• Shimo la Tewa, popularly known as the “Mighty Shimo” was in the same league with Sheikh Khalifa, Qubaa Muslim School, Memon High and Light Academy, each producing an A in the 2020 KCSE results.
•The two schools, which had earned the tag of sleeping giants, on Monday posted better results compared to 2019, according to the head teachers.
Image: FILE
Shimo La Tewa High School and Mama Ngina High School, which are the two national schools in Mombasa county, have reclaimed their lost glory.
The two schools, which had earned the moniker 'sleeping giants', on Monday posted better results compared to 2019, according to their head teachers.
Shimo la Tewa, popularly known as the “Mighty Shimo” was in the same league with Sheikh Khalifa, Qubaa Muslim School, Memon High and Light Academy, each producing an A in the 2020 KCSE results.
Sheikh Khalifa’s Asia Abubakar is the top student in the region with an A of 82 points.
Shimo la Tewa’s Swaleh Alex managed an A of 81 points, Qubaa’s Sumayya Ahmed Mohammed got an A of 81 points and Memon’s Ashraf Mohammed Anif also managed an A of 81 points.
Shimo la Tewa principal Mathew Mutiso could not hide his joy as he announced how his students performed.
Mutiso said their performance was exemplary compared to the previous exams, especially in 2019, where they performed dismally. They had only two A- (minuses) in 2019.
“We have done our best. We have finally reclaimed our lost glory. We are still receiving the results. So far we have one A (plain), more than 10 A- (minuses) and more than 25 B+ (pluses),” Mutiso said.
Mama Ngina High School produced six A minuses.
The top candidate, Joy Taura scored A- of 80 points, a point shy of an A plain mark. Even though she topped her class, Taura could not hide her disappointment of missing the one point.
Principal Mwanahamisi Umar said the school has improved on its previous results.
“As Mama Ngina, we performed averagely good considering the disruption caused by Covid-19. We are happy with what we have scored,” she said.
At Sheikh Khalifa, Asia said she had hoped to score A- (minus), therefore the straight A came as a surprise.
“I had scored a B in the mock examinations, I did not hope to score more than an A- (minus) in KCSE, but I thank God for his grace,” Asia said.
She said the teachers played a critical role in delivering the best results.
“My dream is to pursue medicine so that I can later help the less fortunate in the society,” she said.
Sheikh Khalifa deputy principal Rishad Rajab Ramadhan said because of Covid-19 disruption, they were forced to shift to online classes.
“We are very happy that the students and teachers worked very hard despite the many challenges they faced,” he said.
By the time of going to press, Sheikh Khalifa had managed to get one A plain, 29 A- (minuses), 59 B+, 39 B- (minuses), 25 C+, 9 C plains and three C- (minuses)
Qubaa Muslim School had one A of 81 points and six A- (minuses), said deputy principal Anthony Keng'ara.
“We are glad. This is the first time we are getting an A plain," said Keng’ara.
Keng'ara said they came up with specific programmes geared towards helping the students, especially after Covid-19 disrupted learning.
These include Motisha groups, where teachers were grouped with learners and who became more of parents to learners.
"This meant more follow-ups and planning for students," said Keng'ara.
Memon Academy High School's Ashraf Mohammed Hassan, who also got an A plain with 81 points, said time management was key in his performance.
"I expected the marks because I believed in myself," said the 18-year-old, who hopes to study civil engineering at University of Nairobi or Jomo Kenyatta University of Technology.
Memon Academy principal Joseph Kang'ethe said online classes helped his 86 candidates cope with the vagaries of Covid-19.
"Although there were other challenges that made it difficult," said Kang'ethe. The school has one A plain and eight A-.