Kamarley Bedward, Tianna Richards top PEP rankings at Old Harbour Primary

She also knows that sometimes despite doing all the preparations, nerves can get the better of a student, regardless of how bright they may be. All of these factors and more had Williams anxiously waiting for the results of her son Kamarley Bedward.  In the end, she was not only relieved that he did very well but was over the moon that he emerged as the top boy for Old Harbour Primary School with a score of 383.7 out of 400.

Hailing from Claremont in Old Harbour, the proud mother said that her joy is beyond words as the journey was not an easy one because it required a lot of effort, time and resources which in the end proved worthwhile as he copped a 96% average.

“Of course I was elated. I am just thrilled, especially for him,” she said in an interview with Old Harbour News.

Being focused, she shared, has never been an issue for Kamarley as from early he understood the assignment and what it will take to execute it properly.

“It wasn’t hard to get him to study as he was committed to doing what he was supposed to and we have had conversations about being and staying motivated and how if you want good, you have to give it your best shot. For example, he said he wanted to be the top boy so he knew he had to put in the work,” said Williams.

Striking that balance between school work and allowing him to still be a child, she said, was a straightforward one.

“We have rules,” continued the educator. “That is the first thing. We do not make excuses. Games, phones and tablets are not priorities. In fact, the tablet was connected to my phone. So he knows what to do and when he can have downtime.” 

Her hope and dream for her child is that he continues to work hard towards his goals incrementally. 

She said: “I want him to be fully committed to whatever he chooses and we will support him wholeheartedly. So whatever he is comfortable doing we will allow him to do in order for him to be his best self and stand behind him.”

Come the beginning of the next academic school year in September Kamarley will enter the hallowed halls of Glenmuir High. He was pleased that all of his hard work paid off.

“I studied one to three hours daily and attended extra lessons both at school and privately,” he tells Old Harbour News. “I found PEP hard but seeing the results I am very happy with my score. My parents are very happy and congratulated me saying that I made them proud and my friends at school actually said that I won the title fair and square.”

Asked about his favourite subject, Bedward added: “I always have a love for maths as it is the subject I have a natural talent for.” With football and video games as his hobbies, he praised his parents as his role models because they always endeavour to bring out the best in him and see his full potential, even when he does not see it himself.

“My mother always pushes me even when I feel like giving up. She will say ‘keep on going, you will achieve it if you keep trying’. I always remember that,” he said.

For top girl Tianna Richards, being bullied did not stop her from always striving for excellence. Despite a few fellow schoolmates trying to shake her confidence, Richards remained as steadfast as ever and it paid off handsomely with her not only topping PEP with an average of 93% but also being announced as this year’s valedictorian.

Studying at times for up to four hours a day and attending extra lessons is no easy commitment at this tender age but young Richards has always had a love for academics so putting in the work was not that much of a challenge for this self-motivated child.  A budding architect who also loves to draw, she shared that while previously she was stuck on maths being her favourite subject now she thinks it is science.

“Science is fun and the information is easier to process once you get the hang of it,” she said.

Her PEP accomplishments came as no surprise to her.

“To be completely honest, I didn’t feel any way. I was happy but not that surprised as I had mixed feelings about the exams but I figured I did well. I wouldn’t say it was hard but I can’t say it was easy.  My family is excited and overly overjoyed….emphasis on the overly overjoyed”, she joked.

Overjoyed is an understatement for Tianna’s mother Tiffany Frankson who expressed that her daughter is the poster child for sheer resilience. 

“I’m gonna be straight up with you. Tianna has never been the kind of child that I have to say ‘Go and pick up your book’. You don’t have to tell her to study or to get up and go to school. She is naturally self-motivated. Her kinds of gifts are books, not devices. A book and a pencil will get her excited, not slime or a doll etc. Her kind of fun usually relates to something educational,” Frankson said.

Tianna has been consistent throughout her primary education, topping her classes from grade one to grade six. It is a trend she hopes to continue in high school.

“She is definitely self- driven. She is never late for school. She leaves out early even though it is just up the road. In basic school she won most creative, most improved reader and was made valedictorian and in primary school she was top girl every year, head girl and was again valedictorian,” Frankson said.

Tianna who turned 12 in March, will be attending the prestigious Wolmers Girls School and according to her mother, her placement was never in doubt.

“I was already celebrating before the results as I knew she had done the work. People love Tianna because she is cut from a different cloth, nah lie. She is just always consistent. She makes me so proud,” Frankson said oozing with pride.

Her mother is especially proud of Tianna’s ability to brush off the naysayers who have in the past tried to get into her head or tear her down in order to make themselves feel big.

“She is very soft and some of the kids tried to bully her and I have to turn to her and say ‘Don’t let anybody make you feel less than or steal our joy, not with all the work that you have put in.’ I now can see her standing up for herself, being more self-confident and able to face those who try to make her feel that being good or being smart is a liability,” Frankson said while adding: “I see a lot of myself in her, just a better version. I ensured that I developed a relationship with her so that we can talk and reason about anything.”

Tianna’s love for architecture and admiration for structural components of homes is also worth highlighting for Frankson, who noted: “Sometimes I swear people must think that we are stalkers or scoping out their houses as Tianna will have me slow down when we drive by to admire people’s homes and comment on the finishes.

A caterer from New Harbour Village Frankson says her dream for her child is to just continue to push herself to be great and stay self–motivated.

“Don’t limit yourself because your mother is not rich. Dream as wide as you can and as big as you want. The same way I work hard to get you this far, I will continue to work to get you where you need to be,” she said.