Beaconhouse School System Cambridge exam's distinction

Beaconites 'O' and 'A' level high-achiever
Islamabad, Apr 09: A total of 378 Cambridge International Examinations (CIE) distinction holders of Beaconhouse School System received their 'O' and 'A' level high-achiever awards at a ceremony here on Wednesday night.

The ceremony was held at the Beaconhouse School System, Margalla Campus, decorated in greens and whites with fresh flower arrangements, fairy lights, garden lanterns and floating candle displays in coordinated pottery that gave the evening a soft, elegant ambience.

Lieutenant General (r) Muhammad Asghar, rector of the National University of Sciences & Technology (NUST), graced the occasion as chief guest of the ceremony, which was attended by more than 1,000 guests, including Ambassador of Sultanate of Oman Mohammed Said Al-Lawati, CIE Country Manager (Relationships & Communication) Uzma Yousaf, parents and students. Eminent journalist and media personality Syed Talat Hussain was the keynote speaker and Mohammad Ayub, a teacher running a free school for underprivileged children of Islamabad for over 25 years, was the guest of honour for the evening.

The 'O' and 'A' level high-achievers included 29 prize-winning CIE international, national and regional distinction holders namely Anika Sadiq - world topper in A Level Mathematics and a Cambridge Academic Brilliance Award winner, Zainab Abaid - world topper in A Level Psychology, Faryal Khalid - world topper in O Level Mathematics, Tabish Jaleel - world topper in O Level Advanced Mathematics, and Zara Durrani - world topper in A Level Economics.

The top position-holders in Pakistan included Saad Qadeer, Faizaan Abassi, Zarak Pasha, Mashail Malik, Usman Masood and Nadia Ashraf. While the top regional position-holders were Umaira Iqbal, Sarim Zia, Farheen Akhtar, Xenab Naqvi, Shah Zaman, Malika Shahbaz, Sidra Hassan, Tabish Sheikh, Arsalan Adil, Hira Basher, Mariam Javed, Mashail Aman, Mehak Akhlaq, Muhammad Junaid Farooq, Saad Qadeer, Zara Durrani and Maria ul Mulk.

Those attending the gathering were immensely moved at the announcement of the name of brilliant Saad Sadiq, a Beaconhouse high-achiever with six As, who lost his life in the tragic attack on Parade Lane mosque on December 4, 2009. His parents, Brigadier and Mrs Sadiq, attended the ceremony. Brigadier Sadiq received his son's shield of honour while his mother shared memories of her son and read out extracts from a speech that Saad Sadiq had written for his election to the school's student council. Saad also received accolades from all his teachers, fellow students and friends.

After distributing prizes, medals and shields to the high-achievers, Lieutenant General (r) Muhammad Asghar HI(M) congratulated high-achievers, their parents and Beaconhouse School System. He emphasised that knowledge becomes education only if its acquisition carries a moral purpose, along with the importance of courtesy as part of our cultural values. He advised all students to develop the ability to discover the elements of success in every apparent failure.

Danial Kasuri, executive director of the Beaconhouse Group, congratulated the proud parents and stressed that children face countless attractions and distractions in today's world and are in a greater need than ever of sustained parental involvement.

Syed Talat Hussain urged students to continue their drive to not just excel academically but also to utilise their faculties in exploring, inventing and thinking of ways to contribute towards making life better for the community at large.

During the ceremony, Umar Khan enthralled the guests with his exquisite violin recital and Salik Shah had the audience completely involved in his melodious rendition of 'Khamaaj'.

Later, Danial Kasuri presented mementos to the chief guest, guest of honour and keynote speaker. The chief guest also presented Kasuri with a NUST memento.

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Headstart School holds science fair
Islamabad: The Headstart School organised the Science Fair 2010 at its Elementary Branch here on Thursday to encourage the next generation of scientists and engineers, says a press release.

It was heartening to see so many young scientists at their best, presenting their projects so proudly to the invitees, demonstrating a spirit of scientific inquiry that is fostered through participation in such activities. Their command on the subject matter and their pride in their accomplishments reflected in their public speaking, as they explained their projects and answered the questions posed to them. They were excited about their projects, especially because most of them had selected their area of interest to work on and had learnt many new scientific ideas and methods researching on these, enjoying themselves immensely in the process. Their exuberance and ownership of the whole programme reflected their initiative and confidence.

This year, Grade 6 students took up many ambitious projects like bristle boat, electric boat, electrolysis, windmill, electromagnetic crane, speaker, electric city and power generation from wind. Grade 7 students seemed inspired to find solutions to the challenges impending their present day Pakistan and presented projects like flood detector, security system, pelton wheel and filtration plant.

The attitude and approach of these students goes on to prove that all is still not lost and we have a generation coming up, who is fully cognizant of the needs of the day, discovering new horizons and id definitely getting geared to work towards the betterment and development of their country.

The academic institution organises annual science fairs, which facilitate students to showcase their knowledge, skills and interest in science. The students prepare projects which basically follow in four categories - experimental, engineering, displays and theoretical.

The school aims to make learning a meaningful and interactive experience that engages students in hands-on engineering and design activities that enhance their knowledge through complete immersion in their learning, with the end result that these students emerge as efficient problem solvers and effective appliers of knowledge and skills.

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College clarifies news report on students' protest
Rawalpindi: The Federal Government Postgraduate College for Women, Kashmir Road, has clarified a news item published on April 7, 2010 regarding protest by students on imposition of heavy fines, says a press release issued here on Thursday.

The college agrees that institutions fall prey to anarchy without rules and regulations. Therefore, the college administration has outlined a code of ethics in the form of rules & regulations printed in the college prospectus, which are binding on all students.

In order to curb the non-serious attitude of the students and to ensure regularity, punctuality and discipline among them, fine is also imposed for bunking classes and missing college examinations.

The college administration ensures the intimation of college rules to the concerned parents and students by printing them in the prospectus. At the time of admission also, they are made to sign an undertaking containing all rules of behaviour, attendance, uniform, examinations etc. The examination committee also circulates its regulations well in time and students are aware that they will be fined in case they miss their examinations.

This year, due to the revised examination schedule of Punjab University, the college introduced pre-university examination for BA students. This was being done in the best interest of the students and to ensure good results in the final university examinations as last year BA results were not up to the mark. Students were informed before they proceeded on their preps that failure to take the pre-university examinations would lead to imposition of fine.

As a nation, it is our responsibility to inculcate in our youth, strict observance of rules so that they emerge as ethically responsible citizens of Pakistan. It is further added that the amount of fine realised from the students is promptly deposited in college fund and is utilised for the welfare of students.

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NUST hosts CAC session
Islamabad: The National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST) hosted the inaugural session of its corporate advisory council (CAC) here on Thursday. The industry was represented by a diverse group of CEO's and directors from Pakistan's largest businesses while NUST was represented by officials of academia and planning divisions. The news

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NVM to hold speech competition on 'Volunteerism'
Islamabad: National Volunteer Movement (NVM) is planning to hold a speech competition on 'The Role of Youth in Promoting Volunteerism' among the students of twin cities' educational institutions. Total 10 educational institutions would participate in the competition. The participating institutions will first hold speech competitions on the given topic at their campuses prior to sending names of winners to the organisers. The students securing first three positions at their respective institutions would participate in the final ceremony. Purpose of the competition is to make students aware about the importance of volunteerism; encourage them to participate in volunteers' campaigns through activity-based learning.

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AIOU teacher praised for authoring book on Pushto
Islamabad: Speakers at a programme here on Thursday appreciated AIOU Professor Abdullah Jan Abid for writing a book titled 'Short History of Pushto Language and Literature'.

Abid is among the founders of the AIOU's department of 'Pakistani Languages and Literature'. He is also involved in producing a documentary on Pushto poet Rehman Baba.

Allama Iqbal Open University (AIOU) organised the programme to congratulate Abid on receiving the national award from the 'Writers Guild' and Justice Kyani Award from 'Abaseen Arts Council' in appreciation of his book.

AIOU Vice Chancellor (VC) Professor Dr Nazir Ahmed Sangi said that consistent efforts and hard work bred achievements. He said that Almighty Allah helps hard working individuals and Abdullah's book is an example of this.

He said that since the book was written in Urdu language, it would help promote unity and brotherhood among people of various ethnic backgrounds. Sangi said that national language was important for national integrity and progress.

He said that as Department of Computer Sciences chairman, he prepared Urdu e-learning software to make Urdu the language of internet as well. He said that since AIOU imparted education to students primarily in Urdu, the software certainly would be of tremendous help.

He said that AIOU's main campus in the capital was connected with its provincial campuses through five video conferencing seats. He said the facility would gradually be extended to all 36 regional campuses of the university. app

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