Fourth placed Orion says all of his hard work paid off

Oriontrent John, a student at the Fairhall Primary School, who placed fourth for Boys and fourth overall in the CPEA is elated with his placement.

“I am really ecstatic because all of my hard work paid off. It was a very long and difficult year, but I am pleased that the results fell in line with the hard work put in, and also validated the efforts of my teachers, the school and my parents,” the youngster told SEARCHLIGHT.

His father, Roxell John, who is the Sports coordinator, and coordinator of the Applied Associates Degree in Sports Sciences at the St Vincent and the Grenadines Community College (SVGCC) said: “We have a structure at home where preparation for each school year begins in early August.We begin going through texts and materials that are assigned for each subject with a daily work plan from Sunday to Thursdays,” he outlined.

“Fridays and Saturdays are his days off for him to complete extracurricular activities, football, beach, and socializing with friends.”

Roxell said that he was not surprised with his son’s results because “the work plan allows him to have advanced knowledge of the content to be covered and complements the hard work done by his teachers at the school. Added to that, we complete work for other Caribbean and international educational syllabi. This gives him a broader view of content material.”

At the 2023 Fairhall Primary School graduation held the day prior to the release of the 2023 CPEA results, Orion John received a number of awards. He received the Best Mathematics Student Award; Best Social Studies Student Award; top Peer Counsellors’ Award; Annual Headteacher’s Award; and the Valedictorian Award.

Roxell John further said that “a good parent-child relationship is needed and that support all the way through for Orion, his teachers and the school are also very important factors in his success.”

“There is no replacement for quality involvement by parents in the school life of their children and this is an all important part to ensure the success of the children in school. Yes the teachers and schools themselves have a job to do, but with quality involvement by parents, the job of the teachers

and schools is made easier.You know exactly where your child is and can adequately access their possibilities,” John added.

“I know we all are not at the same educational level and may not all be able to assist with certain levels of school work, but just that genuine support, showing of interest all the time and even getting help from others to assist your child is extremely important.”

Orion along with Kole Kenneth Inniss of the St. Mary’s Roman Catholic School, had the highest overall score in Mathematics in the 2023 CPEA Exams – 97.3 percent His father was adamant that “making time is not an option. It is my duty.” “We as parents must make quality time to be involved in our children’s school life.Yes it was difficult at times, especially when work activities ran later than usual but again, a weekly plan kept things in place. Orion also has an affinity for sports, so having him tagging along at times did not create a major challenge,” his dad said.

Orion John’s submission titled ‘Air Filtration System’ to the 2023 VINLEC- sponsored National Science Technology Fair was voted one of the top three Most Outstanding Projects. He also received the Most Outstanding Student award from the Zero Hunger Trust Fund, and placed second in the St.Vincent and the Grenadines 2022 National Primary Schools Mathematics Competition.