And while policymakers will look to the test and the system to see what's wrong, we assure you, it's not all bad and Belizean students showed that there is resource fullness, brilliance and brains in abundance in our primary schools. The top 5 finishers are all from Belize City schools starting with Lillian Shen from Belize Elementary School who got a composite score of 370 points out of 400; Virginia Hsu also from BES got 369 points; and Leia Auil of Hummingbird Elementary and Ravesh Sukhnandan of All Saints' Primary School tied for third with 367 points. 7NEWS today visited with the top 4 finishers in this year's PSE to find out what were the secrets to their success.
Keith Swift Reporting, Email - [keithkswift@gmail.com]
7NEWS was there as Belize Elementary students got the news of their PSE results over the school's P.A. system.
Majiba Sharp, Vice-Principal - Belize Elementary School
"I've gotten the PSE results and I'm very proud to tell you that Lilian Shen tops the country." [Students Screaming]
That announcement sent the campus into a frenzy. Eager standard six students left their classrooms and surrounded the two stars of today's show: first place finisher Lilian Shen and 2nd place finisher Virginia Hsu. The two friends were visibly nervous and even held hands as they spoke to us.
Lilian Shen, First Place 2005 PSE
"It feels funny. I thought I did badly."
Virginia Hsu, Second Place 2005 PSE
"I couldn't believe it."
Lilian Shen,
"It was like a normal test. Most of it seemed easy except the social studies because I don't usually do well in social studies."
Virginia Hsu,
"I was nervous at first but then I tried to calm down and answered all the questions."
Aside from topping the overall ranking, Lilian also had a perfect score in the math section. There was also celebration on the BES campus because students there also placed 5th 6th, 8, and 9th - that's six out of the top ten and the Vice-Principal couldn't be prouder.
Majiba Sharp,
"For a teacher it's probably the crowning glory of your profession to have your student be number one and number two. As a school we are very happy about it. We work very hard here, we have a rigorous curriculum, we work our children hard but with the PSE we do not treat it as this big frightening exam. We teach regular classes, we have music, art, PE, we don't interrupt the regular curriculum any at all and then we just give some extra classes during the week and that's it; we don't frighten them about the exam and that helps. The team here is dedicated. The preparation for PSE begins when they start school at age 3."
And while BES garnered top individual honours, Hummingbird Elementary was the top ranking school overall. Hummingbird had three finishers in the top 25 led by Leia Auil who tied for third.
Leia Auil, Third Place 2005 PSE
"I felt that I did well but I
didn't expect to get in the top 3 so I'm very surprised."
Keith Swift,
And how do you feel that your school came in first?
Leia Auil,
"I'm very happy. Hummingbird did a lot with us, we had extra classes, we went over a lot of our notes right before PSE, we had question papers to go over to prepare us; we did a lot."
Keith Swift,
Have you already made plans for high school?
Leia Auil,
"I'm planning to go to Saint Catherine's but the letter hasn't come yet so I'm just waiting for that now."
And while Leia probably won't have problem getting into SCA, one of her teachers, Hortence Wade, says the key to success at the Hummingbird is simple.
Hortence Wade, Teacher - Hummingbird Elementary
"We simply worked very hard. I made absolutely sure that the national curriculum prescribed for standard 6 was covered, and beyond, and I think that is one factor that contributes to success. The other one is the input of parents. It is not something that a teacher can do alone, it has to be in combination with the parents. Parents need to be there for the students and they need to work very closely with teachers, they need to be aware of what's happening in the classroom on a daily basis. For me that means success."
Leia Auil tied for third with All Saints' Primary's Ravesh Sukhnandan whose achievement stands tall because he is the only finisher in the top 9 from a public school.
Ravesh Sukhnandan, Third Place 2005 PSE
"It really makes it feel better because coming from a public school like All Saint's, although it's a very good institution, maybe the private schools did better but it feels good to know that from All Saints' I am the only one in the top 25 and I am the only one from a public school. It makes your accomplishment feels much better."
Samuel Sukhnandan, Father
"When we were looking for a primary school, All Saints' was recommended to us and ever since he entered we were delighted with the kind of work that he was given, we were delighted with the school, and we are delighted with most everything that happens here at All Saints,' and truly I would say this school in my book has done truly outstandingly well and I would recommend this school to many parents out there."
And whether or private or public, from All Saints' to Hummingbird to BES, these students all succeeded each with a now proven recipe for success which they shared with us.
Lilian Shen, First Place 2005 PSE
"I just studied everything that our teacher taught us. When you take the PSE you have to calm down, you can't be too scared of doing badly; you have to just do your best."
Ravesh Sukhnandan, Third Place 2005 PSE
"I think what I did really differently from other students is that I listen to my teachers a lot in the class. When I say a lot I mean a lot and its very hard to get me distracted. My concentration in class is very good so you might find that a lot of students might talk a lot in class but I don't, I try to retain information by listening keenly in class so that means I don't have to study a lot because more of the information is kept in your mind."
Leia Auil, Third Place 2005 PSE
"I used a lot of common sense, like if they have picture I would look very closely before I picked my answer, and I'll eliminate answers that I know can't be correct so that's pretty much all that I did."
Rounding out the top ten finishers are Brayan Habet, David Ma, Perla Hinjosa, Emuan Hyde, Vanessa Hertular and Winni Zhao.
Private schools captured 8 of the top 10 spots and Belize Elementary captured 11 of the top 25 spots. Hummingbird Elementary was the top school with a school average of 324 points followed by Belize Elementary with 320 points and Bernice Yorke at third with 305. Again, those are all private schools. The top 5 is rounded out by Solid Rock from Stann Creek and Red Creek Mennonite School in Cayo.
And while it's hardly a time for finger pointing, tell that to the pr folks at the Ministry. A release from the Ministry of Education says the interruptions in classes earlier this year played a role in the dismal performance because there was, "much interruption and loss of valuable preparation time on the part of teachers and students."
