Wycherley International School - Graduation and Prize Giving 2014
“The aim of our toil shall be mankind’s gain,” exhorts the Principal, Mr. Kingsley Jayasinghe
The Annual Graduation and Prize Giving of Wycherley International School was held on 26th June 2014 at the BMICH. It was indeed a great event for all at Wycherley, as they had Mr. Gotabaya Rajapaksa, Secretary of Defence and Urban Development and Mrs. Ioma Rajapaksa as Chief Guests. It was also memorable as Mr. Rajapaksa had been a student of Mr. Jayasinghe and his son had been a student of Wycherley in the Primary Section.
Mr. Rajapaksa in his address to the Graduating Class, drove the nail home to them that “Success in life is not about career progress or making money, nor is it only about effectively achieving personal goals. To be a truly successful person, one must realize that one is a part of Society at large and contribute towards the well being of others as well.” He continued addressing the children saying “there are ample career opportunities for the present day youth than before and you need not restrict your career path only to traditional fields. As you venture out into the World, identify yourselves as Sri Lankans and support this nation that has provided much.” He also told them,“you also need to remember that you should give back something of your talents to your country – Sri Lanka, as it is a country that is fast developing in Asia.” In his closing address, he emphasized that “true patriotism puts the country first” which was indeed a great call to the young students on the threshold of becoming men and women in the World.
In his Prize Day Oration, Mr. Kingsley Jayasinghe elaborated on the Academic Achievements of the School, giving the following statistics. “At the May/June 2013 O/ Level Examinations, we had 100% success in all 15 subjects that were offered by our students – who averaged 100% A/B grades in Additional Mathematics, Geography, Sinhala and Tamil, 97% A/B grades in Chemistry, over 90% A/B grades in Mathematics, Physics, Computer Studies and Accounting, over 80% A/B grades in English Language, Business Studies, Economics and Biology, 75% A/B grades in English Literature and 50% in French.”
Commenting on the Cambridge A/Level Examinations of 2013 he said, “we had 100% passes in 10 out of 11 subjects. There were 100% A/B grades in Accounting, Computing, Law and Mathematics with Statistics, 85% A/B grades in Biology, 75% in Mathematics with Mechanics, 67% in Business Studies and 63% in Chemistry. There were 72 A*’s for students who obtained over 90% marks. The Cambridge Checkpoint results too showed a good standard of performance both at Grade 5 and Grade 8 levels.” Chaidanya Kandeepan was the Best Performer at the Grade 5 Checkpoint Examination, while Ovini Weerasinghe had the highest achievement in Grade 8.
At this juncture, he bade farewell to Mrs. Indra Puvimanasinghe, Mrs. Indrani Seevaratnam, Mrs. Malkanthi Marambe, Mrs. Yoga Coomarasamy who were leaving the school after a stint of 25 years of service and to Mrs. Shirley De Silva who was leaving after a 20 year service to Wycherley and was given a Long Service Award. He said that long standing teachers are a great asset to the school.
Mr. Gotabaya Rajapaksa, Mrs. Rajapaksa and Mr. Jayasinghe distributed the Prizes where more than 250 children received Awards from Grade 3 up to Grade 12. There were also Special Awards for the Best Performers at the Cambridge O/Level and A/Level Examinations of 2013. Madhara Iddamalgoda received a Gold Medal for the Best Results at the Cambridge O/Level Examination 2013. The Shamil Jinasena Memorial Gold Medal for the Best Results at the Cambridge Advanced Level Examination 2013 was carried away by Kokila Dilhani Perera.
Apart from the Prizes for subjects, there was an array of Special Awards in categories such as General Knowledge, Open Essay, Oratory, Singing and Art. Mr. Kingsley Jayasinghe emphasized the fact that the success of the School lies with the teachers who are a dedicated band, always available to the students, even if it means sacrificing their free time.
Mr. Jayasinghe told the children “an educated man sees a human being much in his own image, who has the same fears, hopes and expectations that he has. With this in mind we organize our activities – both educational and extra mural, to make our students aware that there are others who are less fortunate.” To the Graduating Class of Students he said “we have watched you grow up through the years into refined young men and women, ready to step out into the world. Today as you stand on the threshold eagerly waiting to step into the World at large, I know that you will bring honour to the school wherever you are. I want to quote from the School Song to tell you what Wycherley expects of you – AND THE AIM OF OUR TOIL SHALL BE MANKIND’S GAIN. This line sums up what is expected of you, no matter how high you rise – whatever you do should benefit mankind.”
The Graduation Ceremony and the Prize Giving is one of the most prestigious events in the School Calendar of Wycherley International School. The Graduation Ceremony is for Students who have completed their Secondary Education at Wycherley and are on the brink of their Tertiary Education.
Students who have spent long years together will remain friends even many years later, hoping that they will meet sometime, somewhere. The Prize Giving is not only to reward children who have worked hard throughout the year but is also an impetus to those who are not Prize Winners, to work harder towards achievement. The farewell event for the Graduating Class was the Graduation Ball held at the Cinnamon Lakeside Hotel.