Attending A Magnet School Program Essay

I will contribute to the MSOE Community with my ambition and sense of civic duty; these characteristics were created by my passion for learning, my collaborative skills, awareness, and my assertive character.

Why would students want to attend a magnet school? The reason may be because magnet schools offer a variety of specialized programs that students can choose from. Programs such as visual and performing arts, mathematics, sciences, and many others are available for students to choose from. Similar to having a major in college, students at magnet schools have their own specialized area that they can take classes in, in addition to basic academic classes. They are encouraged to be creative and to hone their skills in their area of interest.

For the purpose of observing a school environment, I was granted the opportunity to visit Marcy Open School, a K-8 Minneapolis Public School located in 415 University Ave SE, Minneapolis, MN. Like all magnet schools, Marcy Open School strives to achieve racial balance and incorporates specialized curricular themes to reach out to its scholars. In addition, the school website states the mission of the school is to,” Educate for life-long learning in a respectful environment that emphasizes responsibility, creativity, curiosity, and connectedness to the world”. To enhance students’ learning outcomes, Marcy Open School incorporates the following nine unique programs: Marcy Arts Partnership, a program that funds for arts-integrated programs and residencies for all children, regardless of race, religion, developmental level or socioeconomic status. Parents established the program in 1995 in an effort to connect students with the wider community and strengthen students’ education. Also, the school provides Path to Reading Excellence in School Sites (PRESS) a partnership between, target, the University of Minnesota, Reading Corps, and select Minneapolis schools (Marcy included), that focuses on teachers and students in grades K-3 and provides them Quality Core Instruction, Data-Based Decision Making, Tiered Interventions, and Professional Development. This program was designed because ample research proves that children’s’ ability to read by third grade determines their future

“93 percent of Americans consider the arts to be vital to providing a well-rounded education for children and a critical link to learning and success” (“Why” par. 3). Going against this though, school budgets give less to arts programs each year. This can be exemplified in the lack of liberal arts programs that schools across the country are able to provide. In 2009, a mere four percent of schools offered theater classes and an even lower three percent offered dance classes (Metla par. 3) Of course the school must give time for the basic english, math, and history classes, but those classes can be amplified in what students get out of them by the addition of liberal arts courses. If students have an art or music class that gives them passion,

The two stories for this week appear to share a common theme in their makeup and presentation. Both of these stories make a solid case on how established educational institutions, at any given level, have the capability to impact the mind to a great degree. The contrasting experiences from each narrative serves to highlight the potential effects of schools on its students based on experiences and influences outside of the classroom.

“I refused to let schooling get in the way of my education,” was famously said by author Mark Twain. Schools are intended to foster personal growth and ignite a lifelong passion for learning, yet sadly schools have evolved in a way that promotes conformity at the expense of authentic education. Rather than continuing this broken system, it is time for a change. Individuality has, for far too long, been pushed to the wayside in our schools; it is time to allow students and families to make decisions in choosing classes and scheduling so future goals and aspirations can be met.

This study gathered data from five elementary schools between two school districts, comparing curriculum used in the second, fifth, and sixth grade levels. Teachers and students were interviewed about the differences in the methods they used to teach content for language arts, social studies, math and science. The differences in the school environments were compared along with the social class and neighborhoods the students came from.

Every year, American teachers discover that the youth have a 5D relationship with their schools: dissatisfied, disengaged, disaffected, disrespectful, and disruptive. In this prolific source of educational substances, the paucity of satisfaction of the students and the predilections of the teachers militate in some measure against a just valuation being accorded to such researches. “Policy makers remain oblivious to the fact that ‘kids are not what they used to be,’” and in order to re-engage the young, serious research on everyday education needs to be expressed (p. 33). The U.S. education system needs to understand that ambiguity exists, and a rapid cycle of policy changes will stagnate their efforts to achieving cultural globalization.

[Introduction] Extra recess, free choice, no computer lab —to much spark time. The elementary school I was visiting is one of the best schools in one of the best School District in Arizona, rated both with an A, the maximum educational quality level for a school. “All the schools in this District are same good…” I remember the words of the Principal during the school tour. I felt so satisfied, I was on the right path looking for the best public school for my family, moving from Colorado. But where was the art class? where was the gym equipment? where were the instruments at the music class? why there were so many tables in the classroom.? For a person who cares about children’s education there are so many questions

When discussing a school schedule, what is expected to hear? Arithmetic, English, sciences, history, and physical education are included in basic high school day-to-day schedules. How often, however, does one hear painting, theater, dance, and film? The arts are being cast aside so the funding can go to subjects that are believed to be more essential to the lives of people. It is not often seen, unfortunately, that the arts are just as, if not more, essential to the same people’s lives. These people need the creativity and stimulation that only the arts can provide. The arts need to be better funded and supported in the public school systems.

The American School system has always come under fire for its lack of education and resources for students. Some complain that school is too long, others that schools do not teach enough. In fact, many students feel that their classes are a waste of time and do not benefit them in the real world. Teachers, on the other hand, feel that they do not get enough time to teach students essential information. The question is, how can we change schools for the benefit of the students while teaching them imperative information? Schools across Europe, especially those in Scandinavia, are praised for their school standards. American Schools should adapt a new form of high schools similar to those in Scandinavia.

Education seems to be becoming more and more of a controversial subject not only among government, but also with school boards, teachers, parents, and even the students. Some of this controversy is attributed to the normal routine things such as starting times, funding for clubs and sports, and more recently the rise of violence in the schools, as well as outcries from the church for the return of religion in the schools. However, people of today's society are even more confused by the recent additions of new subjects not only the college curriculum but also in the curriculum of grade schoolers as well. These additions include the study of non-western cultures, the study of women and ethnic minorities in the U.S., and finally the study of

Have you ever wondered about the way the education system is carried out in the United States? How about if students from small towns are at a disadvantage? Coming from a small town, my high school was exactly like the typical American high school described by Amanda Ripley, in her book, “The Smartest Kids in the World: And How They Got That Way.” After reading this book and taking careful notes, I now see many relationships between her book and my old high school, which I will describe in this piece. My high School, Wellsboro Area High School, was disorganized, lacking rigor because of many factors, including sports, biased, and lacked teacher confidence. Now, finally in college, I get to reflect on my experience and speak the truth about what I thought while in the education system.

Public education in America strives to benefit communities through teaching democratic principles and the common values of society through equal opportunities for learning: equal opportunities do not create equal outcomes. What the public education system attempts in actuality are equitable processes, in that all individuals are given a chance to try to get an education (Dai, 2013). Conflict theory views education in a capitalist society as a way to maintain social inequality and preserve economic and political power for the dominant population; the underlying hidden curriculum serves to indoctrinate the accession of working classes into the lower positions in society (Turner, 1975). Over the last decade, the majority of public schools have shifted their attention to ensuring there is equivalent access to specialized education programs for African Americans and other minorities, as well as to students with disabilities or limited English proficiency (Resnick, 2006) in conjunction with the standard rubric; public schools are adapting to the changing landscape of society, and broadening the scope of specialized curriculum to service more diverse students both culturally and ethnically in accelerating their academic ability. Children of both high and low-income families are born with highly-abled abilities, but opportunities to enhance these abilities are not equally represented, and mobility between the social classes

When I was still in the 7th grade, I was sent by my middle school to the local high school to attend classes. My middle school did not offer a rigorous enough curriculum a lack of funds needed to diversify the classes the school district offered. I was not the first student in my district to attend high school classes while still in middle school, in fact, a few students that I knew personally had already done this.. I identified with their frustration when they, as sophomores, had already completed the highest math and English courses the high school offered and there was nothing at a higher level left for them to study in those subjects. I witnessed smart, ambitious, hardworking students in a school system that was unable to meet their needs. However, despite there being