This is a story about beating the odds. The Plus Two State Board results are out. While some students and schools have stood out for their marks, others have distinguished themselves by rising above their circumstances or by putting up a better show than before.
The Jaigopal Garodia Girls Government Higher Secondary School, Saidapet, recorded a pass percentage of 99, an increase of few points from last year, and the girl who did the school proud is M. Pavithra with a score of 1154 in the commerce group. She was followed closely by R. Anitha, who secured 1133. Of the 171 students who wrote the exam 20 got over 1100 and 25 scored above 1000 marks. “Most students of the school come from a poor background and that almost all have passed is a reflection of the strength of the teachers and the commitment of students,” says the school HM.
The topper, Anitha, is a daughter of an autorikshaw driver and her mother is a home maker. Studying in a private school till 6th standard, Anitha was forced to move to a government school as her father could not pay the fees.
“I have a younger brother and my father could not manage to pay for both of us,” says Anitha, who dedicated eight hours every day to studies and did not attend any tuition. “Our teachers were most helpful. Apart from extra classes in the evening, some even took morning classes to clear their doubts. My parents are only 12th pass outs and could not help much with the studies,” says this CA aspirant, who secured centum in Commerce and Accountancy and missed it by two marks in Business Maths. She is looking for a scholarship to pursue CA and her school has approached the Rotary Club for help. She is also the third rank holder from a government school at the district level.
Holy Cross Matriculation School has students coming from both poor and middle class backgrounds. The school recorded a 100 per cent pass percentage this year and N. Abhishek topped with 1186 in the computer science group. Around 40 students secured above 1,000 marks from the 133 that appeared.
Having both English and Tamil medium students, Avichi School’s performance was above average with the school recording a pass percentage of 94. Fargunam, a commerce student, secured 1164. In the English medium, 266 students appeared for the exam and 14 in the Tamil medium. “The topper in Tamil medium is S. Vijay who got 949 marks.
Most of these students are children of daily wage labourers. They need assistance for higher studies. In the school, 27 students got above 1000 marks,” says Shekar, the school HM.
The Government Higher Secondary School, Kodambakkam, secured a pass percentage of 87 and a total of 364 students wrote the exam. M. K. Srinidhi from the Computer Science group got 1140 marks and is the topper. Twenty-five students got above 1000.
Anuroop of Chennai Boys Higher Secondary School, Saidapet, would assist his father at their tea shop on Jones Road after school hours.
This engineering aspirant spent just two hours studying and kept coming to the shop till just before the start of exams, but managed to secure 1135 marks in the computer science group.
“I was shortlisted for the FIITJEE coaching classes from the school and have been attending it from 9 standard. I want to enter IIT,” says Anuroop, who is looking for sponsorship for his higher education.
For the third consecutive year, the Chennai Higher Secondary School, Nesapakkam, recorded 100 percent results.
“We introduced the science group only last year and all the students have passed. Of the 97 students who appeared, six got above 1000. Most of these children are from the economically weaker section,” says Kanagaraj, the school HM.
Topper E. Akilan’s father is a coolie and his elder brother is a mason. He does not have a mother.
Always a consistent performer, Akilan says the credit for his performance should go to his teachers who encouraged him to do well.
“My brother and teachers helped a lot with my studies. I want to pursue BCom and get into the management line,” says Akilan, who wonders how his father will pay for his college fee.
