With confidence to success – strong messages for our test candidates
Edgar meets scholarship students at St. James Kilolo Secondary School before their exams.
On Saturday, October 21, 2023, I had the great pleasure of visiting St. James Kilolo Secondary School and meeting our SCHULBANK scholarship holders again. It was important to me to talk to them personally, to learn more about their everyday school life and to accompany them in this crucial phase of their school career.
It was very pleasing to see that all the pupils are healthy, safe and doing well at school. I was very impressed by their commitment, their seriousness and their willingness to learn.
During my visit, I spoke to all year groups about school-related topics, but focused particularly on the pupils in Years 2 and 4, who are currently preparing for their national exams. I emphasized how important it is to prepare carefully in all subjects – whether science or humanities – and to go into the exam period with a positive attitude.
I encouraged the candidates to start their exams calm, focused and confident. Their teachers have prepared them thoroughly and covered all the essential content of the syllabus – they can believe in themselves with good reason.
The exchange with the fourth grade students was particularly intensive. I shared practical tips with them on how to answer exam questions in a structured and complete way and talked about the importance of neat, legible handwriting – small details that can make a big difference in the exam.
We also talked about the upcoming choice of subjects in Years 5 and 6, and I explained how these decisions shape their future educational path – right through to their career goals after a possible university degree. I also informed them about the government’s programs to support particularly high-achieving students and place them in secondary schools.
At the end of my visit, I wished all students every success for the upcoming exams – both the internal final exams and the national exams for grades 2 and 4.
A brief overview of the rest of the school year:
Grades 1 and 3 write their second semester internal exams from November 27 to December 1, 2023. The last day of school is December 8, 2023.
Class 2 will take part in the national exams from October 30 to December 11, 2023. Afterwards, the students will go straight home and wait for the results, which will be published at the end of December.
Our fourth grade SCHULBANK scholarship holders – Elia, Grayson, Anna and Sarah – will write their national final exams from December 13 to 30, 2023. They will also go straight home afterwards and will only return in June 2024 to join grades 5 and 6. They will therefore not take part in the second semester internal examinations.
I am proud of the determination and single-mindedness of our scholarship holders. I am convinced that they will master the challenges ahead and face the future with confidence.
My motto for them is:
“Don’t think about the exams – think about the A’s!”
With best wishes for the future,
Edgar Mgembe
