Originally founded as an alternative way to racially integrate public schools, magnet schools have become a way for public school students to choose the school they attend instead of going to a neighborhood school. According to Christine Rossel's article, "Magnet Schools," being allowed to choose a school will result in improved satisfaction with the school, which leads to higher achievement.
Magnet schools often possess more racially diverse student bodies than neighborhood schools, as neighborhoods are often racially segregated by choice. Considering the many important lessons kids can learn from exposure to different ethnicities, such as tolerance and respect, this may be an indirect enhancement for students of magnet schools.
According to the U.S. Department of Education, magnet schools can serve as laboratories for successful educational practice, meaning that teachers and administrators are more free to adopt innovative teaching techniques. Some students learn better in non-traditional classroom environments, and all kids benefit from exposure to new ideas and methods.
Many magnet schools, especially those at the high school level, specialize in a particular area of study, such as performing arts, advanced math, science, or technology. Others train students to begin a specific career path, such as medicine, law, or communications. Magnet elementary schools might focus on foreign language immersion or Montessori-style learning, according to Rossel.
Students learn better when parents and teachers have high expectations for them, and many magnet schools establish their higher expectations from the start, with entrance criteria. According to the DOE, magnet schools have been shown to "continuously improve over the years," thereby increasing student achievement annually.