Hall of Fame introduced in three more schools |14 November 2019
The four awardees from Plaisance school in a souvenir photograph with guests (Photo: Jude Morel)
The Hall of Fame, a project aimed at encouraging students to perform with excellence in their studies, was launched in the Plaisance and Glacis primary and Beau Vallon secondary schools yesterday.
The ceremony held at the Plaisance primary school was attended by the founder of the Hall of Fame project Georgina Dhillon, the principal secretary for early childhood, primary and secondary education, Dr Odile de Commarmond, the director general for primary education Cyril Pillay, the school’s head teacher, Thérèse Athanase, as well as students, teachers and parents.
So far, the Hall of Fame has been introduced in 16 schools , including two schools on Praslin, and all due to the initiative of Mrs Dhillon.
“Every time we come, we try to go to five schools and we have also distributed 36 boards to set up the Wall of Fame. This time we have done something new with the trophies by adding three stars representing the school/teachers, second star representing the parents and the third star representing the students. The trophy is to remind us that it is a group effort to make a child succeed. The other thing we introduced this time is the Hall of Fame background where the students can be a lot happier with,” said Mrs Dhillon.
She explained that she also introduced a survey to track down the students who were already awarded and to see how they are coming along so as to keep that as a record for the future. This is aimed at keeping abreast of what their achievements are and to encourage them to continue in their studies. On a follow up visit, when she returns in the future, she will see what the students have achieved and how they could be supported.
Asked if there are any changes in the attitude among the children since introducing the Hall of Fame, Mrs Dhillon noted that “for sure there has been a change. When I walked into the schools, where the board is, it is being well looked after and the children run to the board to see who is up and also to find their name. I think they have taken a sense of pride and enthusiasm to radiate. I also feel that the students are now preparing to be able to give a speech from a very young age and that helps confidence. I hope that for the next visit, the parents and children also will be able to give a speech.”
Mrs Dhillon seized the opportunity to thank the Ministry of Education for allowing her to implement such an initiative in the schools.
She also talked about the importance of education and the importance of the teachers and students.
“We should be positive and act positively. I feel we should not criticise our teachers or the Ministry of Education and we should not wash our dirty linens on social media but rather address them correctly. The children should be portrayed in a positive manner. I would love to see Seychelles excel in education. Let’s push for togetherness, let’s push for positivity and let’s push for the success of our children,” Mrs Dhillon said.
The overall best student Sheirmila Philoe shared her joy of being the best student for the last P6 exams. “I sacrificed a lot to get these results and I must say they paid off. I studied a lot and did not go out to social events in order to study hard. I am grateful to all my teachers and my parents who helped me in this journey. Now in S1 I am still trying my best and I make an appeal to all my fellow peers to keep taking our studies seriously. The opportunities are here for us to seize.”
The other awardees for Plaisance primary shool are Amira Kalenda, Kithia Julio and Lanna Constance.
The awardees for Beau Vallon secondary are Stana Mousbe as best overall and the academic best are Iza Amade, Francesca Adolphe and Hamelia Marie.
Vidya Gappy
