Cornish College is thrilled to announce that Year 12 student and one of our 2020 College Captains, Naomi Kah, has been awarded a study award as part of the Premier’s VCE Awards for outstanding academic achievement in 2019.
Naomi achieved a perfect score of 50 in German and is to be celebrated for this wonderful academic achievement.
The Premier’s VCE Awards recognise students who have demonstrated outstanding achievement in the Victorian Certificate of Education (VCE) and study awards recognise the best performers in individual VCE subjects.
Principal of Cornish College, Nicola Forrest, praised Naomi for her fantastic results.
“Congratulations to Naomi on her outstanding academic achievement. These results are a testament not only to Naomi’s dedication and hard work, but also to her personal growth and development. We are extremely proud of her.”
Naomi was surprised when she received her results, but believes that studying a Units 3 & 4 subject in Year 11 provided important insights that have helped her prepare for Year 12.
“It’s hard to judge sometimes how you’re going to do for VCE. That’s why it’s so useful doing a subject in Year 11, because you get a feel for how they mark things and how different it is to Year 9 or Year 10. You get a taste of what Year 12 is like and you get used to organising yourself and preparing for your school assessed coursework (SAC). You also see what an exam at the end of the year looks like. I definitely think it’s helpful to do a Units 3 & 4 subject in Year 11 – especially one that you feel more confident with.”
Naomi says organisation and exam preparation are vital for students completing their VCE. She recommends students understand both the exam content and format to provide the best responses they can.
“Exams are different to SACs and normal schoolwork, so you need to prepare for what sorts of questions come up and what [the examiners] are looking for. You have to know how to approach questions and how to organise your time. So, doing a lot of exam preparation, where you focus specifically on exam questions, is really important.”
Naomi also recommends balancing studying with other activities to maintain positive mental health and wellbeing.
“I want to do well, but I don’t want to sacrifice my life, my happiness and mental health just to get a really good score. I’m trying to be conscious of my mental health and making sure I’m taking breaks and catching up with friends on the phone and doing other things as well as studying. I think you can’t do that well if you’re only studying all the time – you’re not going to be very happy. So, for me, trying to find a balance is really important.”
Along with her role as a College Captain, Naomi is studying English, Chemistry, Physical Education, Maths Methods and Physics. She is yet to decide what the future holds, but is exploring a range of opportunities for life after Cornish, such as taking a gap year to work and travel to Germany; enrolling in a science or medicine degree or moving into the research sector. She is, however, keen to make a difference.
“I definitely want to be doing something that’s making a positive difference in the world and making a positive impact on other people’s lives. I really care about other people and I feel we need to help other people if they’re going through tough situations. We’ve got all sorts of different issues in the world that need to be solved. For me, that’s really important.”
