The UK’s 2019 school examination results have recently been released, causing much reason for celebration at The British School of Nanjing (BSN). All students who sat IGCSE Mandarin Chinese received an A*, while there were a number of other successes, resulting in very proud students and faculty alike.
Those studying the English curriculum in schools outside of the UK sit the international version of GCSE, or the International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE). While BSN students who took this year’s A-level and IGCSE exams opened their envelopes with nervous excitement, they need not have worried.
In addition to the outstanding performance for the school in Mandarin Chinese, students who took IGCSE Art returned results that put BSN in first place among the 14 schools that participated in the exam in the Nord Anglia Education group in China.
Elsewhere, new Head Girl, Marina Han, now in Year 12, was particularly thrilled with her result in Business Studies, where she gained a top grade 9, alongside equally impressive A* grades in Physics, Mathematics, Art and English. Among the new numerical grades, a grade 9 is not the same as A*; being designed to recognise the very highest performing students, there will be fewer grade 9s than there were A*s in the past.
Marina commented, “A few years ago, I was torn between studying Law or Business at university, but after these results, my ambition is to study Economics in the UK. My Business Studies teachers, both Mrs Aston and Mr Graham, have been a really, really big part of this”.
BSN is also this particularly proud of several students who took IGCSE and A level exams years ahead of their classmates. Ella Kwon sat IGCSE Chinese while still in Year 9, while Kadri Aston took English in Year 10. Both received A* grades. Kadri said, “I’ve always had a love for writing and telling stories, but Mrs Whiles is an amazing teacher and she brought out a real spark in me”.
Finally, Jackson Kang, made school history by becoming the youngest student to take examinations in A level Mathematics (while in Year 10), in addition to his IGCSE subjects, and achieve A* grades.
Matthew Shephard, Principal of BSN, commented, “I am incredibly proud of our students as we look at the successes achieved in our IGCSE results. There are some standout individual scores, but the sheer number of students celebrating top grades, whether A* or grade 9, is fantastic. … Alongside our students’ hard work and commitment, our teachers and staff have played a vital role in igniting a passion and helping our students excel”.
