It has been raining marks in this year’s SSLC exams, with students even scoring the perfect score of 500, yet government school students in Puducherry hardly figure among the State toppers.
Still there is a silver lining and a few exceptions this year, with students from government schools breaking into the ‘490 marks plus’ top league.
One of them is K. Gayathri, a student from the Kathirgamam Girls Higher Secondary School who has broken into the top league with 494 marks.
She is the topper among government schools in the Union Territory.
“This is the first time we have breached the 490-mark record,” says a joyful R. Somasundaram, vice-principal of the school. The girl who aspires to become a doctor says the motivation by teachers and pep talks in the morning assembly kept her focused.
“The Department of Education organised special coaching for first three toppers in each term from every government school. It was to ensure government schools are on a par with private schools in producing top-scoring students,” says Mr. Somasundaram.
The special coaching seems to have paid off in Gayathri’s case. “We had subject teachers from various schools who pointed out mistakes we were prone to make and cleared all our doubts in these sessions,” says Gayathri.
Her classmate Ramiyadevi finished third in the State, among government schools with 489 marks.
“I want to become an auditor and I will be taking the accounts and commerce group,” says the girl who wants to steer away from the much-travelled path of medicine and engineering, the most preferred choices among toppers. Her father Manickam is a small time bookkeeper in a private company and Ramiya has always wanted to excel in his field.
But more than any extraordinary effort it was a cool and relaxed attitude that propelled this top scorer.
“I used to get up only at 7 a.m. I read storybooks and watched television. I was in fact jolly,” she smiles. R. Dharshni and R. Jayasree from Kamban Government Higher Secondary School, Nettapakkam and V. Keerthika from Vallalar Government Girls Higher Secondary School, Lawspet scored 490 marks.
