Sishle Tom, a matriculant from the Centre of Science and Technology, could not spend long hours studying into the night like most of his peers.
|||Sishle Tom, a matriculant from the Centre of Science and Technology, could not spend long hours studying into the night like most of his peers.
He would have to go to bed by 7pm because it was just too cold. Tom, who was diagnosed with TB in March, was recognised yesterday as one of the three pupils in the province who excelled despite barriers to learning. He achieved four distinctions, two in the 90s. Tom said: “I expected six As but I’m not disappointed, I’m happy.”
Tom told the Cape Times he had found it too difficult to breathe the cold air: “When I was ill I had to be in bed by six or seven. It was too cold. So I had to make sure I started studying early in the afternoon.” He said he would also often arrive late for school because he struggled to walk from his Khayelitsha home to catch a taxi.
Tom said his parents, who are both unemployed, were “really proud” of him because he would be the first person in his family to attend university. He plans to study electrical engineering at Stellenbosch University this year.
One of the other pupils acknowledged was Louzanne Coetzee, of Pioneer School for the Visually Impaired in Worcester. She was named the province’s top achiever in the category for special needs pupils after achieving six distinctions, including 97 percent for history.
Coetzee, who was born blind, plans to study communication at the University of the Free State.
Gesie Theron, who has brain cancer and is blind, achieved three As and two Bs. The Hoërskool DF Malan pupil said she was “very happy, excited and honoured”. “The fact that I’m acknowledged inspires me further to stay fighting, irrespective of my circumstances.”
Theron’s twin sister Martie, who didn’t leave her side on Tuesday, earned six distinctions.
E-mail Michelle: michelle.jones@inl.co.za