In a year where students attended school virtually, the grade 10 Cambridge students of Oakridge International School Mohali took the Cambridge Board administered examination and have come out with an outstanding result. The examination was conducted as per strict Covid protocols in February when the school was in Hybrid mode. This was completely assessed by Cambridge International Board CAIE.

The class topper, Ashwika Chhabria, scored an A* grade in all 8 subjects. This is a commendable feat and is extremely difficult to achieve internationally.

Arya Tawara with an A* in 6 subjects and an A grade in 2 subjects. Asees Kanwar scoring an A* grade in 7 subjects, Rushil Doger with 1 A* and 5 A grades and Aastik Gupta with 3 A grades are the other students who are the school top scorers.

9 students applied for the internationally benchmarked ICE certification – all 9 secured the certification – 2 with Distinction and 5 with Merit.

The school is proud of the entire class as 74% of the grades are in the range of A*-C (on a scale of A*-G). 53% of the grades are in the range of A*-B with 32% being in the range A*- A. An appreciable 73% of the students secured A*-C in 5 subjects.

This year’s result has set a benchmark and proved that the school models the virtue: ‘Kaizen’, which means to follow the path of continuous improvement. It has been a pathbreaking year for the school, the result is a validation of the academic excellence of the school that has been maintained through the high-quality teaching-learning in their Virtual School Experience.

Another interesting fact about this cohort is that they have experienced the complete CAIE programme. They came through the PYP programme in grade 5, took the Cambridge Lower Secondary, followed by the Checkpoint examination in grade 8. Their early entry into the programme and our school has helped them in building skills as well as knowledge. The results are an indicator that early exposure to international curriculum and pedagogy is helping students in achieving good results in grade 10 onwards.

The Principal, Ramanjit Ghuman said: “We are proud of this outstanding achievement of our students. I credit this to the learning experience at our school, our dedicated teachers, and supportive parents. In our IB PYP and Cambridge Lower Secondary, we focus on skill development along with pedagogy that builds a strong foundation of knowledge, attitude and skills. The culmination happens in Board classes which are rigorous and our children are well prepared for this. In short, I would say that this is the validation of the strength of academic excellence at Oakridge Mohali and this has remained uninterrupted during the pandemic.“

The IGCSE examinations were conducted in the month of February 2021 when the situation was not so grim as it is today. Nonetheless, the parent community of IGCSE, grade 10A stood together, and it was possible to conduct the examination, and now the students have proved that even a pandemic could not hold them back from soaring and shining. Likewise, the teachers did not let the pandemic deter them. While balancing the students’ wellbeing with academic rigour, they ensured continual learning during our Virtual School Experience (VSE).

At this moment of rejoicing, the principal, Ms Ramanjit Ghuman congratulated every teacher and staff member of the school who contributed to this moment as they worked with this group over the years. She commended the tireless assistance of the entire administrative staff in ensuring the safety and security of every member while following the internationally benchmarked Covid protection protocols.