Exam Time



On Holiday in Dubai-2012. Left to Right: CJ, Kobus,Daniel & Kira



We are a family with itchy feet. I say this because we have lived and moved between countries such as Kenya, Uganda, South Africa, Namibia, Nigeria and Ghana. We move because of the job my husband does with a pay TV company.

 

Schooling has always been a challenge. When we moved from Ghana to Namibia, the kids were halfway through a school year but then the Namibian Schools had just started, and they lost the head start of 6months by starting the same school year all over again.  My kids always attended schools but it was time to try something else.

Moving back to Ghana would result in them re-doing a completed school year or alternatively starting with a 6 month backlog. So we chose home schooling. My kids are currently being home schooled on the IGCSE system from University of Cambridge. They are well adjusted and very social.
 

After a lot of research, we decided on the  British International Distance College (RSA) and got the study material sent to us. BIDC follows the international syllabus set by Cambridge International Examinations (CIE). They supply a work program and textbook. The student receives 6 assignments that need to be submitted for assessment.  At first we had a student adviser Natasha, and she was really clued-on. She would finish our sentences as she knew her stuff, and had years of experience but she left on maternity leave.  She was replaced by Tommy. He is like a stick in the mud. Obtaining information from him is like pulling teeth! He does not read his emails carefully and waste time by asking you to explain or elaborate on information already given, maybe we were just spoilt by Natasha? She was really good at her job.  I am considering asking for another student adviser or thinking of changing Distance Educational centres all together.

 

I have been checking out CL Education ~ its an on line distance college linking you to prestigious locally and internationally recognised AS/A-Levels and O-level qualifications through Cambridge Independent Examinations (CIE).

 
Its been a bumpy ride...
When we arrived back In Accra (moved from Namibia, Windhoek), we realised we had only two days to hand in the first assignment for maths. Our new apartment was being furnished, and we had no proper table and chairs to work from. I have long since decided it is not worth sending containers with personal belongings across international borders. I rather sell everything and buy new or secondhand nice stuff in the next country. That way I also learn my way around quickly.  The assignments gave us an indication what parts of the study material needed more attention, and the teacher's comments gave an indication of what were lacking.

Our apartment is a dream as its spacious with lots of light and well maintained, but 300 meters from us is a 28 storey High-rise being built! Its a seven-day-a-week noisy and dusty operation. The Accra city power cuts are frequent and the overbearing noise and vibrations from the generator is something we will never get used to.  At least we have a generator, and I do not have to maintain it or feed it diesel, so I shall try not to complain.

Its finally time for the exams. This is not a fun time. But then I guess exams never are!

The exams are sat at the British Council in Osu which is about 8km from us, but traffic can delay us reaching there in about 40 minutes if its not too congested. For the practicals of ICT they have to go to Alpha Beta School in Dansoman. The British Council fellow called Elvis has been exceptionally helpful.  Always friendly and to the point, he has given regular feedback via personal phone calls and is always available for enquiries.

CJ has been preparing for his Art Exam over the past 6 weeks. He shall be done by the 25th of October when everything shall be sent to the UK for marking. Elvis put us in contact with an Art Moderator called Sylvester. He's a sharp well educated teacher with a easy going manner about him. My son gets on famously with him. Yea-yeah I know, all Mothers have great expectations from their kids, but CJ is quite talented when it comes to art. Sylvester says he is expecting good results from this exam.

Kira has already finished with one subject, and by tomorrow she'll be done with another subject all together.

So soon another year has gone by...time for a holiday and a visit to friends and family in Namibia...now we just have to get through these exams!