President Ramkalawan congratulates outstanding Independent School performers |03 December 2021
President Ramkalawan addressing the gathering (Photo: Joena Meme)
President Wavel Ramkalawan yesterday welcomed some of the outstanding IGCSE and A-Level performers from the Independent School to State House to congratulate them on their excellent achievements.
The fifteen students are among 40 learners from the institution recognised and awarded by international examining body Cambridge, having secured high achievement awards, or as top performers in Seychelles and top in the world in the October/November 2020 examinations.
Addressing the students, President Ramkalawan conveyed his congratulations to the students and school management,
“Congratulations to the Independent School for being the best school in Seychelles right now, not only in 2021, but for a long time, Independent School is producing the results. The school has a way of getting parents involved and we all know that this is what is lacking in government schools,” said President Ramkalawan.
“I am very proud when young Seychellois achieve. Aim to touch the horizon. The sky will be the limit, aim for it. Go as far as you can. And always remember, you have already mastered the discipline of studying, the discipline of being focused, so know what you want to do, and go for it. Because remember, if you do not have a goal, you cannot score. If you find yourself helping a human being, then you will know that it is a good calling, that it is a good cause, so don’t look back, go for it and you will experience inner peace, you will experience greatness,” President Ramkalawan stated.
Minister for Education, Dr Justin Valentin, also joined the head of State in congratulating the institution on maintaining outstanding performance over the years, wishing the students the best in their future endeavours.
Turissa Sullivan, the top performer among all the students, managed to secure 9A*s and 2 A grades in Maths, History, Geography, Business Studies, Accounting, Physics, Biology, English as a first language, English as a second language and French as a foreign language.
“I am very happy with my performance and I achieved over my expectations, and I am happy that I made my teachers, parents and myself proud. I am grateful we had the opportunity to visit the President at the State House, they have been very welcoming and especially during the pandemic, we are honoured to have this opportunity,” the outstanding performer stated.
Turissa is currently enrolled at the school for her A-Levels. She just started her second year and is studying Accounting, Business Studies, Economics, Maths and History, with a vision to study Accounting and Finance or Economics at university.
“During Covid-19 to study and remain determined was very difficult but anything is possible as long as you are determined and keep your focus,” Turissa added.
The students were accompanied by principal Andy Esparon and vice-principal of secondary and A-Levels Kim Balette.
Based on the 2020 October/November examinations, the Independent School had two students awarded among the top 10 in the world for IGCSE Foreign Language French and Foreign Language German, while six students managed to secure top marks in Seychelles for IGCSE Business Studies, First Language English, Geography, History, Information and Communication Technology and Mathematics.
A total of 18 students were awarded the Cambridge International High Achievement award in both AS and A-Level studies in disciplines including Chemistry, Computer Science and Maths. An additional 14 students were best across different subjects.
Laura Pillay
