Students enjoy SEA 'breeze'

Kinnesha George-Harry

AFTER long hours of extra lessons, practice and studying, Standard Five students were finally able to relax after sitting the Secondary Entrance Assessment (SEA) on Thursday.

Nine hundred and thirty-three students were scheduled to write the exam in Tobago, including 464 boys and 469 girls. The exam began at 9 am simultaneously across the islands, with students writing the Mathematics paper followed by Language Arts and then the creative writing component. Anxious parents stood outside various examination centres, waiting to embrace and comfort their loved ones.

Newsday spoke with several students who expressed relief and were generally positive about their experience, having completed the four-hour long exam, effectively ending the Primary School chapter of their academic lives.

At the Signal Hill Government Primary School, student Kezia Isaac told Newsday, “I would say that the exam was another toothpick in life that needed to be broken. It was a bit easy except for the third section – the Mathematics.”

Her friend Candy Baynes said she was excited that the examination was over and was looking forward to gloating at those still having to attend school.

“I going and do every and anything I want. I going and enjoy myself, sleep late, have fun, show off on my brothers that they have to come back to school for term three and I don’t,” she said.

At the Lambeau Anglican School, Kernique Horsford described the exam as “a breeze.”

She said, “The Mathematics, only one question in section three was a bit challenging but overall the exam was easy.”

Her classmate Kemari Daniel said he "thoroughly enjoyed" the Creative Writing aspect of the examination.

“In the lead up to this exam, I had a lot of homework… so I look forward to the upcoming holidays with no book,” he said.

Describing the exam, Scarborough Methodist student Leslyn-Ann Shanghai said, “It was manageable, the hardest part was the Maths.”

Taylor Bernard of Mason Hall Government said she enjoyed the Language Arts.