<p>Montgomery County Public School carries two county-wide HS Magnet programs, One is a Magnet IB at Richard Montgomery HS and the other a Science & Technology program at Montgomory Blair HS. The latter
is probably well-known for its number of Intel STS semifinalist nation-widw and the number of PSAT semifinalists State-wide. There are also some high quality private schools out there. </p>
<p>Someones say better and well-balanced educations are from IB programs and high-quality private schools but the science and technology magnet program(s) produce better results. What do high-selective colleges care most ? results or well-balanced education for high schoolers.</p>
<p>Rat lab or no rat lab the RM IB kids get into great schools too. In fact the program already has two graduates who went on the become Rhodes Scholars.</p>
<p>Both the magnet program at RM and the one at Blair are great but they are also small and you must test into them. And both programs are under political pressure. There are a lot of people including newly elected members of the school board who don't like them and indeed I think the program at RM is being surreptiously cut back and watered down. RM is woefully overcrowded.</p>
<p>BTW wonderfully liberal Montgomery County runs one of the most racially and economically segregated school systems I have ever seen.</p>
<p>Both RM and Blair are very overcrowded. I have friends at both of the IB programs who are so underpressure-- no lives, missing out on a lot of fun high school activities. I actually don't know anyone who fully enjoys the program, but that could just be my small circle. </p>
<p>I was accepted into RM's program but opted out because of family issues. I'm currently in a MC high school, no IB program, and have been accepted to all the colleges I applied to. </p>
<p>I think a majority of MC's schools have a strong background that is highly regarded. It's up to your child what route he/she wants to take, any one would give wonderful results if he/she grabs the many opportunities the school offers. </p>
<p>In fact, I am in a WONDERFUL program this year that I would not have had a chance at if I had been in the IB program; the program really shaped and matured me, much more then any IB program, in my honest opinion. It's not always about college. I really feel prepared if someone had chucked me out into the work force right now. :) </p>
<p>around - I didn't say there were not a lot of good schools in the county. It is just that you don't get to pick them unless you can afford to move. Come down to my neighborhood and go to Crimestein if you want to see most everything that is wrong with MCPS.</p>
<p>You are absolutely right about the pressure in those two magnets. Some kids thrive on it but most hit a point at least once where they want to throw in the towel. I know my kid did and he also made the conscious choice that there were things that mattered more to him than being at the top of an extremely competitive group of students. It probably explains why he is NOT in an Ivy :-)</p>
<p>There definitely is life outside these magnets and there is a lot more to learn in your four years of high school than is taught in those six instructional hours. I don't think kids should miss out on those other things - sports, band, plays, music, whatever in the white hot pursuit of grades. So bottom line is you have this parents blessing for your choice.</p>
<p>in response to the comments about students at the magnet programs missing out on the important things in high school, i would say that magnets (at least at the blair magnet, in which i am a senior) most certainly <em>do not</em> miss out on these things. though we magnets work hard, we have a vibrant social and activity life; the annual magnet arts night routinely packs our auditorium way past its capacity for the showcase of music, skits, dance, etc. magnets thrive in extracurricular activities: a magnet is at the helm of america's best high school newspaper; a magnet had the lead in last month's school musical; the school's singing groups have a large magnet contingency; magnets participate heavily in sports (all sports--including football). don't choose not to come to blair because you feel you will miss out on a good time or a life; you'll be busy and overworked, but you will still get to do the things you love (and chances are, you'll do them exceedingly well here at blair).</p>
<p>just wanted to offer a counterpoint to apajas...
though i will agree that a large number of magnets are active in many facets of life, i will also say that the drive to do well that is cemented into the magnet community contributes to a certain dearth of intellectual activity post-graduation.
many magnets are focused to an extreme level on getting into college - have you noticed the number of blair magnets on this forum? anyway, some of these magnets build their entire life around getting in - so yes, they're involved in many activities and have developed certain amazing skills over the years, including those exhibited at magnet arts night, but have they done these things for the right reasons?
i feel that both parental and peer pressure lead many magnets to dive into ECs and academics. once they get into college and their one overwhelming academic goal is reached, many magnets begin to realize that they could have spent their high school years pursuing things that actually interested them, instead of things like the intricate concepts of linear algebra or multivariable calc. what about film? theater? the humanities?</p>
<p>anyway, i'm not trying to diss the magnet program. it's full of some of the most amazing people i've ever met, who are not only incredibly intelligent but are also intellectually alive and really really nice. i just think that some magnets lose the forest for the trees by building their whole life upon academic success and getting into college. so many magnets do not sleep. is that a life?</p>
<p>Anecdotal, I know, but a friend of my S considered Blair and decided the trade-offs weren't worth it and that the regular public was a better fit. He was an Intel and Seimens semi-finalist and is now at Harvard.</p>
<p>Both my daughters are in an IB magnet program. At the intro session, one of the instructors (who had been a dep't chairman at a ritzy prep school) described it as "the best education money can't buy". I can tell you it totally depends on the student. My older daughter leads a very active (her parents might say overactive) social life, she is involved in ECs, community service and still manages to get a great GPA. School has always come easy to her. We were undecided about placing D2 in IB, but she insisted. She is working extremely hard as a freshman, but says she is really enjoying the challenge. So, know your child & get them involved in the decision. Both kids say their classmates who were "forced" to go into IB by their parents are miserable.</p>
<p>It comes down to individual child and family. My house was in walking distance of local HS (NOT a coincidence), and IB program would have been a drive. As I work, it was important for S to have flexibility in coming & going. Many others made same decision because they wanted their friends local and to be involved in more afterschool activities, especially things like band. I'd have to compare the actual content of courses offered in IB to those offered AP, if I had chosen based on academics.</p>
<p>What's important is that the h.s. meets the student's needs. Depending on the student, that could be a magnet program or a nonmagnet program.</p>
<p>In my area, I've seen reluctant students who were forced into our magnet IB program not get into top colleges even though their stats were strong. That's because those programs didn't allow those particular students to run with their intellectual passions.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, students who chose the nonmagnet program for sound reasons and who took full advantage of those opportunities often were selected at Ivies and similar colleges over the IB students.</p>
<p>The most important thing is to pick the h.s. that gives your child the best opportunity to develop their interests -- whether or not those interests will make your student appealing to an Ivy.</p>
<p>Why can't you have results and a well rounded education? There's nothing saying you can't. Students in magnet programs are often very involved in things. I was in a (non Magnet) IB Program, and the lead roles in the plays were held by students doing 5 or 6 certificates. The Drum Major (me) and Guard Captain of the band were IB Diploma students. The IB students played sports. The IB students did hundreds of hours of community service. The IB students held jobs. We had 3 Ivy acceptances, 20+ to UVA/W&M, Duke, USC, Hopkins BME, 3 Military Academies, etc. Keeping in mind that the top students that would have attended my school went to TJ, I'd say the list is fairly impressive.</p>
<p>A student that is driven will find success at whatever high school he/she attends. That said, the IB program will differ a fair amount from a science and tech school. The S&T school will probably have further options in science, math, and computer related fields. The IB program requires writing writing and more writing. Papers in every class. You will be able to turn out college level papers quickly by the time you are done. At either school, the student will be worked, and worked hard. But that doesn't mean they won't have time for other things.</p>
<p>I have to agree with bookworm. It truely depends upon the individual student. Many many students thrive in the magnet/IB environment. These programs offer academic opportunities unavailable or difficult to obtain in neighborhood schools, no matter how upscale the neighborhood. That is not to say that students in their neighborhood schools are precluded from the same experiences, just that the experiences more likely must be obtained outside of the neighborhood school program. The same ECs (sports, drama, newspaper) available to nonmagnet/IB students are available to students in the special programs, and most, if not all, of these students take advantage of these opportunities. Many of these kids have passions outside of the magnet/IB curriculum and they pursue these as they would were they in their neighborhood schools. </p>
<p>I think it is unrealistic to think the bright kids declining to attend a magnet/IB school do not have the identical drive (obsession) to get into the top colleges as do the kids in these special programs or that they don't attempt to tailor their HS activities and academics to make them competitive for top colleges. I have seen kids kept out of the special programs to enhance their chances of getting into a top tier school because of the fewer number of top academic competitors among their peers in the neighborhood school. Jay Matthews did a column a couple of years ago about how one's chances to get into HYP, etc, often can be better from a neighborhood school than from a magnet/IB program, because of the competition from peers. </p>
<p>I think a big difference in attending or not attending an IB/magnet program is the size of the peer group. Instead of being one of perhaps 15 of the top students in the neighborhood school, the magnet/IB student is one of perhaps 50 or 100 top students in the school. </p>
<p>Again, whether to attend or not really should depend upon the particular student in question.</p>
<p>I agree with you about the peer group. ALL of my kids' friends are college and academically oriented. As far as outside activities, the ECs at her school are dominated by the IB kids who make up less than 20% of the school (exception being the basketball and football teams).</p>
<p>Just stumbled across this report of schools with the highest percentage of their total student population achieving scores of 3-5 on AP exams, 2004. It's noteworthy how often TJHSST comes up.</p>