The Ministry of Education yesterday announced that two Queen’s College students are the top performers at the 2020 Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) and Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE) assessments.
Bhedesh Persaud, who is currently preparing to write the CAPE 2021 examination, is the top CSEC performer with 22 Grade I passes and a Grade II pass. He wrote 23 subjects and attained Grades I passes in Additional Mathematics, General Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Human and Social Biology, Integrated Science, Agricultural Science, Geography, Principles of Accounts, Principles of Business, Economics, Office Administration, Spanish, Portuguese, Religious Education, Information Technology, Electronic Document Preparation and Management, Technical Drawing, Physical Education and Sport, English A and B. He attained a Grade II pass in Social Studies.
He told Stabroek News that he is happy to be the top performer but that considering how long ago the exams were written, he hadn’t been thinking about the results. “I am happy. I wasn’t really thinking about it too much because that is a while ago. I’m actually doing CAPE right now and that is my main focus. But I am happy and I am thankful,” Persaud said. He also said that he is currently focused on sitting the CAPE exams this year and that “my expectations are same as always, to do my best.”
According to the Education Ministry, the country’s top 10 CSEC students are: 1. Bhedesh Persaud – Queen’s College – 22 grade ones, one grade two; 2. Duvina Seurattan – Anna Regina Secondary School – 19 grade ones, two grade twos; 3. Swasti Saytoo – Anna Regina Secondary School – 18 grade ones, three grade twos; 4. Geveshwar Rajkishore –
Saraswati Vidya Niketan – 18 grade ones, one grade two; 5. Reyan Khemraj – JC Chandisingh Secondary School – 17 grade ones, three grade twos; 6. Shivnarine Chaitraim – Saraswati Vidya Niketan – 17 grade ones, two grade twos; 7. Shivshankar Chaitram – Saraswati Vidya Niketan – 17 grade ones, two grade twos; 8. Atishta Seenarine – Saraswati Vidya Niketan – 17 grade ones, one grade two; 9. Chaitra Singh – Saraswati Vidya Niketan – 16 grade ones, three grade twos; and 10. Tabitha Alves – Abram Zuil Secondary School – 16 grade ones, four grade twos.
Blindsided
Meanwhile, Zane Ramotar, who attended Queen’s College, is the top performer at the CAPE 2020 examination. For CAPE 2020, Ramotar attained 14 Grade I passes and one Grade II pass. He scored Grade I passes in Applied Mathematics Unit 1, Biology Units 1 and 2, Caribbean Studies, Chemistry Units1 and 2, Communication Studies, Environmental Science Units 1 and 2, Integrated Mathematics Unit 1, Physics Units 1 and 2 and Pure Mathematics Units 1 and 2. He also got a Grade II pass for Applied Mathematics Unit 2.
Speaking to this newspaper yesterday, Ramotar said that the while he is grateful for the announcement, it was unfortunate that it could not be added to his applications for universities. “Well, I feel happy, ecstatic even, that the results are announced. Furthermore, it’s compounded by the fact that this came… like it blindsided me basically. It’s not like they were saying ‘Oh, results will be released today.’ I had no idea that the results were coming out. So to have it just come out of the blue and for this to be good news, it got me,” Ramotar excitedly said.
Since the results were announced last September, Ramotar has been among a number of students who have been very vocal about how they feel about the discrepancies faced. During yesterday’s interview, Ramotar said that since the results were released, he has applied to many universities. He said that he intends on studying physics and has a dream to “do something in the field of physics, whether it’s as a lecturer or a theoretical physicist,” and to do so, he said he is hopeful to continue his journey at the University of Southern California. “They have nice research and good physics courses,” the young man said when he asked what inspired him to choose USC. “I saw Chris Sutherland on Tiktok and that’s one of the reasons I wanted to go,” Ramotar jokingly added.
Ramotar was among the top achievers for the National Grade Six Assessment in 2013.
Naomi Cambridge, a student of St. Rose’s High School, is the country’s second best performer at CAPE 2020, with 12 Grade I passes and two Grade II passes. Cambridge achieved Grade I passes in Applied Mathematics Unit 1, Biology Units 1 and 2, Caribbean Studies, Chemistry Unit 2, Communication Studies, Integrated Mathematics, Physics Units 1 and 2, Pure Mathematics Units 1 and 2, and Environmental Science Unit 1. She secured Grade II passes in Chemistry Unit 1 and Environmental Science Unit 2.
Cambridge was both very grateful and overwhelmed by the declaration. She added that upon the initial release of results, she had been frustrated by discrepancies in her grades. “When I first got my results last year, I had received two ungraded [results] and I was quite shocked because there is no way possible that I would’ve gotten an ungraded when I submitted my SBAs,” Cambridge explained to Stabroek News. She said that she was later informed that other students also received the same and that it was for the same subjects. She further explained that this led the school to request a grade review. St. Rose’s High School was among 11 schools across the country which received ungraded results for all students who wrote particular subjects. She said that the grades were changed around January 4th.
“It was just a very frustrating process because remember universities require information to accept students and if you don’t have the grade required, you can’t be accepted by the university for the programme,” Cambridge said as she further explained the struggles faced by both her and fellow students. But she said that this announcement will assist her with her applications. “So far one of the universities has requested me to send official results and I am unable to do that because the results weren’t out for that long period. So now that it’s declared, I can now go through with the process,” she stated. Cambridge said that she initially wanted to study medicine but she has since decided on either chemical or petroleum engineering.
The country’s third best performer at CAPE 2020 is Christian Pile, of Queen’s College, who attained 12 Grade I passes, a Grade II pass and a Grade III pass. He achieved Grade I passes in Biology Units 1 and 2, Chemistry Units 1 and 2, Communication Studies, Pure Mathematics Units 1 and 2, Environmental Science Units 1 and 2, Applied Mathematics Unit 1, Biology Unit One and Caribbean Studies. He also attained a Grade II pass in Physics Unit 1, while a Grade III pass in Integrated Mathematics is under review.
Pile has also been among the top academic achievers over the years. He was the second best performer at the NGSA in 2013. He was the top performer at the CSEC in 2018, when he attained 20 Grade I passes. In 2019, he was among the top ten for first year CAPE. Speaking with this publication, he said “Of course I’m proud of everything that I was able to accomplish. I definitely worked extremely hard over the past two years and I’m happy that after all this time the results could be finalised and we can now move on to the next step or stage.” He added that he will also be studying abroad in the coming fall. Pile has been accepted at both Duke University and UC Berkeley but he is yet to decide where he will be attending. Pile said that he will be pursuing studies in the field of bioengineering, “with an intent to concentrate in cell and tissue engineering.”
In a live announcement via the Ministry’s Facebook page on Friday afternoon, Education Minister Priya Manickchand said the results were based on data received from the Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC) as of January 29.
The top performers were announced after the results for the exams were initially released in September 2020 but due to the regional outcry by parents, students and teachers for a review of the grades, the Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC) did a review of the grades. In Guyana, the Ministry of Education reached out to have grades reviewed after there was a significant drop in the country’s Grade Point Average. Following this request, the Ministry was notified of internal issues which caused the grades to drop and the ministry has indicated that these issues have been handled.
