St Thomas first-former aces CSEC English
Published:Thursday | November 11, 2021 | 12:07 AMJudana Murphy/Gleaner Writer
Thirteen-year-old Rodney Dixon has been basking in his success in the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) English A examination.
The then grade seven student of Morant Bay High School in St Thomas scored a grade one in the subject.
Among the Jamaicans who sat the exam in June-July, 73.3 per cent earned a passing grade.
It was his mother’s idea for him to attempt a CSEC subject and he gladly gave in, as he was eager to gain new knowledge.
Dixon registered as an independent candidate and started preparing for the exam in September 2020, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“COVID-19 didn’t really affect my preparation. I met up with my teacher, Mrs Devmarie Blake-Brown at Christ Chapel in Morant Bay, and we wore masks because of the protocols. I had other resources online and even when I couldn’t go face to face at Christ Chapel, we used Zoom and Google Meet,” he explained.
Dixon completed numerous past paper questions and admitted that the papers administered for the exam in June were manageable.
“It didn’t live up to what people say about how hard CSEC is. It wasn’t very challenging,” he told The Gleaner.
Dixon expected a grade two but was not surprised that he secured a grade one in the regional exam.
The student hopes to excel in CSEC mathematics before he begins grade 11, where he will sit most of his subjects.
His mother, Chevanese Johnson-Dixon, who is also an educator at White Horses Primary and Infant School, told The Gleaner that she sat down with his father and they agreed to give him a taste of CSEC.
HIGH ACHIEVER
“He is a well-rounded student, always enquiring, a hands-on learner and we provided the foundation he needed when he was very young. He’s a high achiever and has always been among the top students. He was disappointed when he was not placed at Campion, but I told him that he will bloom wherever he goes,” the mother explained.
She is grateful that her son is an independent learner and has navigated online classes well, since schools were closed in March last year.
Young Dixon also created a Google Classroom tutorial, which he uploaded to YouTube.
His mother noted that it assisted her colleagues and others who came across the video online.
Dixon’s mother and father worked closely with their son’s teacher, to ensure that he was adequately prepared.
His father was hospitalised with COVID-19 twice during the 10-month exam prep period, and his mother was worried that it would affect his overall academic performance.
“We were going through a trying time but God has been with us through everything. He is doing well, much better than before. He’s having breathing problems here and there and now has a sleeping disorder but God is good,” Johnson-Dixon declared.
“I was nervous when it was time to check the results. I screamed, I jumped, I don’t know what I didn’t do when I saw the grade one. I know he would’ve passed the exam, but seeing it become a reality was different,” his mother remarked.
Dixon, an aspiring game developer and scientist, was the youngest among the group of students who were taught by Blake-Brown.
“I am really glad that I made myself, my parents and my teacher proud. This has shown that I can achieve, regardless of my age,” the enthusiastic 13-year-old said.
His mother is encouraging students across Jamaica to make their education a priority, even in these unprecedented times.