Students who performed exceptionally at the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) exams and the National Grade Six Assessment (NGSA) were on Wednesday honoured for their stellar performance by the Region Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam) regional administration, in collaboration with the Education Department.
An awards ceremony was held on Wednesday in the Regional Democratic Council (RDC) Boardroom, and the top 20 CSEC students and the top 10 NGSA students were awarded.
The CSEC students awarded were: Ramoll Banolall, Ultam Heeralall, Daniel Dowding, Chavelle Solomon, Eshika Singh, Manisha Bhimranie, Pauline Forde, Satrupa Persaud, Aryan Doodnauth, Shoaib Harron, Nevarshanie Ramlakhan, Devina Persaud, Bibi Falesha Hakim, Areera Griffith, Karishma Lall, Heema Madho, Keira Mahadeo, Punesha Ramjit, Shahid Alli, Shania Hoyte, Nanda Persajd and Jeevanjale Rooplall.
The NGSA top ten awardees were Ziyaad Ally, Sarah Baharally, Romir Chetram, Garfield Bryan, Narendra Persaud, Adrian Amsterdam, Amaria Kwang, Darshinie Jadoo, Arianna Courtman and Mahish Persaud.
Regional Chairperson Vilma De Silva, during her remarks, congratulated the students and said they were now embarking on a new journey that would determine their future. She encouraged the students to stay focused, climb the academic ladder, and continue to shine in their future endeavours.
Meanwhile, Regional Education Officer Shoundelle Hercules said despite the pandemic, there has been a drastic Increase in students’ performance at CSEC and NGSA examinations which shows the hard work and dedication of teachers and headteachers who were willing to return to their classrooms to deliver the curriculum. She added that the students not only made the region proud but also the country at the CSEC examinations, and that was a remarkable achievement.
The students received plaques, trophies, and cash prizes. The valedictorians for both examinations were given $100,000 and the students securing second, third, fourth and fifth received $50,000 each.
The top performers expressed their gratitude to the RDC for the ceremony and for appreciating their successes.
Aspiring lawyer
It was his dream to succeed, and he made it a reality by becoming the top student of Region Two at the National Grade Six Assessment 2022. Hailing from the vibrant village of Pomona Scheme, Ziyaad Ally of Aurora Primary School, who is aspiring to become a lawyer, gained 516 marks to secure the seventh spot among thousands of students who sat the NGSA in Guyana.
His father, Reshad Ally and mother, Valinie Mahadeo, teachers of Aurora Secondary School, told the Guyana Times that they were very proud of their son’s achievements and were always confident he would have gained a spot among the top 10 in the country. According to the proud father, Ally was always known to be a top performer in class so he didn’t worry that he would let him down.
“I am very proud of my son, since he was small growing up he always has a passion for learning and always strives for excellence… He is always a top student in his class. His father and I would normally work with him to ensure that he has a better knowledge and understanding of what his teacher teaches him.” his mother said.
The Ally family has expressed gratitude to his class teacher, Romeena Singh and also the Head Teacher of the institution, Wynette Brandon, who helped in the academic development of Ally, and motivated and encouraged him for the exams.
Academic success is nothing strange to the Ally family since both parents are teachers at Aurora Secondary School. In the year 2018, Ziyaad’s brother, Riyadh Ally had placed among the top five students in Region Two.
Overjoyed
Meanwhile, during an interview with this publication, Ally said that he was elated and overjoyed with his performance. He took the opportunity to thank God for his guidance and knowledge for passing his exam and his dad, his great motivator, who worked with him tirelessly to gain success. (Raywattie Deonarine)