Sky is the limit for top KCPE girls in Nairobi
Under the blazing December sun, they celebrated their achievement on the last day of 2013, as if to close the year in style.
Singing their voices hoarse, they hoisted pupils Elizabeth and Cynthia on their shoulders, praising their academic exploits last year’s Kenya Certificate of Primary Education examinations.
Occasionally their hairs were ruffled, but that seemed the least of the worries of these two top performers.
Elizabeth Atieno scored 440 marks while Cynthia Nyaranda came a close second with 439 marks.
Pupils, teachers, parents and even neighbours at Tender Care Junior Academy in Komarock Sector 3A, Nairobi, danced in honour of the top pupils.
Top female pupil
Elizabeth was lost in a euphoric world as she celebrated scooping the ninth position nationally and being named the fifth best female pupil countrywide.
How did she receive the news of excelling at the exams?
“I was home watching television when my name was called out by the Education Cabinet Secretary and I couldn’t believe it,” Elizabeth said in an interview on Tuesday.
My father who was also around joined me in the celebration and then it dawned on me that indeed I was among the top performers in my school, Nairobi and even nationally, she added.
Her secret to success which saw her excel, she noted, was a mastery of both language and mathematics, blended with a positive attitude.
And her dream career is to become a top-notch lawyer to deliver justice, especially among the oppressed.
“There are many people who cannot afford representation in the courts and thus I desire to fill this gap,” Elizabeth said in an interview at the school on Tuesday.
Elizabeth underscored the importance of the blend of discipline, teamwork and prayers in order to achieve these exemplary results.
Though she cited Kiswahili as the most challenging subject and Mathematics as the fairest of them all, she says that asking questions during classes and beyond lesson hours helped achieve success.
Her schoolmate, 13-year-old Cynthia said her dream is to become a neuro-surgeon.
“After joining my dream school, Alliance Girls High School, I strive to proceed to medical school to study medicine and later specialised treatment of diseases or conditions of the central nervous system,” Cynthia said adding that health personnel are critical in a country that aspires to boast of advancement.