DESPITE the numerous challenges of preparing for a major exam in the midst of prolonged lockdowns, Christopher Julien Lee Yung still managed to ace the all-important IGCSE.
The Year 11 student from Imperial International School, Ipoh (Imperial) overcame the initially novel idea of online classes and home learning to score 8As in this internationally recognised syllabus.
“It was difficult and a little strange at the start of the pandemic when online learning was still new to us,” admits Lee. “However, much to the credit of Imperial teachers, we were not handicapped as they kept momentum going and ensured online lessons were thorough, fun and engaging, almost similar to physical classes.”
Lee also credits Imperial’s personalised teaching approach with bringing the best out in him and his peers, stating that lessons and homework were tailored to meet individual student needs. This way each student got to strengthen on their weaker areas.
“Imperial’s holistic approach also helped a lot as the syllabus is an equal balance of self-study and group projects, allowing for concentrated revision as well as group learning.”
He cites practicing his oral language skills as an example of the latter, where he and his classmates conducted mock exam sessions. “Constant practice using a language is essential and I believe all of us benefitted from the group sessions, even though it was online.”
The young science buff was also keen to highlight how teachers constantly boosted students’ confidence through different initiatives. In his case, it was being handpicked by his science teacher to be his teaching assistant for a day.
“I felt so proud and honoured to help my teacher conduct a class. It showed he trusted my abilities as well as my understanding of the subject matter. This, undoubtedly, gave me the confidence to do well in the final exams,” Lee rationales.
Lee’s extremely proud mother, Michelle Yeoh, believes that Imperial’s holistic approach to education was a great help in him scoring 8As.
She was also full of praise for the teachers who ensured students did not lose momentum during the initial stages of lockdown by ensuring lessons and syllabus were duly covered in preparation of the ICGSE exams.
Lee is now pursuing his A-levels with the aim of majoring in Astrophysics or Mathematics at varsity. He is confident that he will achieve his ambitions given the solid foundations laid at Imperial.
For more information, please go to: www.imperial.edu.my.
