SWW - when do notices go out about interviews?

[Anonymous]

I'm so nervous for the waiting game. I told my daughter that she tried her best and shouldn't be bummed if not accepted. We all know every kid that got an interview was at least qualified in some way so it is tough. I feel very sorry for all the deserving children who didn't get one after reading this, hope you get into another top school! (Also please remember to not let your anger get to your kids. They don't want to feel that it was their fault but they also should not feel entitled to a spot).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents are sh*tting on a parent of an otherwise qualified kid who didn’t get an interview just because the kid climbed Mount Kilimanjaro but no one is saying that this climb makes the kid qualified.

The fact is that the Walls admissions process is not only opaque, subjective, and unfair but absurd. Two teacher recommendations--graded subjectively by overworked Walls admissions staff--count three times more than GPA. And a three-question interview (“Pick a number between 1 and 20”) and one paragraph “essay”--the interview graded by a Walls teenager and Walls staff member and the “essay” graded by admission staff--count for six times more than GPA.

No magnet school outside of DC has an admissions process even remotely as dumb as this.

And the results are already in: Last year, over 30% of Walls 9th graders scored below grade level in math on the PARCC.

Does anyone seriously think that the Walls admissions process is selecting the top students in the application pool?

Wondering: Where are you getting this information? PARCC tests algebra or geometry specifically, not "grade level" for 9th graders.

If you go to the OSSE spreadsheets, you can pull the pass rate for all students enrolled in any given grade at any given school, regardless of which math PARCC they took. But if you believe that it’s better for a 9th grader to fail the Geometry exam than to pass the Algebra I exam, then the overall pass rate isn’t meaningful.

This is only as accurate as the number of 9th graders who take Algebra and/or Geometry. My kid started at Walls Pre-Calc and a number of their classmates started with Algebra II. PARCC doesn't test beyond Geometry so any 9th graders on an advanced math track would not be included in the stats above - rather than saying 30%. of Walls 9th graders scored below. grade level in math on the PARCC it would be more accurate to say 30% of 9th graders in Algebra I and/or Geometry.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents are sh*tting on a parent of an otherwise qualified kid who didn’t get an interview just because the kid climbed Mount Kilimanjaro but no one is saying that this climb makes the kid qualified.

The fact is that the Walls admissions process is not only opaque, subjective, and unfair but absurd. Two teacher recommendations--graded subjectively by overworked Walls admissions staff--count three times more than GPA. And a three-question interview (“Pick a number between 1 and 20”) and one paragraph “essay”--the interview graded by a Walls teenager and Walls staff member and the “essay” graded by admission staff--count for six times more than GPA.

No magnet school outside of DC has an admissions process even remotely as dumb as this.

And the results are already in: Last year, over 30% of Walls 9th graders scored below grade level in math on the PARCC.

Does anyone seriously think that the Walls admissions process is selecting the top students in the application pool?

Wondering: Where are you getting this information? PARCC tests algebra or geometry specifically, not "grade level" for 9th graders.

If you go to the OSSE spreadsheets, you can pull the pass rate for all students enrolled in any given grade at any given school, regardless of which math PARCC they took. But if you believe that it’s better for a 9th grader to fail the Geometry exam than to pass the Algebra I exam, then the overall pass rate isn’t meaningful.

This is only as accurate as the number of 9th graders who take Algebra and/or Geometry. My kid started at Walls Pre-Calc and a number of their classmates started with Algebra II. PARCC doesn't test beyond Geometry so any 9th graders on an advanced math track would not be included in the stats above - rather than saying 30%. of Walls 9th graders scored below. grade level in math on the PARCC it would be more accurate to say 30% of 9th graders in Algebra I and/or Geometry.

There is an Algebra II PARCC. My 9th grader took it last spring.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
I debated posting this. I can feel the very understandable pain and disappointment of a kid who has worked hard to get there, and didn’t make the cut. Sharing to shed some light; maybe it really is random.

Thanks for sharing - I hope your kid has a good outcome. And yes, I think the key takeaway is that it IS arbitrary/random and there is nothing a kid can do to ensure that they are in the interview pool. Which is a hard lesson, given how many kids do not have a by-right or feeder school with classes that will meet their needs.

Congrats to Latin and Basis, I guess. Their applicant pools will only get stronger with this change. I imagine it will negatively effect some of the tenuous progress at other middle schools in the city.

THIS. DCPS had, past tense, 1 decent test in school with high performing kids and stats. They are just destroying it like everything else they touch.

The charters (Basis, Latin, DCI) will benefit as top kids play the lottery earlier for middle school and then decide not to apply to SWW as the academic cohort declines or the kids don’t get in if they apply.

Privates will benefit also as families with financial means will opt out of SWW. Families without financial means will move to burbs.

We are already seeing it at JR as more families with the highest performing kids are not tracking there with honors for all.

Get out of DCPS. It’s a race to the bottom.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm so nervous for the waiting game. I told my daughter that she tried her best and shouldn't be bummed if not accepted. We all know every kid that got an interview was at least qualified in some way so it is tough. I feel very sorry for all the deserving children who didn't get one after reading this, hope you get into another top school! (Also please remember to not let your anger get to your kids. They don't want to feel that it was their fault but they also should not feel entitled to a spot).

What other top school are you thinking about? Because that’s a nice sentiment, but there isn’t one for kids who don’t like the “achiever” vibe at Banneker and can’t access JR. (No knock on Banneker - I have one kid who loved it and one who couldn’t stand it.)

[Anonymous]

KILIMANJARO

[Anonymous]

My kid didn’t get into Walls last year. I explained to them that the process was basically a lottery and not to take it to heart. They were a straight A student at Deal for all three years, played a sport that does well at Walls, and was a kid that tests remarkably well. (Consistent top scores on all PARCC tests and did very well on the 9th grade PSAT). But the 5 minute interview didn’t play to their strengths and I couldn’t even use my own conversational abilities to make up for it because it was too high pressure and random even for me. So, they’re at Jackson-Reed and thriving so far. I was really frustrated when they took a hit to their ego by not getting in and then comparing themselves to other students who did get in. But, I really feel like they’re where they belong and that it’s all worked out for the best.

I hope this helps some folks take heart as they navigate the process this year. It’s a lottery and it’s not personal.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:KILIMANJARO

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Does anyone know if SWW prioritizes DCPS students over ones applying from privates?

No preference.

That stinks. They should prioritize kids coming out of the dcps system over those that are opting in now.

That I am dead against! Already a very coveted school with very little spots and we are giving them to kids from private schools? BS.

If the families pay tax in dc, they are eligible for dc schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Does anyone know if SWW prioritizes DCPS students over ones applying from privates?

No preference.

That stinks. They should prioritize kids coming out of the dcps system over those that are opting in now.

That I am dead against! Already a very coveted school with very little spots and we are giving them to kids from private schools? BS.

Some families didn't strike gold in the lottery and went private vs moving. These are not the Upper NW apartment renters but long time home owners. Are their tax dollars being refunded? What do you have to say to them?

Public school children should be favored for a public magnet school. And regarding your tax refund, new flash! the money doesn't just go to schools and even if it did, what a ridiculous thought. Just because you're too afraid to send your precious spawn to public school like the rest of us doesn't mean you, who clearly has money as a long-time homeowner should be considered equally in a PUBLIC school magnet program. Stay in private school!

Any DC resident is eligible for services, schools, etc. in DC -- whether they choose to use them or not.

[Anonymous]

For other top schools there’s Latin, DCI, MacArthur, then you can try the lottery system for out of boundary JR.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kid didn’t get into Walls last year. I explained to them that the process was basically a lottery and not to take it to heart. They were a straight A student at Deal for all three years, played a sport that does well at Walls, and was a kid that tests remarkably well. (Consistent top scores on all PARCC tests and did very well on the 9th grade PSAT). But the 5 minute interview didn’t play to their strengths and I couldn’t even use my own conversational abilities to make up for it because it was too high pressure and random even for me. So, they’re at Jackson-Reed and thriving so far. I was really frustrated when they took a hit to their ego by not getting in and then comparing themselves to other students who did get in. But, I really feel like they’re where they belong and that it’s all worked out for the best.

I hope this helps some folks take heart as they navigate the process this year. It’s a lottery and it’s not personal.

You rock, PP, taking this self-defeating idiocy with such grace. But you're WotP. Over here, on Capitol Hill, families without lottery luck for the Latins or BASIS or the means for privates sometimes move. It takes an hour on public transport and on foot to get to DCI, which has proved too rowdy for my eldest. Too many kids don't want to be in the building, too many good teachers quit mid-year. We're aiming for Banneker but may move if it doesn't pan out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For other top schools there’s Latin, DCI, MacArthur, then you can try the lottery system for out of boundary JR.

There's Latin if you're very lucky in 4th grade. Your odds of cracking Latin later on are essentially nil. MacArthur is very hard to get to if you're not in Upper NW. So is DCI, which suffers from awful teacher turnover and poor discipline. Banneker is looking like the best bet for many of us.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kid didn’t get into Walls last year. I explained to them that the process was basically a lottery and not to take it to heart. They were a straight A student at Deal for all three years, played a sport that does well at Walls, and was a kid that tests remarkably well. (Consistent top scores on all PARCC tests and did very well on the 9th grade PSAT). But the 5 minute interview didn’t play to their strengths and I couldn’t even use my own conversational abilities to make up for it because it was too high pressure and random even for me. So, they’re at Jackson-Reed and thriving so far. I was really frustrated when they took a hit to their ego by not getting in and then comparing themselves to other students who did get in. But, I really feel like they’re where they belong and that it’s all worked out for the best.

I hope this helps some folks take heart as they navigate the process this year. It’s a lottery and it’s not personal.

You rock, PP, taking this self-defeating idiocy with such grace. But you're WotP. Over here, on Capitol Hill, families without lottery luck for the Latins or BASIS or the means for privates sometimes move. It takes an hour on public transport and on foot to get to DCI, which has proved too rowdy for my eldest. Too many kids don't want to be in the building, too many good teachers quit mid-year. We're aiming for Banneker but may move if it doesn't pan out.

Yes. When you aren't in bounds for either JR or MacArthur, this is an infinitely more stressful process. We are in Shaw, and if my kids don't get into an application school (or somehow lottery into MacArthur), we would have to move or try to get into private. There is no backup, default option.

[Anonymous]

The lottery is pure luck. Banneker and McKinley Tech HS have the next largest numbers of seats available for 9th grade. Last year Latin only had 15 open seats and McArthur 63. J-R had 0, so unless you're inbound you have no chance. There were over 1500 applicants for SWW this year.

Look at the data history:

https://public.tableau.com/app/profile/aaron2446/viz/MSDCSeatsandWaitlistOfferData_draft/MSDCPublicDisplay