School Without Walls interview

[Anonymous]

When do we hear back from walls?

[Anonymous]

March 31 - when lottery results come out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wish we got our interview scores right away, just to know if they bombed it or not

If you think your kid's admission (or not) is an indication of a successful or bombed interview then I feel sorry for your kids.

That is how everyone's admission is determined

You miss the point. No one suggested that the interview wasn't how people were "scored" and admissions determined. The point is that the idea that your kid "bombed" it or could in any way have been judged based on a 5 minute interview when no one can explain what the standards are is silly. And you are a terrible parent if you tell your kid they didn't get in because they "interviewed poorly".

I am curious what people think parents should say to their children about why those children and/or their friends did and did not get into Walls. I feel like I had it easy, last year, because my child missed the GPA cutoff. A kid like mine can become a 4.0 student and shrug off Walls as “just 7th grade.” What do you tell a kid who interviewed?

We told ours that it’s pretty arbitrary and essentially a lottery. We said we were proud of him for trying and to think absolutely nothing of it if he doesn’t get in, as that won’t be a reflection on him. He seems to prefer Jackson-Reed anyway or at least to be deeply ambivalent about where he goes to high school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wish we got our interview scores right away, just to know if they bombed it or not

If you think your kid's admission (or not) is an indication of a successful or bombed interview then I feel sorry for your kids.

That is how everyone's admission is determined

You miss the point. No one suggested that the interview wasn't how people were "scored" and admissions determined. The point is that the idea that your kid "bombed" it or could in any way have been judged based on a 5 minute interview when no one can explain what the standards are is silly. And you are a terrible parent if you tell your kid they didn't get in because they "interviewed poorly".

I am curious what people think parents should say to their children about why those children and/or their friends did and did not get into Walls. I feel like I had it easy, last year, because my child missed the GPA cutoff. A kid like mine can become a 4.0 student and shrug off Walls as “just 7th grade.” What do you tell a kid who interviewed?

We told ours that it’s pretty arbitrary and essentially a lottery. We said we were proud of him for trying and to think absolutely nothing of it if he doesn’t get in, as that won’t be a reflection on him. He seems to prefer Jackson-Reed anyway or at least to be deeply ambivalent about where he goes to high school.

Man, mine wants to go so badly. I would love an ambivalent kid right now

[Anonymous]

Has anyone ever taken in a portfolio of their work to show in an interview (like 1-2 minutes) at the end? This would be for a student who won a national science project and wants to show a photo of two of their build. For those who have had Walls interviews, is that even feasible?

[Anonymous]

hello guys. i really want to get into walls and i want to have a basic understanding of what the questions will be like just so i can lower my anxiety. if anyone is aware of what the questions will be for 2024 applications, it would help a lot if you could list them. thanks.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:hello guys. i really want to get into walls and i want to have a basic understanding of what the questions will be like just so i can lower my anxiety. if anyone is aware of what the questions will be for 2024 applications, it would help a lot if you could list them. thanks.

Best of luck! I wouldn't stress about the questions now. No one here knows what this year's questions will be. Last year, the school email student sample questions to practice. Those questions weren't the ones asked on interview day, at least not for my student, but they were questions that got at some of the same concepts as the practice questions. Focusing on the practice questions once you get to the interview stage should be plenty! They were things like how the student promotes diversity and inclusion, book they would choose for a book club and why, designing a school study trip.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:hello guys. i really want to get into walls and i want to have a basic understanding of what the questions will be like just so i can lower my anxiety. if anyone is aware of what the questions will be for 2024 applications, it would help a lot if you could list them. thanks.

My son interviewed 10 yrs ago so I can't recall, but, I would tell you this. Think about the things you've done that you are proud of, your accomplishments, things you want people to know about you. Keep this at the front of your mind and try to use these examples to answer questions they ask you. This is how I handled job interviews. People don't even seem to notice if you don't fully answer their question. LOL. Think about your educational achievements and other things you've done. They may ask what you are most proud of - and something like how you stopped a bully or something would be a GREAT answer. Stuff like that. Show them who you are as a person.

[Anonymous]

When do you find out if your child got to the interview stage (the top 500)? In Feb? First interview day is 2/24 and am wondering when we would know if our son got an interview.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wish we got our interview scores right away, just to know if they bombed it or not

If you think your kid's admission (or not) is an indication of a successful or bombed interview then I feel sorry for your kids.

That is how everyone's admission is determined

You miss the point. No one suggested that the interview wasn't how people were "scored" and admissions determined. The point is that the idea that your kid "bombed" it or could in any way have been judged based on a 5 minute interview when no one can explain what the standards are is silly. And you are a terrible parent if you tell your kid they didn't get in because they "interviewed poorly".

I am curious what people think parents should say to their children about why those children and/or their friends did and did not get into Walls. I feel like I had it easy, last year, because my child missed the GPA cutoff. A kid like mine can become a 4.0 student and shrug off Walls as “just 7th grade.” What do you tell a kid who interviewed?

I would just tell my kid the process is totally random. They interview you to confirm your interest in the school and just randomly select from the kids who pass the interview. That is exactly what it feels like. I can’t wait until we are done with DCPS.

+1. It’s totally random, just like college acceptance, so it’s good practice for that. Tell your kid that the school doesn’t define them— they define themselves.

[Anonymous]

[quote=Anonymous]When do you find out if your child got to the interview stage (the top 500)? In Feb? First interview day is 2/24 and am wondering when we would know if our son got an interview.[/quote]

This is a question for families who have already been through the interview process--

Once families are notified of their interview date, is there an option to reschedule for the other date (March 2nd)? We had booked a trip for February break before Walls announced the interview dates for this year, so we won't be in town on Feb. 24th.

[Anonymous]

[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]When do you find out if your child got to the interview stage (the top 500)? In Feb? First interview day is 2/24 and am wondering when we would know if our son got an interview.[/quote]

This is a question for families who have already been through the interview process--

Once families are notified of their interview date, is there an option to reschedule for the other date (March 2nd)? We had booked a trip for February break before Walls announced the interview dates for this year, so we won't be in town on Feb. 24th.[/quote]

February break? Are you at a charter/private school that has one this year?

[Anonymous]

Yes, some charter schools have February break the week of 2/19 this year.

[Anonymous]

[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]When do you find out if your child got to the interview stage (the top 500)? In Feb? First interview day is 2/24 and am wondering when we would know if our son got an interview.[/quote]

This is a question for families who have already been through the interview process--

Once families are notified of their interview date, is there an option to reschedule for the other date (March 2nd)? We had booked a trip for February break before Walls announced the interview dates for this year, so we won't be in town on Feb. 24th.[/quote]

The Walls staff are really friendly. I'd suggest emailing them saying something like not trying to be presumptuous but if kid selected for interview that you're out of town the first Saturday so would appreciate being scheduled the 2nd weekend. Alot easier to head off the issue then have to find a new time.

[Anonymous]

I would do the opposite actually. The admissions person is hard to reach and always seemed too busy to deal with much. Personally I would wait until the interview is secure. You don’t want to mess with that part of it, and you may get lucky with the date.