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Monday, July 24, 2017

AKU-EB’s students triumph in Pakistan’s educational landscape

By Abdul Qadir Qureshi
(Pakistan News & Features Services)

Despite being a relatively young institution, the Aga Khan University Examination Board (AKU-EB) has repeatedly proved that its students are capable of attaining success by virtue of the quality education that they receive during their secondary school education. 

While their annual results and internal student accomplishments have been a source of pride for them, this year’s May 2017 results for both their Secondary School Certificate (SSC) and Higher Secondary School Certificate (HSSC) examinations were also accompanied by a sense of both vindication and triumph due to the positive validation that AKU-EB has attained from external sources. 

The overall pass rate for Year I and Year II SSC students came out at 85.7 per cent and 90.6 percent, respectively. Furthermore, 69.4 percent of Year I students and 81.2 percent of Year II students scored at or above 60 percent across all of their examinations.

Their SSC Year II High Achievers were all girls, with first position belonging to Fizza Rubab of PECHS Girls’ School. Fizza attained an impressive 1037 out of 1100 total marks, i.e. a total of 94.27 percent across all her exams, and a grade of A-1.

“This came as a huge surprise to me and I am immensely grateful to my school, teachers, friends and family for the support, encouragement and prayers throughout the year. The style of AKU-EB made it possible to achieve this position. Under this marvelous board, we are focused and precise unlike the style of conventional study practiced in Pakistan,” Fizza, one of the high achievers, remarked.

In second place, Samreen Raja of Nusrat Jehan Academy Girls High School obtained 1029 out of 1100 marks, scoring 93.54 percent. In third place, Shamsa from Aga Khan School, Garden, attained 1027 out of 1100 marks and scored 93.36 percent.
Continuing a trend of strong academic foundations, the pass rates for Year I and Year II HSSC candidates was tallied as being 87.9 percent and 87.8 percent respectively. 

In addition, 72.7 percent Year I candidates and 75.2 percent Year II candidates scored 60 percent or above across all of their examinations. As with this year’s SSC results, female candidates proved themselves at the higher end of scores, with all of our top three overall positions belonging to women.

Mariam Sajjad from the Aga Khan Higher Secondary School, Karimabad, Karachi, obtained first position by scoring 1050 out of 1100 total marks (95.45 percent) across her HSSC examinations.

 “I feel on top of the world. I can't express my feelings in words; it feels great to see your hard work pay off. Studying with AKU-EB infused a sense of curiosity and a thirst for knowledge, which helped broaden my horizons. My advice to current and future AKU-EB students is that even if the path seems tough, don't stop because once you reach your destination, you will realize that all the hard work was totally worth it,” Mariam stated.

Urooj Usmani, also from the Aga Khan Higher Secondary School, Karimabad, Karachi, scored 1028 out of 1100 (93.45 percent) which earned her second place. Finally, Nusrat Jahan College’s Muqaddas Alvi came third in the national average by obtaining 1022 out of 1100 marks and a 92.90 percent score.

Shahina Aliraza, Principal of the Aga Khan Higher Secondary School, Karimabad, had good cause to celebrate. 

“I am feeling delighted and ecstatic on our students’ remarkable achievement both 1st and 2nd position in Pakistan. The AKU-EB students, as compared to other Boards, are more confident and critically conscious. They are the kind of learners who always strive to reach and explore their potential,” she reckoned.

 “AKU-EB students consistently perform better in University Entrance Tests, as demonstrated by the fact that 90 per cent of our 2015 HSSC graduates received admission to various universities. This is also reaffirmed by a recent study conducted by a national body on examination quality and standardization, which found that students from AKU-EB are more likely to perform better on University Entrance Tests as compared to other examination boards,” AKU-EB's Director Dr Shehzad Jeeva noted.

“My heartiest congratulations to the successful students of the AKU-EB. I am sure their strong educational foundation will lead them to greater successes in life. It is only through perseverance and determination that they can achieve their goals,” Dr Naveed Yousuf, Associate Director of Assessment, added.