What a difference a year makes! The sobs of one tearful sixth grader and his equally overwhelmed mother seemed to clash with the festive backdrop of the brightly festooned kindergarten classroom, the traditional hall for graduation ceremonies at Morne Du Don Government Primary School (MDGPS). In attendance were parents/guardians and teachers, all dressed for the momentous occasion, all eyes firmly fixed upon the sobbing student. The earlier roof-raising applause and cheers abruptly gave way to the sound of silence as the principal Jacinta Auguste recalled Dwany Dalson’s year-long journey.
She revisited the sombre mood in her sixth grade classroom only a year earlier. Dwany’s cheeks were tear-soaked then, as now, as he begged Ms. Auguste to repeat the sixth grade after receiving his Common Entrance mark. He was determined not to waste his second chance. He worked assiduously throughout the year, willingly taking extra classes in Special Ed so as to catch up with concepts he had been struggling to grasp.
“He got 49.67 at Common Entrance last year,” said Auguste. “Do you know what mark he got this year?” she asked rhetorically. At the announced 71.33 the room exploded with shouts and handclapping. Dwany was declared the winner of the 2019 MDGPS Principal’s award. His mother ran up to wrap her arms around him, an embrace that brought to the onlooker’s mind such words as pride and love and yes, admiration. Then she showered his cheeks with kisses as, with trembling fingers, he gripped his winner’s trophy.
Dwany’s story mirrors quite closely the recent journey of his beloved school. Even before all the pomp and ceremony of Wednesday’s graduation ceremony, the MDGPS had already been in a celebratory mood. Monday July 1 was the date the Common Entrance results were revealed. The freshly-minted principal could barely contain her euphoria at the school’s performance.
“I can say that all of us at the school are elated,” she said behind a satisfied smile. “This is one of the highest averages we’ve attained at the school in the last ten years.”
Over the last five years, the school had languished below the national mean, a sore point for both teachers and students. But, said Auguste, “this year we surpassed it by 3.64!”
And just who or what was responsible for such a remarkable turnaround? MDGPS mainstay, Cecile Charles, credited the change to an all-round more positive feeling at the school.
“The whole ethos of the school, the atmosphere, is a lot better,” she enthused. “We’re more relaxed and we’re more focused on what we have to do. There’s no real tension, especially with the teachers. And the students feel the same. We all worked very hard and did what we had to do.”
Only last year, the school was lamenting that none of its girls had passed to Saint Joseph’s Convent. This time around Kayla Emmanuel topped the list of Convent-bound students, with an average of 90.39. Five, in total, are headed there this year. “I was surprised that I topped the school,” Kayla confessed. “I feel special. My grandmother screamed when she heard the news. I’m excited I’m heading to the Convent.”
Valedictorian Denzel Phillips, a mere broken leg unable to keep him from his graduation or from school, even after the exam, revealed how happy his parents were when they got the news their boy was on his way to St. Mary’s College.
As I marched through my old stomping ground, pondering the achievement of the final class I taught, the excitement was as palpable as the gentle Morne Du Don breeze warmly blowing against my face. Amid all the familiar names and faces, one particular pupil came to mind. Three years ago she had struggled immensely with her reading. Now she is heading to Leon Hess Comprehensive Secondary School. Shekim, Michael, Tayshawn, Jahneye, Pertice, Kyrma, Gracie, Lina, Sherdell, Alex and company have made a contribution to their school and community that will not soon be forgotten.
