Against all odds: Precious Talent Academy shines a year after tragic accident
Alvin Mwangi and Milliam Murigi
Precious Talent Academy in Kawangware, Nairobi, which was hit by a tragedy two years ago when eight pupils died after several classrooms collapsed, has produced a top candidate in the recently released Kenya Certificate of Primary Education results.
Of the 11 candidates who sat for the national exam, Pharis Kimani emerged top with 407 marks.
The school shocked many after registering a mean score of 366 marks to emerge among the best in the city.
An elated Kimani could not hide his joy following the feat, attributing his success to prayers coupled with immense support from his parents and teachers.
Unswerving support
“Obviously, I would not have made it were it not for the unswerving support of my parents and teachers.
I also had a habit of praying before studies and I guess that is why I scored the high marks,” he said.
Others who performed well include Damian Orina (398), Deborah Naeku (389), Neema Nicole (382), Robert Amani (377).
The lowest pupil scored 331 marks. Moses Wainaina, the school head and proprietor, said it was encouraging to have the learners shine despite the atrocities of Covid-19.
“Despite the pandemic, we were confident that these learners would excel. I had taken it upon myself to supervise their studies after most teachers left following the gory incident, which led to the collapse of the block.
I am glad the pupils recovered from the trauma and gave the exam their best shot,” said Wainaina.
Wainaina confirmed that the school had resumed full learning after Education Cabinet Secretary Prof George Magoha gave it a certificate of clearance.
“He came here in January and opened the school. We have built new classes and are operating fully under the law,” he said.
When People Daily visited the institution yesterday, the special attachment residents of Ngando Ward have with the school was evident.
Hundreds of residents gathered to check progress of the ongoing re-construction as the school await to reopen on May 10.
Bounce back
Parents also lauded Wainaina for preparing the candidates well ahead of the exams.
“Though we lost some of the best pupils, we were certain we would still bounce back,” said Consulate Njeri, a parent at the school.
Meanwhile, Hillside School in Mavoko constituency, Machakos County, also posted impressive results.
School principal administrator Elphas Andati said despite public schools producing top performers, private institutions still performed better on average.
Andati said the good performance from the private sector is attributed to the online classes they were undertaking during the long Covid-19 break unlike their public counterparts who never had such classes.
“I would like to urge all both public and private schools to embrace digital learning since this is where the future of education is.
We have seen that public schools have the potential to perform better if they have all the privileges private ones have,” he said.
