SWW - when do notices go out about interviews?

[Anonymous]

The lowest GPA to get an interview was 3.7. That is 4 points. Assume that person had perfect teacher recs, which would be 30 points. That suggests that the cut-off for interviews was 34/35 points.

Assume that a kid had a 4.0 and would get 5 points. Also assume that kid had slightly imperfect teacher recs, receiving 28 of 30 points. That kid would have 33/35 points and not receive an interview.

So, Walls' subjective evaluation of the teacher recs as having a score of 14 each (instead of 15 points each) would be enough to sink a candidate who earned a significantly higher GPA.

How does that make sense?

[Anonymous]

Daaang. I wonder if the Walls administration realized the position they were putting Math and ELA teachers in with this new formula. That's a lot to put on them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The lowest GPA to get an interview was 3.7. That is 4 points. Assume that person had perfect teacher recs, which would be 30 points. That suggests that the cut-off for interviews was 34/35 points.

Assume that a kid had a 4.0 and would get 5 points. Also assume that kid had slightly imperfect teacher recs, receiving 28 of 30 points. That kid would have 33/35 points and not receive an interview.

So, Walls' subjective evaluation of the teacher recs as having a score of 14 each (instead of 15 points each) would be enough to sink a candidate who earned a significantly higher GPA.

How does that make sense?

Wow. So basically it was a lottery based on who your teachers were and how they chose to complete the rec.

I'm sure there were teachers who:

-gave all A students a 15
-gave all A students a 14 (because it's human nature for some reviewers to never pick the highest possible rating on any scale)
-spread A students out between 13 and 15, based on subtleties of their performance.

[Anonymous]

Bowser is attending a Foxhall Community Citizens Association meeting this evening from 6:30 to 8:00 PM at the Hardy Rec Center on 45th and Q St.. Public schools will probably be front and center during the discussion anyway, so those who are annoyed as I am about the decimation of SWW's admissions standards should show up and let her know of the damage that is being done to what was once the premier academic high school in the city.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The lowest GPA to get an interview was 3.7. That is 4 points. Assume that person had perfect teacher recs, which would be 30 points. That suggests that the cut-off for interviews was 34/35 points.

Assume that a kid had a 4.0 and would get 5 points. Also assume that kid had slightly imperfect teacher recs, receiving 28 of 30 points. That kid would have 33/35 points and not receive an interview.

So, Walls' subjective evaluation of the teacher recs as having a score of 14 each (instead of 15 points each) would be enough to sink a candidate who earned a significantly higher GPA.

How does that make sense?

Wow. So basically it was a lottery based on who your teachers were and how they chose to complete the rec.

I'm sure there were teachers who:

-gave all A students a 15
-gave all A students a 14 (because it's human nature for some reviewers to never pick the highest possible rating on any scale)
-spread A students out between 13 and 15, based on subtleties of their performance.

Also, the lack of kids with IEPs and 504s at Walls has been criticized for YEARS. Guess what bias you further reinforce for those "harder to teach" kids when you give outsize weight to teacher recs?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP: I mean, did you even bother to have your kid apply to other schools like Banneker - McKinley or lottery for Latin - Basis? Walls has been cultivating absolute mediocrity for the past four years since getting rid of the test, yet everyone on this forum continues to act as if it is the only best high school in DC. It's not. Your kid deserves better.

This is hilarious! None of the other schools are test based either. So what are they?

SWW has been the same school for a long time. Just search this Board-same complaints from a decade ago. Plenty of the kids that were admitted under the "test" have struggled at SWW. It's a lot easier to have mommy pay from test prep than to have great exec functioning and determination to excel. Testing has it's place but it's certainly not the only factor for a scuccessful student.

Empirical research disagrees with you: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/07/briefing/the-misguided-war-on-the-sat.html

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I spoke with Walls. They told me the GPA threshold to be considered this year was 3.7. So all kids with a 3.7 or higher were in the pool, and then they applied a score to each kid based on their GPA and teacher recs.

Wow. Honestly, with grade inflation and retake policies, etc., 3.7 is pretty low. I wouldn't think a 3.7 student would be very strong (probably at the median distribution point of a grade/class?).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Wow. Honestly, with grade inflation and retake policies, etc., 3.7 is pretty low. I wouldn't think a 3.7 student would be very strong (probably at the median distribution point of a grade/class?).

Depends on the school. Certain charters and private schools aren’t inflating their grades like DCPS.

[Anonymous]

Maybe some kids are straight A kids but are jerks in the classroom?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP: I mean, did you even bother to have your kid apply to other schools like Banneker - McKinley or lottery for Latin - Basis? Walls has been cultivating absolute mediocrity for the past four years since getting rid of the test, yet everyone on this forum continues to act as if it is the only best high school in DC. It's not. Your kid deserves better.

This is hilarious! None of the other schools are test based either. So what are they?

SWW has been the same school for a long time. Just search this Board-same complaints from a decade ago. Plenty of the kids that were admitted under the "test" have struggled at SWW. It's a lot easier to have mommy pay from test prep than to have great exec functioning and determination to excel. Testing has it's place but it's certainly not the only factor for a scuccessful student.

No one is saying it should be the only factor. Stop erecting straw men.

What is hilarious is you defending the ridiculous Rube Goldberg admissions system that Walls has come up with. No other magnet school uses anything like it.

Really... See Banneker. Been doing it for years. That's the system SWW is using now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP: I mean, did you even bother to have your kid apply to other schools like Banneker - McKinley or lottery for Latin - Basis? Walls has been cultivating absolute mediocrity for the past four years since getting rid of the test, yet everyone on this forum continues to act as if it is the only best high school in DC. It's not. Your kid deserves better.

This is hilarious! None of the other schools are test based either. So what are they?

SWW has been the same school for a long time. Just search this Board-same complaints from a decade ago. Plenty of the kids that were admitted under the "test" have struggled at SWW. It's a lot easier to have mommy pay from test prep than to have great exec functioning and determination to excel. Testing has it's place but it's certainly not the only factor for a scuccessful student.

Empirical research disagrees with you: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/07/briefing/the-misguided-war-on-the-sat.html

You sure about that....https://www.nea.org/nea-today/all-news-articles/standardized-testing-still-failing-students#:~:text=Key%20Takeaways,engaging%20for%20students%20and%20teachers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Maybe some kids are straight A kids but are jerks in the classroom?

Who cares? It's DCPS's job to educate all kids who live in DC who want to attend DCPS schools. If Walls is appropriate academically for you, they should not be turning you down for being annoying. You're going to be just as annoying at your neighborhood high school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Maybe some kids are straight A kids but are jerks in the classroom?

Who cares? It's DCPS's job to educate all kids who live in DC who want to attend DCPS schools. If Walls is appropriate academically for you, they should not be turning you down for being annoying. You're going to be just as annoying at your neighborhood high school.

Probably more annoying since you aren't being remotely challenged by the programming.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP: I mean, did you even bother to have your kid apply to other schools like Banneker - McKinley or lottery for Latin - Basis? Walls has been cultivating absolute mediocrity for the past four years since getting rid of the test, yet everyone on this forum continues to act as if it is the only best high school in DC. It's not. Your kid deserves better.

This is hilarious! None of the other schools are test based either. So what are they?

SWW has been the same school for a long time. Just search this Board-same complaints from a decade ago. Plenty of the kids that were admitted under the "test" have struggled at SWW. It's a lot easier to have mommy pay from test prep than to have great exec functioning and determination to excel. Testing has it's place but it's certainly not the only factor for a scuccessful student.

No one is saying it should be the only factor. Stop erecting straw men.

What is hilarious is you defending the ridiculous Rube Goldberg admissions system that Walls has come up with. No other magnet school uses anything like it.

Really... See Banneker. Been doing it for years. That's the system SWW is using now.

Not really. Banneker has trouble filling its seats every year with qualified kids. Plus, they have no minimum GPA for admission and even admit kids with a GPA lower than 2.5.

[Anonymous]

Anybody from BASIS offered an interview?