Forty students, including two world toppers, were the recipients of the Outstanding Cambridge Learner awards on Monday, recognising their excellent academic achievements in the June 2013 and November 2013 Cambridge Examination Series.

Secretary of the Ministry of Education Narayan Gopal Malego; British Council Country Director Brendan McSharry OBE; Director, Assessment, of Cambridge International Examinations Di Palmer; and Cambridge Regional Manager of South Asia William Bickerdike presented around 40 Cambridge International Examination certificates at the programme organised in the Capital.

Thirty-seven students were awarded for scoring the highest marks in various subjects, ranging from Physics to Sociology, while four students were honoured for High Achievement, including Ishan Ghimire, (Environmental Management, AS-Level),

Sawal Acharya (Further Mathematics, A-Level), Sarin KC (Geography, A-Level), and Lila Maya Colston-Nepali (Literature in English, A-Level).

 Two students from Rato Bangala School and the GEMS’ Institute of Higher Education had also secured top marks worldwide: Nirabh Koirala of Rato Bangala secured his position as topper in Language and Literature in English, while Bibek Ramdam of GEMS’ secured the highest marks worldwide in Mathematics in the June and November 2013  AS-Level examination series respectively.

In the June 2013 AS-Level exams, Ashutosh Adhikari of St. Xavier’s College was awarded for his performance as ‘Best Across Four Cambridge International AS-Levels’, while in the November 2013 exams, Sandesh Chapagain of Chelsea International Academy was given the ‘Best Across Four Cambridge International AS-Levels’ award.

Speaking at the event, Secretary Malego congratulated the students on their achievements, and elaborated on what he felt were the benefits of incorporating the A and AS-Levels in various schools and colleges in Nepal. “This offers genuine opportunity for Nepalis to compete in the international job market.”

Malego added that the GCE examinations comprise a “crucial gate” for those looking to pursue further studies abroad as they are accepted as an entry qualification into universities in countries of the European Union, the United States and other places worldwide. “This means that this examination series is a valuable means of developing our higher education sector. With so many of our fellow citizens leaving the country on a daily basis to work as unskilled labour overseas. We need to focus on strengthening access to relevant academic schemes and skill development programmes such as the Cambridge A and AS-Levels award scheme,” he said.

McSharry, too, highlighted the various advantageous aspects of the GCE system. “Not only do they prepare you for higher study elsewhere, but also give you very useful analytical and critical-thinking skills, as well as training in research and problem-solving, all of which are very important for all-round development,” he said. “I am pleased to say that the honour today shouldn’t just go to the students who have topped their studies but also to the teachers, A-Level coordinators, as well as their parents. Without good parents and teachers and schools, these students wouldn’t have prospered the way they have.”

McSharry added that this is just the beginning for students and they have a lot more work ahead of them once they enter universities and their chosen professional realms.

Palmer, on the other hand, talked about how the means and mediums of education have changed over time, but how the basic principle has remained the same. “In the 20 years I’ve worked for Cambridge, I’ve witnessed a lot of changes. When I started, we had no mobile phones in the office. I remember the first mobile phone that had been brought in, and the excitement I’d felt at being one of the first persons allowed to use it. We had no computers, no Internet, no emails,” she reminisced. “But there are some things that have remained a constant--the joy of gaining knowledge, and the kind of mental expansion that comes of knowing more about literature and history and maths--and that’s the feeling we’ve tried to preserve through the GCE programme.”

Last to speak was Bickerdike, whose talk focused on the education programmes and qualifications that are available to students in Cambridge, alongside attributes such as confidence, responsibility and innovative skills. “These are necessary skills for students who wish to excel not just in their studies but also in their lives at large,” he said.

source: the kathmandu post,18 feb 2014