Errol teaches dengue a lesson in PEP
Surprise, confidence as students chalk up PEP as easy
WHEN ERROL Simpson Jr did battle in the first-ever sitting of the Primary Exit Profile (PEP) exam yesterday, he had already passed his toughest test – braving spells of vomiting, pain and a high temperature with a steely will that even dengue fever couldn’t bend.
Errol, 11, though suffering from bouts of nausea, was allowed to have his desk placed outside his classroom for fresh air as he sat the ability test component of PEP, the revamped high-school entrance exam that replaced the Grade Six Achievement Test, at St Aloysius Primary School i n downtown Kingston.
“My head was hurting me badly, and I had to stop the test and take a good rest and get up back and start fighting to finish my test,” said Errol, who hopes to be placed at St George’s College.
After feeling ill for several days, Errol had to be rushed to Bustamante Hospital for Children on Sunday when his condition got worse. At that time, he was convinced that he would not be able to sit the exam, having also missed out on last-minute preparations. However, he said he is proud of pressing ahead despite dengue.
“This is the reason why I’m here. Although I’m feeling sick, I’m fighting the pain, and I really wanted to do this test,” Errol told The Gleaner.
His mother, Phillipa ChannerSimpson, and father, Errol Simpson Sr, were also doubtful of their son’s chances of outlasting the exam. His mother stayed at the school throughout the examination yesterday, just in case he was unable to complete it and had to be taken home.
“I was worried that he wouldn’t get to do it, and even yesterday (Monday), he was still feeling weak. He woke up this morning (Tuesday) at 5 and said he wanted to do it. I asked if he was sure, and he said yes,” Channer-Simpson said, explaining how she plied him with Pedialyte and water to keep him hydrated while he roasted with fever.
Executive director of performing arts group, The Ashe Company, Conroy Wilson, who Errol lists as his mentor, said he is like a son to him, as the youngster is involved in theatre and training with the group. They are also members of The Universal Centre of Truth for Better Living church.
“The combination of all of those kinds of positive values between church and school, I believe, is what helps to keep him motivated and keeps him focused.
“I was concerned when I heard he was sick; he didn’t get to come to church on Sunday, and I was concerned that he wasn’t going to get to do the exam, but he went and did it, and I am so proud of that decision, and it speaks to the fact that he is determined, he is a great kid, he has a lot of potential,” said Wilson.
WITH THE ability test section of the Primary Exit Profile (PEP) out of the way, students, parents and teachers breathed a sigh of relief, even as they look to the other two challenges ahead: the performance task and the curriculum-based component.
Grade-six teacher at Free Town Primary School, Jacqueline Hunter, told The Gleaner of “sleepless nights” preparing her 33 students for the exam.
“At the PEP camp, they had 35 tests, and they were able to sit up until minutes to 11 (p.m.) to complete them. They are going to do fabulous!” she said.
Hunter said that prior to that, she laboured to ease their fears that the critical-thinking element of the exam would have undone them. “They were more scared of the working out, but after seeing it on the practice exams, they are very confident,” Hunter said.
She attributes her students’ confidence to the many PEP camps and marathons that saw them at school from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. doing practice tests and quizzes.
Now that they have sat the ability test, classmates Codeth Morgan and Kaylia Matthews have both said the exam wasn’t what they had expected.
Morgan said she was surprised that the first set of questions was “very easy”, with
the others proving to be “just a bit more challenging”.
Matthews said she walked away from the exam feeling “proud of herself” as she found PEP to be “manageable”.
She said the exam has actually boosted her confidence to deal with the upcoming performance task and curriculum-based aspects of the exam.
Meanwhile, in Port Antonio, Portland, spirits were high.
At t he conclusion of the PEP ability test at Port Antonio Primary, dozens of students exited the exam sporting big smiles.
“It was very easy; I expected it to be much harder,” said Dontiquea Tyrell, a grade-six student.
“I fully comprehended what was on paper, but the key to it all is to be able to read through carefully so as to get a great understanding. In preparing for PEP, we had to do a lot of critical thinking, along with reading. We did a number of tests from the PEP practice books, and it really worked, “she added.
Another student, Jadea Johnson, mentioned that the test was very easy and that she had been overly prepared.
Principal Kennecha Davis-Williams told The Gleaner yesterday that PEP allows students to think more broadly and to express themselves more fluently.
“It is by no means a difficult exam,” DavisWilliams stated.
“In teaching, we have to get students into the habit of explaining why. Then they will be able to write the curriculum-based test,” she added.
Over in St James, PEP students were optimistic and upbeat.
Janique Buchanan, 11, head girl of St James Preparatory School, said PEP was not as terrifying as she had feared.
“When I first heard about the exam, I thought it was going to be hard, but when I got the book and opened it, I realised the stuff in there was what my teacher had taught before. I think I’ve passed with flying colours,” she said.
Raphael Serrao, also 11, deputy head boy of Mt Alvernia Prep, said he exhaled when he began to go through the test.
“It was easy: it was quite manageable. I had felt anxious and worried when I was going into the exam, but when I started it, I felt relieved, and I think I did well.”