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Two students from Bahrain, Tamara Himani and Josie Dodson, have achieved the highest GCSE scores in the world, showcasing the kingdom’s commitment to academic excellence.
The two students, who study at St Christopher’s Senior School Bahrain in Isa Town, wrote their International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) exams last summer and were recently awarded, along with their colleagues, for their high achievement.
Tamara achieved the highest worldwide IGCSE score in history and Josie, taking the revamped course in religious studies attained the highest mark worldwide in the subject.
Tamara said: “I have always loved learning history, especially the writing aspect. Initially, I would write too much and we had to refine that as we got close to the exam. But I really enjoyed it, especially as we studied the Cold War and Nazi Germany, which normally we have never really understood until we studied them in depth.
“To be honest, I think I studied for it more than most of my other subjects, except maybe English. And now, I have chosen it for my A-Levels. And I am still enjoying it. And my essays are still too long, but it’s fun.”
Josie added: “I decided to take religious studies because the different perspectives that people have on theology fascinated me, even though I am not religious myself. My teacher, Mrs Helen Boyle was excellent at teaching it and she gave me a lot of resources to expand my understanding and writing.
“St Chris doesn’t offer it at the A-Level. I did try to petition for it to be offered but at this time, it’s not. So, I am studying psychology, mathematics, chemistry and physics this semester. But, the awareness of different perspectives and how to approach complex topics with many different viewpoints, like theology and euthanasia, is a skill I am going to find useful in my education going forward.”
The IGCSE tests student knowledge in subjects across a spectrum of groups – languages, creativity, technology, humanities and social sciences, sciences, mathematics, physical education and more.
The IGCSE exams are administered by UK-based education bodies, like Pearson Edexcel for Year 11 students in British curriculum schools worldwide. Based on these results, students typically chose their subjects for school-leaving qualifications such as Advanced (A) Levels or the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma.
The IGCSE exams are targeted at students studying internationally in British curriculum schools, where being part of diverse systems can be helpful and evident in the classroom.
Helen, who teaches religious studies, said: “The course moves from theological arguments to contemporary issues in society, like equality, racism, sexism et cetera.
“From my perspective, it does not matter if a student is religious or not and we find that having a very diverse classroom, with a wide range of beliefs, gives students a holistic understanding of the subject.
“Josie, for example, was excellent at distilling multiple perspectives on complex issues and communicating them with clarity and empathy.”
According to the St Christopher’s school website, 167 candidates from the school sat the exam in 2019 and 56.4 per cent of them scored A and A* grades, up from 55 per cent last year.
Louis Mulleagues scored the highest mark in physical education (PE) in Bahrain; Daniella Louca scored the highest mark in Bahrain in Arabic and Angala Rajasegaran scored the highest Mathematics grade (193 out of a maximum 200) in Bahrain.
Patrick O’Shaughnessy, head of the history department and Tamara’s teacher, said: “Working with Tamara was an absolute pleasure. What really stood out to me was her ability to absorb feedback and implement it in her writing and learning. This is something we encourage in all our students
“I have been here since 2014; it’s a wonderful school and really, the success of the school is rooted in Bahrain, where the community is warm, caring and most importantly, educationally focused. Education and learning are highly prized here. And with diverse classrooms with young people all with unique experiences, backgrounds and aptitudes, our students get a well-rounded experience, which is not found everywhere in the UK.”
