School without Walls High Admission test results

[Anonymous]

DCPS seems to think the school should run on auto-pilot and no full-time principal is needed. My child is at Walls and is very happy. She has had some very good teachers and some who are not so great, which I think is pretty typical. The real frustration is there is no reason for the lack of organization, transparency and efficiency. The admissions process is an example of the schools failure on all three of these basic management functions. They have been going through the selection process for many years now, and it is astonishing that the school still is unable to provide a smooth process. I suggest that in addition to contacting DCPS in general, you also contact the Superintendent for SWWHS cluster, David Pinder. His email is [e-mail].

[Anonymous]

Letters with interview times have begun to arrive via email for the 28th.

[Anonymous]

my freshman is loving Walls. It's not perfect but there's enough there to appreciate. I haven't found it to be particularly disorganized.

[Anonymous]

How do we obtain attendance records? Anyone BTDT? Thanks!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have been unimpressed with SWW every step of the way. Every family I know that is applying is doing so as a hedge, not because they're thrilled with the prospect of sending their kids there. The kids are even less enthusiastic.

This has not been our experience...our 8th grade daughter and her friends are very interested in the school and really hoping to be accepted. The school is not perfect, but the kids there are great and really there to learn. It's small and there are really no disruptive behavioral issues, which is a huge benefit. There are some awesome teachers, and some not so great teachers--like all schools. Everyone has their own experience there. Please don't be influenced by the naysayers, or the boosters, for that matter. You really just have to see how it goes for your child, and follow up when you feel you aren't getting the information you need. That's what we've done and it's working out well for us.

signed,
parent of current SWW junior and hopefully freshman next year

[Anonymous]

We have twins who both took the test. Received an email yesterday that one has been invited for an interview, but of course there's no indication which DC they're talking about!

[Anonymous]

I understand the stress of these days and weeks, and agree with many of the organizational issues raised. However, as the parent of two SWWHS children I can say that we are very happy with the education they are receiving, the friends they have made and the opportunities they are being given outside the classroom. Of course, it's not perfect, but a quick look at the private school boards on DCUM will highlight shortcomings of any school. We've found the Administration to be responsive on individual issues, if not on bigger picture questions (e.g. dedicated principal) and a very engaged and passionate set of parents. No school is a good fit for every child, but as you stress over tests and interviews, at least know that the actual high school experience has been a very positive one for many families and kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We have twins who both took the test. Received an email yesterday that one has been invited for an interview, but of course there's no indication which DC they're talking about!

That's crazy!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We have twins who both took the test. Received an email yesterday that one has been invited for an interview, but of course there's no indication which DC they're talking about!

I had twins apply last year and had the same experience every step of the way. One notification for two kids, no names on anything. Both were ultimately accepted, but I got the feeling that if only one had been I could have enrolled both and no one would have known the difference.

[Anonymous]

It's been a few years but this was our experience when dd applied to magnet programs and highschools. Walls was disorganized and frustrating. Banneker was super organized and impressive (how I wish dd had wanted to go there) and Wilson and Ellington were somewhere in between.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We have twins who both took the test. Received an email yesterday that one has been invited for an interview, but of course there's no indication which DC they're talking about!

That's crazy!

Well, in SWW's defense, I got a very prompt response to my email asking for clarification. Both passed the test, although neither is interested in actually attending.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I understand the stress of these days and weeks, and agree with many of the organizational issues raised. However, as the parent of two SWWHS children I can say that we are very happy with the education they are receiving, the friends they have made and the opportunities they are being given outside the classroom. Of course, it's not perfect, but a quick look at the private school boards on DCUM will highlight shortcomings of any school. We've found the Administration to be responsive on individual issues, if not on bigger picture questions (e.g. dedicated principal) and a very engaged and passionate set of parents. No school is a good fit for every child, but as you stress over tests and interviews, at least know that the actual high school experience has been a very positive one for many families and kids.

+1. My freshman is having a (geeky) blast.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:my freshman is loving Walls. It's not perfect but there's enough there to appreciate. I haven't found it to be particularly disorganized.

Another freshman parent here. My child LOVES Walls. I have to say we were pretty pessimistic and have been pleasantly surprised. It is not disorganized at all. In fact, I'd say for a School called "without walls" there is a lot of more rigidity than I expected. The teachers are generally OK. Of the 8 or so teachers my child has had, I would only call one outstanding, several very good, and a couple just adequate (none awful). The work is challenging but not overwhelming as my child has excellent time management skills. The school still has this aura of arrogance it needs to tone down and the admissions process is in a state of havoc and needs a complete re-haul. But still I think for my child it was a much better fit than Wilson would have been.

[Anonymous]

I have a child at Wilson and Walls. Both have there pluses and minuses. The big minus regarding Walls is the administration. The PP said she/he finds it does not suffer from a lack of structure/organization, but I would strongly disagree. Comparing the two schools, Wilson with over 2,000 students and Walls with under 600, it is amazing to me how much better organized Wilson is. Even just dealing with Parent Teacher sign-up. At Wilson you can select all classes at one time schedule each appointment and then get a confirming email with your schedule. At Walls, you have to go into the system anew for each class and be sure to write your appointment down because there is no confirmation with times and schedule. This is merely one example.

Back to school night is another. Wilson had a well organized operation at which you followed your child's schedule and each teacher gave a 10 minute presentation on the class. On the contrary, at Walls they have all humanities teachers in one room with about 100 parents and they speak generally about humanities at Walls, but nothing about an individual class. The worst is the foreign language presentation as they have every foreign language together, which of course is completely useless.

The PP definitely got it right that the admissions process is chaos. This is ridiculous given how long they have been doing it. I guess that is the most frustrating part of Walls is the administration never learns from their mistakes. Mistakes are expected, but I cannot stand seeing the same ones year after year! It is clear that they are arrogant enough to believe that people will just overlook these stumbles and come anyway, and to an extent they are right, but it just seems so unnecessary and is a turnoff to many families.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have a child at Wilson and Walls. Both have there pluses and minuses. The big minus regarding Walls is the administration. The PP said she/he finds it does not suffer from a lack of structure/organization, but I would strongly disagree. Comparing the two schools, Wilson with over 2,000 students and Walls with under 600, it is amazing to me how much better organized Wilson is. Even just dealing with Parent Teacher sign-up. At Wilson you can select all classes at one time schedule each appointment and then get a confirming email with your schedule. At Walls, you have to go into the system anew for each class and be sure to write your appointment down because there is no confirmation with times and schedule. This is merely one example.

Back to school night is another. Wilson had a well organized operation at which you followed your child's schedule and each teacher gave a 10 minute presentation on the class. On the contrary, at Walls they have all humanities teachers in one room with about 100 parents and they speak generally about humanities at Walls, but nothing about an individual class. The worst is the foreign language presentation as they have every foreign language together, which of course is completely useless.

The PP definitely got it right that the admissions process is chaos. This is ridiculous given how long they have been doing it. I guess that is the most frustrating part of Walls is the administration never learns from their mistakes. Mistakes are expected, but I cannot stand seeing the same ones year after year! It is clear that they are arrogant enough to believe that people will just overlook these stumbles and come anyway, and to an extent they are right, but it just seems so unnecessary and is a turnoff to many families.

how do you think they would do with handling a kid who needs accommodations for testing and the like given their disorganization?