Although she often fantasised about placing first in the Secondary Entrance Assessment (SEA) examination, Lexi Balchan was at a loss for words when her dream came true yesterday.
The 12-year-old Point Fortin ASJA student was so overwhelmed with emotion she could barely speak when reporters tried to interview her following the announcement.
Lexi, of Fitz Lane, Vance River, beat out some 18, 149 students for the top spot and passed for her first choice of Naparima Girls’ College, San Fernando. Her raw composite scores were 97 in Mathematics, 96 in English Language and 20 in Creative Writing.
She was presented her results by Education Minister Anthony Garcia as he and his entourage, including Minister in the Minister of Education Dr Lovell Francis, visited the school yesterday.
Point Fortin MP and National Security Minister Edmund Dillon, T&T Unified Teachers Association (TTUTA) president Lynsley Doodhai and National Parent Teachers Association (NPTA) president Zena Ramathali also visited and addressed the students before they were given their results.
Another Standard Five student, Jada Wiltshire, was recognised by Garcia as she placed in the top 100 students nationwide.
After receiving her results, Balchan, who has aspirations of becoming a scientist, wept as her parents, Lisa and Krishdath Balchan, huddled around her offering their congratulations. Her younger sister Leia was not present to join in the celebration.
“I feel so happy...there are no words to describe it,” Lexi said in between tears.
When asked if she believed she could have captured the first place, she managed a smile and said, “I kind of thought it was going to be me. A lot of times I fantasised.”
She credited her success to hard work, her parents’ support, her teachers’ guidance and God. However, she said she had to make many sacrifices along the way.
“A lot of things that I missed out that I wish I can experience again...things that were once in a lifetime but in the end it was all worth it.”
However, she said she needed no reward for placing first.
Her father also said Lexi’s success was the result of her hard work.
“Since the beginning, from inception into this school, I always preached to her (Lexi) that you have to dream big to get big things,” Balchan said.
“But in dreaming big, you can’t just dream and expect that one day you wake up and it happen - you have to work hard - and Lexi is a very hard-working individual. She doesn’t play, most of the time is either she is always reading or doing some little activity that will relax her mind and we as parents, we supported her in everything that she would like to do.”
He urged other parents to spend time with their children, as he said often times children just need support.
“So to the parents outside there, you all need to spend a little time with your children, have a little discussion, find out what is going on with their school life, their normal everyday life, because some of them you might not even know,” he said.
“You all need to sit by the table and the children might need a little support, you might not have to be involved in the school work but offer them some support.”
