Parents four times as proud
Quadruplets’ support for each other’s SPM studies pays off
SHAH ALAM: It was a special day for Qatarbased engineer Syed Nurshadir Syed Ibrahim Al-Jamallullail, 52, who flew in on Wednesday to witness his quadruplets officially graduating from secondary school.
This was the first time he accompanied his children to receive their results for a public examination.
Although his four children – dubbed “the quad” – share similar looks and lives, they scored differently in Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia 2018, which 421,706 candidates took last year.
Sharifah Nazira scored 5As, 3Bs and 1C, while Syed Nazrin, Syed Nadzmi and Sharifah Nadira scored 8As and 2Bs; 3As, 1B, 4Cs, 1D, 1E; and 7As and 2Bs respectively.
All were students of SMK Seksyen 9 here except Syed Nazrin, who attended Sekolah Dato’ Abdul Razak in Seremban, one of Malaysia’s oldest fully residential premier schools.
Syed Nurshadir, who last saw his children in January, said he was pleased with their results.
“Though they weren’t all straight As, it was their effort that counts. Whatever results they achieved, they should be happy because what they give is what they’ll get,” said the father of four, who planned on taking the quad out for a celebratory dinner.
Mother Saidatul Nazura Mohd Sabi, 51, said she monitored their studies at home and that disciplining the quad since young helped mould them into who they are today.
“I do not have to micromanage them. They are motivated and independent children who push each other, correct each other’s studies and compete with one another to do better.
“They are a playful bunch. But when one sees the others studying, he or she will follow suit,” she said, adding that they attended tuition for subjects they were weak in such as Additional Mathematics.
The youngest of the four, Sharifah Nadira, said being part of the quad kept her studies in check.
“There are standards to live up to. My mission is always to beat the rest, but through healthy competition of course.
“We compete with each other, but take it in a positive stride,” said the aspiring filmmaker, who wants to carve a name for herself in the broadcasting industry in the future.
“Being part of the quad gave us good stress that kept us going. It also meant that we all always had a forever friend in school and at home, where cram sessions were conducted at night when exams drew near,” she added.
The eldest of the quad, Sharifah Nazira, said she was proud of her siblings.
“Taking SPM with three other siblings at the same time can be stressful because there is competition. Whenever I see them studying, I feel bad that I am not studying,” said the science stream student, who is interested in studying fashion.
Syed Nadzmi, the third member of the quad, was elated to find that he had passed Additional Mathematics.
“I thought I would fail, but I got much better than expected. I’m usually the lazy bum at home and have to force myself to study,” said the aspiring architect.
Syed Nazrin, the second member of the quad, said being away from his siblings made him try harder in studies. He chose to enrol in Sekolah Dato’ Abdul Razak as it was his father’s alma mater.
“We (the quad) would argue with each other over whose school is better but ultimately we all tried our best,” said the science stream student, who dreams of studying business in the United States and building his own lifestyle brand in the future.