design
Law Languages; Physical Development
9-12 Health Professions Meteorology & Space Sciences
Education & Social Services Leadership Academy
Business & Management International Studies

Why should you choose a Texas Schools magnet for your child? I confess that I never knew until it was time for my own children to enroll in school. For our family, sending the kids to a magnet school was a better option than attending our “neighborhood school”. Our children attend a Performing Arts magnet; this choice reflecting my desire to give the kids some early exposure to the arts, since I studied music through college. For my husband, this was a chance to give his children a chance that he never had – exposure to an arts education.

So go ahead, Texas Schools parents, and give magnet schools a try!